Every week, we recommend 5 publishing articles/blog posts that supplement the major news for the week. Whether data or industry commentary, we hope these 5 links will be a simple way to keep you in the know.
Under the ‘Knife’- Conversation With Graphic Designer Behind Salman Rushdie’s Memoir
The Unexpected TikTok Moment for Dostoevsky
AAP Releases October 2024 StatShot Report
From Faulkner to Popeye Who Will Enter Public Domain in 2025?
Every week, we recommend 5 publishing articles/blog posts that supplement the major news for the week. Whether data or industry commentary, we hope these 5 links will be a simple way to keep you in the know.
The Copyright Dilemma in The Age of AI?
Can Literary Prizes Survive Protests?
The Worry of Librarians Amidst Down Children’s Sales
Harvard Releases Public Domain to Ai
Strand Booksellers Strike a Deal For New Contract
PEOPLE
At Simon & Schuster, William Scarlett, formerly deputy director of publicity at W.W. Norton & Company, has joined Simon Element as publicity director.
Erin Kibby joins Atria Books as senior marketing manager. Addie Gilligan joins Scribner as a publicist. Niamh Hoban has joined Simon & Schuster as videographer and video editor.
At Hachette SVP of human resources, Andrea Weinzimer, will be leaving at the end of December after twenty years at the company. She will be succeeded by Carrie Bloxson, SVP of culture and diversity, equity, and inclusion at HBG and Hachette UK.
At HarperCollins, Hannah Phillips has joined William Morrow as executive editor. She was previously at St. Martins Press.
Penguin Random House: Deb Wood will join Knopf Cooks as design director. At Putnam, Ruoxi Chen has joined as executive editor. Bantam Books has named Wendy Wong as editor.
Macmillan Publishers announced that former senior editor at Avid Reader Press, Julianna Haubner is joining Flatiron Books as executive editor.
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At Scholastic, Chandler Rawson, formerly digital intern at PR by the Book, has joined as field sales assistant.
At ReaderLink, Anna Herling has joined as senior national account manager.
Adrienne Westenfeld, books and fiction editor at ‘Esquire’ magazine, has left the company and can be contacted at adriennewestenfeld@gmail.com.
Midwest Independent Booksellers Association sees executive director Carrie Obry step down from her position. Grace Hagen will serve as interim executive direction while the board conducts a search for a replacement.
Hoopla Digital, Christina Faubert has joined as senior account manager of digital acquisitions.
University of North Carolina Press, Susan Garrett, sales director, will retire effective January 31.
Broadleaf Books, Rachel Sammons joins as publicist and can be contacted at chollyrns@gmail.com. She was formerly trade marketing associate at Barefoot Books.
In Agency News…
At P.S. Literary Agency, Mireya Chiriboga, formerly assistant editor at HarperCollins, has joined as a literary assistant.
Martin Literary Management, Alicia Brooks, formerly agent at Jean V. Nagger Agency, has joined as senior literary manager and can be contacted at alicia@martinliterarymanagement.com.
Miller Bowers Griffin Literary Management sees Brooke Mondor join as associate agent.
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PROMOTIONS
At Simon & Schuster, Michael Andersen joins Simon & Schuster’s corporate marketing team as senior director of audience insights. He was previously the director of cultural intelligence at Simon Element. Imani Seymour has been promoted to senior manager of multicultural marketing and social media. Carolyn Kelly has been promoted to editor at Avid Reader Press. Mia Robertson has been promoted to associate editor at Simon & Schuster, moving over from Gallery Books.
Penguin Random House: Jen Donovan, previously senior acquisitions editor of Penguin Random House Audio, has been promoted to executive acquisitions editor. Marissa Secreto has been promoted to associate marketing manager at Penguin Random House Audio. Sana Iqbal has been promoted to associate marketing manager Penguin Random House Audio. Robert Guzman has been promoted to director of marketing at Penguin Random House Audio. Juliette DeSena has been promoted to assistant director of social media at Penguin Random House Audio. Brian Laurito has been promoted to marketing and publicity associate at Penguin Random House Audio. Taylor Noel has been promoted to director of marketing for Ballantine, Bantam, and Dell.
At Macmillan Publishers, Chris Sergio has been promoted to SVP and creative director. Julie Will has been promoted to SVP and editor-in-chief of nonfiction at Flatiron Books.
