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.
