Megan DiMaria is Novel Rocket’s industry news columnist. An author and speaker, she enjoys cheering on writers and loves to encourage others as they journey through life’s demands and delights. Can you believe summer’s over? As delightful as it was, I'm looking forward to autumn. Aren't you? There's lots going on, so let’s get to this month's industry news.
- Sandra D. Bricker appointed managing editor of Bling!, Lighthouse Publishing's new romance imprint. For more info . . . (Check back next month for an exclusive interview with Ms. Bricker about the new Bling! line.)
- Good news for one of our favorite retailers. Business is looking good for Books-A-Million. For more info . . .
- Now, this sounds delightful! A Floating Library on the Hudson River in NY. For more info . . .
- New publisher Magpie Eclectic Press accepting submissions for “all subgenres that fall under the Christian Speculative banner,” and also works that are not strictly Christian. For more info . . .
- Not that we need a reason to celebrate books, but the Iowa City Book Festival looks like it will be a good time. For more info . . .
- . . . another book fair of note, the Toronto Book Fair.
- Also upcoming, Florida Bookstore Day.
- Bummer. The oldest public library in the country may close.For more info . . .
- Yay! Harlequin’s imprint for young adults, Harlequin TEEN, turns five! For more info . . .
- Afraid to take your eReader to the beach? Worry no more. Kobo debuts a new waterproof and dustproof device. For more info . . .
- More in the don’t-count-out-indie-bookstores department. Two in New England are proving they can grow and adapt. For more info . . .
- Three cheers for Laurel Book Store in their efforts to expand. For more info . . .
- The French government has passed an “anti-Amazon” law to protect their culture and French bookstores. For more info . . .
- Paper Lantern Lit, a boutique literary development company, launches a digital imprint. For more info . . .
- Barnes & Noble releases new Samsung Galaxy Tab 4 Nook. For more info . . .
- Kensington Publishing and Books-A-Million to launch Lyrical High Notes, a new line of trade paperbacks that were previously released exclusively as e-books. For more info . . .
- Huh. Who knew? A new study claims “Kindle readers are “significantly” worse at recalling plot compared to paperback readers.” For more info . . .
- Blurb, a POD self-publishing platform, partners with Ingram to get indie authors’ books into bookstores. For more info . . .
- The Amazon vs. Hachette dispute is getting “nasty.” For more info . . .
- Meanwhile, German authors pen letter of protest to Amazon concerning a situation similar to the Amazon vs. Hachette issue. For more info. . .
- Editors at Simon & Schuster's Atria Books downsized in “a planned editorial downsizing.” For more info . . .
- Houghton Mifflin Harcourt trade group profits down, but they’re hopeful for a turnaround. For more info . . .
- According to the U.S. Census Bureau, bookstore sales down first half of 2014. For more info . . .
- Writer's Digest and BookBaby team up to launch Blue Ash Publishing, a new self-publishing venture. For more info . . .
- It will be interesting to track this marketing strategy. HarperCollins launches the HarperCollins Promotional Fund (HCPF) to “provide additional funds to independent retailers to help them market the publisher's books.” For more info . . .
- Pelican Book Group launches Pure Amore, a new sweet romance imprint. For more info . . .
- Julie Gwynn, formerly of Abingdon Press, joins the SeymourAgency as a literary agent.
- The Hachette/Ingram effort to buy Perseus falls through. For more info . . .
- Citing more profitable e-books as the boon, HarperCollins’ revenue increases. For more info . . .
- Simon & Schuster’s profits also up. For more info . . .
- Ebook subscription service Scribd rolls out a new browsing platform that combines “the best of human and algorithmic book recommendation.” For more info . . .
- Barnes & Noble and Google team up for same-day delivery services in an effort to steal market share from Amazon. For more info . . .
- “The number of print books produced by traditional publishers fell in 2013, BUT fiction output rose.” For more info . . .
Have a great month! Do the work. Be productive.
You continue to amaze me, Megan! You're fantastic at finding all the publishing news, not to mention the way you present it. I always read it all. :)
ReplyDeleteThanks, Ane. I have fun writing the column.
DeleteMegan - another great report. Your thoughtful updates likely take far longer to compile than most posts we read here each month. Thank you for sifting through so much data to give us the stuff worth reading!
ReplyDeleteThanks, Allen. It's a easier and an honor to provide the updates.
DeleteI found this fascinating: "Huh. Who knew? A new study claims “Kindle readers are “significantly” worse at recalling plot compared to paperback readers.” For more info . . . "
ReplyDeleteI have the middle of the road Kindle (about three years old), and, although I really like it for the convenience and "portable" ability, if you have to leave a story for any length of time, it can be less easy to regain the momentum to a story - at least for me. I can recall page numbers and the visual position of words on a page fairly well, so I can't really keep track of those kinds of things on my Kindle which tends to determine my recall. That's just me, but I can sort of get this article - IF the example used hadn't been a very short story. In terms of a full-length novel, I get it.
I found that interesting too, Nicole. And thanks for the kind words. It's nice to be appreciated.
DeleteAnd ditto what Ane and Allen said. Amazing work.
ReplyDeleteI heard about your great column at a Christian Writer's conference. So glad I did. Great job!
ReplyDelete