Scholastic, Brianna Peterson has been promoted to senior marketing operations coordinator. Julia Hines has been promoted to senior metadata coordinator. Travis Paulson has been promoted to metadata optimization coordinator.
ReaderLink, David Banks has been promoted to senior Microsoft Dynamics 365 finance and operations functional analyst.
Johns Hopkins University Press has promoted Wendy Queen to the role of chief transformation officer.
University of North Carolina Press, Molly Koecher has been promoted to chief financial officer. Brock Schnoke has been promoted to digital marketing. Liz Orange Lane has been promoted to assistant sales manager.
Longleaf Services, Clinton Bullock has been promoted to senior manager of operations.
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DULY NOTED
Union workers from The Strand Bookstore went on strike, Saturday, December 7th, asking for owners to pay more than minimum wage. The union and the store’s management are set to discuss contracts again on Monday, December 9th.
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EVENTS
Dec 4-10th
Abu Dhabi, UAE
The Center for Fiction Annual Awards Benefit
Dec 10th
New York, NY
Dec 14-15th
Los Angeles, CA
Every week, we recommend 5 publishing articles/blog posts that supplement the major news for the week. Whether data or industry commentary, we hope these 5 links will be a simple way to keep you in the know.
Welcome to the “Errors Tour” Book – Did Taylor Swift Make a Mistake By Self-Publishing?
Ai Aftermath- How Ai is Devaluing Traditional Publishing
Thank Thoreau for “Brain Rot” – Oxford’s Word of The Year
Costco Cuts Books From 500 Locations
Every week, we recommend 5 publishing articles/blog posts that supplement the major news for the week. Whether data or industry commentary, we hope these 5 links will be a simple way to keep you in the know.
Microsoft Enters the Publishing Scene with Launch of Imprint
What Can We Expect From Taylor Swift’s “Publishing Era”?
What Makes a Word of the Year?
HarperCollins Embracing Ai but What Does This Mean for Author’s Rights?
The Battle of the Audiobooks Continues as Amazon Music Adds Unlimited Audiobooks
Every week, we recommend 5 publishing articles/blog posts that supplement the major news for the week. Whether data or industry commentary, we hope these 5 links will be a simple way to keep you in the know.
Booker Prize Goes to Space with Win From Samantha Harvey’s Orbital
Hachette Employees Protest Over New Conservative Imprints
Why Do Men Prefer Nonfiction to Fiction?
The Post Election BookTok Battle
Trump Threatens New York Times and Penguin Random House
Every week, we recommend 5 publishing articles/blog posts that supplement the major news for the week. Whether data or industry commentary, we hope these 5 links will be a simple way to keep you in the know.
Sales Surge for Dystopian Books
Who Made the Booker Prize Shortlist?
Readers Find Comfort in Trending “Healing” Fiction
Will a Future That’s Female Always Remain Fiction?
There’s a cornucopia of newsletters, blogs and podcasts available to publishers, authors, and book people, so we asked those who follow the industry what they actually read. Publishers Lunch and Publishers Weekly (PW), both of which have free daily newsletters as well as paid subscriptions, were cited by many, but after that a lot depends on your interests (Marketing! Tech! Fiction!), where you go for content and, of course, what – if anything – you’re willing to pay.
In the paid category, other than PW and Publishers Marketplace is Jane Friedman’s The Hot Sheet, a valuable compilation of advice (mostly for authors), news, surveys and opinion pieces. Ann Kjellberg’s BookPost is a subscription-based blog where famous authors post book reviews. Author and LitHub regular Maris Kreizman has been writing The Maris Review about books and publishing since earlier this year; a paid subscription includes author interviews and conversations, and there’s also a podcast on Apple.
Mark William, Editor in Chief of the New Publishing Standard, posts A View From the Beach on LinkedIn. It usually (but not always) focuses on international publishing, and always has a distinct point of view. Publishing Perspectives, a Frankfurt Book Fair publication that is edited by the multitalented Porter Anderson, also offers articles on global publishing.
For readers interested in tech and especially AI, Thad McIlroy’s The Future of Publishing is a go-to, as is Kathy Sandler’s newsletter Technology Innovation Publishing. Ethan Mollick’s One Useful Thing is less content- and more AI-oriented, but very worthwhile reading if interested in different AI models and where they’re heading.
