We see conferences — conferencing — in many ways now. In many places. Or in no places. Such is digital publishing. Such is digital everything. Everywhere and nowhere. At all times and at no times. World without schedule but hardly without agenda. And here we are, at The FutureBook, holding what is, in fact, a kind of… Read More
#FutureChat Recap: #AuthorSay — but which #authors do?
Is self-publishing a matter of choice? Or of necessity? Or of do-it-yourself pride? In interviewing the Indian author of the Shiva Trilogy, Amish Tripathi, on Wednesday for the London Book Fair’s Publishing for Digital Minds Conference virtual stream, an interesting line came over the ether from Mumbai. I’d asked Tripathi about the tactic he and his agent… Read More
Who's afraid of self-publishing? #authorsay
‘Either neutral or horrified at the thought of taking control’ My favourite line in my good colleague Philip Jones’ early look at traditionally publishing authors’ responses to the ongoing survey was just that: When asked about the possibility of self-publishing, only a minority of authors were excited at the prospect, with the majority (75%), either… Read More
Ebooks to and from China: Trajectory, Tencent, technology
At first glance, you may think that Trajectory is on a different trajectory. Today’s news — released first by The Bookseller this morning — is, if nothing else, about a lot of titles. And those titles, first and foremost, are part of a distribution deal. The Boston-based Trajectory, Inc., has inked a partnership with China’s big… Read More
How widely does Kindle's garden really grow?
We know what Kindle can do for a single title. It was the Kindle Daily Deal for [Gail Carriger’s] Etiquette & Espionage that happened last week. Thousands and thousands of ebook copies sold during a short period of time. As we can now see from yesterday’s news, it was enough to propel the whole “Finishing School”… Read More
Putting a finger on imprints
‘Does anyone really care about imprints outside of the book trade?’ When Canelo publishing director Michael Bhaskar starts his essay for us here at The FutureBook with that question, he could well be referencing the range of perceptions and issues we found waiting in #FutureChat. Prompted by my colleague Philip Jones’ good column, The imprint of… Read More
‘Do You Love Your Publisher?’ #AuthorSay Is Hanging On Every Word
‘To Encourage More Professional Authors To Speak Out’ Originating with our report at The Bookseller’s The FutureBook in London, the news of a new online survey today (March 2) could mean a better understanding of authors’ experiences in what is sometimes called “legacy” publishing. A US-UK effort is gathering fresh perspectives on the “quiet side” of… Read More
#AuthorSay: 'Do You Love Your Publisher?'
Exclusive to The Bookseller’s The FutureBook: At noon London time today (2nd March) — 7 a.m. New York time — a new international survey has opened to traditionally published authors. The survey is co-produced by Jane Friedman in the States and Harry Bingham in the UK. It will be available to traditionally published authors for four weeks. The hashtag… Read More
Could imprints get publishers' readers in a row?
Join us each Friday for our live #FutureChat with The FutureBook digital community at 4 p.m. London (GMT), 5 p.m. Rome, 11 a.m. New York, 8 a.m. Los Angeles. You’ve heard it. I’ve heard it. Imprints are done. Right? Maybe not. Imprints are all around us — and in fact growing in number and importance.… Read More
Women in publishing — achievements and challenges
Here is an important and sensitive subject, one that can become emotionalised — for perfectly understandable reasons. As is made clear in The Bookseller’s 13th February edition, the UK publishing industry can be proud of a distinction many other businesses can’t claim: its women are in the forefront. In their lead story, Felicity Wood (pictured right) and Sarah… Read More