Crisis management was the reigning publishing paradigm when, in 1998, George Soros’ Open Society Institute funded the Authors Guild Midlist Book Study. So it was slightly ironic when, at a meeting last month featuring study author David Kirkpatrick, several participants pronounced the midlist in satisfactory health and certified that it had never been as well…Continue Reading
PEOPLE Reader’s Digest announces that Harold Clarke, most recently President of Random’s Children’s Publishing Division, has been named VP Publisher New Market Development, for RD’s Global Books and Home Entertainment Division, reporting to SVP and President John Bohane. Speaking of exurban, Janet Harris has left Workman, where she has overseen all sales, to become Associate…Continue Reading
When it comes to selling baseball books, you won’t find any curve balls at the Baseball Online Library, a vast repository of searchable baseball lore that recently began featuring excerpts from new and backlisted titles, with links directly to that major-league slugger, Amazon.com. As the first sales from the site were batted home last month,…Continue Reading
As PowerfulMedia’s Inside.com launches in the next week(s), look for Publishing Trends columns, which will run periodically during the month. PEOPLE Maureen Golden is leaving Workman Publishing at the end of May, after less than nine months in the company. Golden was previously at B&N. . . Also leaving in late May is Paula Duffy,…Continue Reading
“You can’t get yourself on Oprah,” says Carol Fitzgerald of the Book Report Network, “but you can get yourself on the web.” And that’s the business plan in a nutshell of three new ventures — AuthorsOnTheWeb.com, PreviewPort.com, and YourNextBook.com — aiming to bring authors and audiences together on a browser near you. Without further ado,…Continue Reading
PEOPLE This month, the announcement of the millennium comes from Penguin Putnam, which has hired retired Commanding General Gilbert S. Harper of the US Army as VP for warehousing and fulfillment. Responsibilities in his previous life included “designing the Army’s next generation distribution architecture.” Industry watchers like the image of the soldier reporting to our…Continue Reading
PEOPLE A month into the naughts, let’s recap some recent moves: Greg Tobin leaves Ballantine after seven months as VP, Editor in Chief, to try his hand as a full time author. He has a two-book contract with St. Martin’s/Tor Books’ Tom Doherty. . . . Alun Davies, longtime head of BDD’s international division, moves…Continue Reading
PEOPLE Other than arch rivals co-venturing (viz. BOMC and the Doubleday Clubs) and sales departments reorganizing (first Random, then Harper, then S&S. . . ), it’s been a quiet few weeks. Well, not exactly quiet: First, word came that B&N’s David Cully was going to Lechters as President and COO, and then S&S announced that…Continue Reading
