News and opinion on the changing world of book publishing
Laura Hazard Owen | May 2009
Last fall, BookExpo America formed its first-ever Conference Advisory Board and decided to increase the show’s focus on content and programming. “In the past, we had too many sessions that were all over the map and that were trying to be all things to all people,” says Courtney Muller, Group Vice President of BEA. In [...]
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Laura Hazard Owen | November 2008
They’re not yet ubiquitous on the subway. And the “paperless office” is still a dream at this point. Our second annual industry survey of industry professionals found that 70% of respondents had never read an e-book. It’s unlikely that entry-level employees will receive shiny new Sony Readers with their company handbooks any time soon. Still, [...]
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October 2007
PEOPLE The big news this month was the long-anticipated promotion of Carolyn Reidy to the position of President & CEO of S&S, following Jack Romanos‘ retirement announcement. Following that move, Michael Selleck has been promoted to the newly created position of EVP, Sales and Marketing for S&S Inc.. He was SVP Sales & Marketing for [...]
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The effects of one independent bookstore closing are felt throughout the delicate ecosystem of publishing, and independent reps are bellwethers for what’s in store for the rest of the industry. When Publishing Trends checked in with commission reps three years ago (see PT Nov 04), the prevailing mood could be called reservedly optimistic. Since then, [...]
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July 2007
PEOPLE In a reorganization of the books group, Linda Cunningham, Editorial Director at Meredith has been laid off along with 15 other people. She can be reached at 215.752.2664, or at lindacunningham1@hotmail.com. HarperCollins has hired Steve Ross as President and Publisher, Collins, reporting to Brian Murray. He had been Publisher of Crown. George Bick, SVP [...]
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June 2007
The distribution terrain underwent a few sizeable rumbles last year, not to mention the major quake of the AMS bankruptcy that sent PGW flying to Perseus after a tussle with NBN, resulting in Perseus’ coopting of the indie publisher distribution biz. As the dust settles, smaller distributors are poised to grab the trickle down of [...]
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May 2007
PEOPLE Carl Raymond has been recruited by Scholastic’s Trade president, Lisa Holton, to the newly created position of Director of New Media Projects. He was most recently Adult Publishing Director of DK. HarperCollins Group President Brian Murray announced that Joe Tessitore, President of Collins since 2004, will retire from full-time publishing by November 1. In [...]
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March 2007
PEOPLE Sales was where the action was this past month, with big changes at Random House, S&S, Abrams and elsewhere. Mary Wowk, Director of World Wide Sales at Black Dog & Leventhal, has been appointed VP, Sales of HNA, which includes Abrams, STC and distributed lines. In a separate announcement, Katrina Weidknecht has been appointed [...]
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December 2006
PEOPLE Will Kiester is returning to the US after 18-months in Australia at Murdoch Books, to become Publisher of Fairwinds Press, an imprint of Rockport Publications. Previously, He had been at Quarto. Kaylee Davis’ position at Bookspan’s Children’s BOMC/KBP was eliminated in a reorganization. The company has decided to focus the club in a more [...]
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October 2006
PT Examines the Non-Traditional Publishing Spectrum; Major Houses Ramp Up Custom Forget public service announcements: The American Heart Association wants you to know that Jamie-Lynn Sigler’s first boyfriend had Wildberry Skittles breath. As part of their effort to get women “to band together to wipe out heart disease” the AHA and national sponsor Macy’s commissioned [...]
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