There are newsletters devoted to a range of categories, written by experts like agent Sally Ekus’s Substack newsletter, Not So Secret Agent, which touts itself as “insider info on the nuances of publishing. . .seasoned generously with industry resources from a cookbook agent,” which includes interviews and, no surprise, behind-the-scenes scoops about cooking and cookbooks. Marketer Rebecca Ritchey’s blog, EatingBooks started as a project focusing on food in literature, but has grown to include movies and more.
It’s sometimes hard to say what Kill Your Darlings by former Director of Publicity and Media Relations at Knopf / current communications strategist Paul Bogaards is about (sometimes publishing), but it can be absorbing and amusing at times.
PR veteran Kathleen Schmidt’s, Publishing Confidential is an always fresh potpourri of news, opinions and topics/links of interest to book publishing professionals.
Atria’s Morgan Pager has a blog, NYCBookGirl, with writing and reading recommendations and, of course, there’s LitGirl, which offers “curated literary conversations as well as some deep dives into more philosophical subjects surrounding authors and celebrity.
Numerous authors have websites and blogs where they publish thought pieces and advice, but Ann Patchett posts as a bookseller, with interviews, reviews and anecdotes on the Parnassus Books blog.
Jeff Yamanguchi’s blog focuses on “doable takeaways” in marketing a book: Book Publishing Brick by Brick. And Shelf Awareness is must-reading for those interested in the retail side, as well as what’s pubbing and selling.
There are dozens of podcasts, most focused on self-publishing. Inside Publishing, hosted by the Society of Young Publishers, offers advice to those new(ish) to publishing from industry experts. The Open Road Podcast, new podcast from Open Road Integrated Media that features interviews with authors and industry notables.
And the list goes on, and on.
Tell us what you like, especially if it focuses on publishing and books (and isn’t pitching something too hard), and we’ll try to include it in a future roundup.
Special thanks to Julie Blattberg for her editing of this article.
PEOPLE
At Penguin Random House’s Ten Speed Press, GB Tran has joined as designer. Barbara Fillon has joined the PRH author development team as VP, director of media, author development.
As part of RBmedia’s acquisition, this week Dreamscape has laid-off several people across 10 positions. Further details have yet to be disclosed.
At Simon & Schuster, Stuart Roberts, formerly executive editor at Dey Street Books, has joined as VP, executive editor and special projects. Katherine Nintzel will join as VP, editorial director of Atria Books on November 11th. She was previously with the William Morrow Group for the past 20 years, most recently as VP, editorial director, fiction for Mariner Books.
Hachette has made the following announcements: Fia Senesie has joined Little,Brown and Company as studio manager. June Park has joined as art director, previously she was senior designer at Farrar, Straus and Giroux. Keith Hayes has joined as senior art director, he was previously creative director at Flatiron Books.
PEN America announced that CEO Suzanne Nossel is leaving to become the new president and CEO at Freedom House. Summer Lopez and Clarisse Rosaz Shariyf are being promoted to co-CEOs.
At Macmillan Publishers, Andrew Faber has joined as academic marketing associate. Brittany Hazelwood has joined as assistant general counsel, legal.
Sourcebooks sees Kate Boggs join as associate director, subsidiary rights. Kimi Loughlin joins as regional indie sales manager: New England. Sophie Juhlin joins as inside sales manager. Pamela Bobowicz joins as editor for Callisto. Emma Bagnall joins as digital marketing associate. Henry Holt sees Abigail Novak join as associate director of publicity. She was formerly at Scribner.
Ingram Content Group sees Sree Ravela has joined as Vice President of Fulfillment Systems. He was previously at Bridgestone Americas.
Black + White has announced founder and executive publisher Campbell Brown will leave the company this month.
At Abrams, Amy Vinchesi has joined as managing editor. Chris Ryall has joined ComicArts as editor-at-large and Justin Lee join as systems support technician.
At Ulysses Press, Brian McLendon has joined as VP of marketing and publisher of Velopress imprint; previously he was the former VP and associate publisher and marketing director at Grand Central Publishing.
At Zando, Sam Mitchell has joined as director of publicity.
Chronicle Books sees Isabel Hinchiff join as assistant editor.
Eerdman Publishing Company sees Alana Pedalino join Eerdmans Books for Young Readers as marketing associate.
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In Agency News…
Georgia Bodnar has launched her own agency Noyan Literary. She was previously with UTA.
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PROMOTIONS
Penguin Random House has launched the Penguin Random House Christian Publishing Group and will now comprise Waterbrook, Multinomah, Image, and Forum. Campbell Wharton will take over as SVP, publisher of the new group. He will report to CFO Michael Sansigre. Tina Constable will take on the new role of EVP, business development and also report to Sansigre.
Penguin Random House will now have the Convergent imprint join Harmony and Rodale. Convergent editorial director Derek Reed will report to Harmony, Rodale president Theresa Zoro. SVP, deputy publisher Gail Gonzales will work across the imprints as will publishing manager Claire Readie. Cindy Murray was named VP, senior director of publicity for Harmony, Rodale Books, and Convergent. Deputy director Steven Boriack, senior publicist Alisse Goldsmith-Wissman, assistant director of publicity Ray Arjune, and publicity manager Kelly Doyle will report to her.
Penguin Random House has promoted Jessalyn Foggy to senior director of marketing for Harmony, Rodale Books, and Convergent. Senior manager Rachel Tockstein, marketing manager Jonathan Sung, marketing associate Anna Hayes, marketing associate Elizabeth Groening, and marketing assistant Keilani Lum will now report to her.
Hachette has promoted Kirin Diemont to associate art director at Little, Brown and Company.
At Simon & Schuster, Katie Monaghan has been promoted to VP and senior director of publicity and marketing for Stephan King titles at Scribner. Kassandra Engel has been promoted to publicity manager at Scribner. Bryn Manion has been promoted to director, sales analysis & sales operations. Simon & Schuster Children’s has promoted Heather Palisi-Reyes to art director at Aladdin and Pulse. Julia Shea has been promoted to designer. Sarah Taylor has been promoted to senior designer. Sabrina Pyun has been promoted to associate editor at Scribner. Sophie Guimaraes has been promoted to assistant editor.
Macmillan Publishers has promoted Taylor Armstrong to director, diversified sales. Sameer Chaudhari has been promoted to VP of finance. Emily Chung has been promoted to senior manager of human resources and information systems. LaShauna Cooke has been promoted to senior manager, meeting services. Diego A. Molano Rodriguez has been promoted to associate director, ebook lead, sales. Laura O’Dea has been promoted to senior director, business systems for Biblio. Tova Rohatiner has been promoted to senior engineer of technology. Allison Yeager has been promoted to manager of data privacy. Devin Sukhu has been promoted to senior engineer on the technology team.
Kensington Publishing Corporation has promoted Kristin McLaughlin to assistant director of digital marketing. Kait Johnson has been promoted to social media manager. Andi Paris is being promoted to digital marketing manager.
Scholastic has promoted Teresa Malik to associate director of licensing, media, and brands. Samantha Swank has been promoted to senior editor. Lori Wieczorek has been promoted to senior editor. Emily Nguyen has been promoted to associate editor. Jonah Newman has been promoted to editor. Jooahn Kwon, formerly graphic designer at Simon & Schuster Children’s has joined Scholastic assenior graphic designer.
At Columbia University Press, Christine Dunbar has been promoted to editorial director, succeeding Eric Schwartz.
Union Square & Co. has promoted Mika Kasuga to the newly created role of editorial director, fiction & classics.
Grove Atlantic has promoted Erica Nuñez to director of audio. Joseph Payne has been promoted to associate editor and subsidiary rights associate.
Spines, has announced that Michael Kellman has recently joined as the chief product officer. Kellman was previously senior director of product management at Audible.
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DULY NOTED
South Korean author, Han Kang won the 2024 Nobel Prize in Literature.
The University of Cincinnati has announced it will be shutting down the press on June 30, 2025. Its backlist will be transferred to University of Minnesota Press and Ohio University Press.
Comedian, actor, and author Kate Mckinnon is set to host the 2024 National Book Awards Ceremony on November 20th. This year will mark 75 years and will be held at Cipriani in New York City.
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EVENTS
Oct 28- Nov 5th
Istanbul, TR
Nov 1st-3rd
Cape Cod, MA
Nov 6-10th
Dublin, IRE
Nov 6-10th
Attard, MT
Nov 12th
Booker Prize Winner Announced
Nov 6-17th
Sharjah International Book Fair
Sharjah, UAE
Nov 15-17th
Shanghai International Children’s Book Fair
Shanghai, CHN
Nov 20-24th
Vienna International Book Fair
Vienna, AT
