Connecticut libraries announce Random House ebook boycott

Click here to see why.

Using Twitter to Get Projects/Contracts

I came across a blog post which demonstrates how to use twitter in order to get projects. This particular blogger, Josh Alves, used twitter to get himself a publishing contract. He used tweetdeck and Google Chrome.

Click here for the entire post.

Cutting Out Middlemen in ebook Sales

When it comes to ebooks and sales, Joe Konrath is up there with Amanda Hocking and John Locke. Now comes the news that he’s found a new way to cut out the middleman between the author and the reader. Click here for advice from the man himself.

Something Else for Authors to Worry About

In my post on June 11, 2011 I wrote about about Literary agent Peter Cox offering free reviews of author contracts. I also had a link to his rather impassioned post about the dangers of letting your literary agent also be your publisher (for the potential conflict of interest issues).

Today I came across the article that indie publisher Akashic Books  is teaming up with two literary agent to launch the imprint Open Lens.

Please note: I am not stating that the literary agents in question will, in fact, publish the books of their own clients (I have no information on this). I’m just pointing out the trend of literary agent turning publisher.

Click here for the article.

 

Amazon’s Latest Imprint

Amazon’s on a roll. It is launching its fifth publishing imprint, Thomas & Mercer, which is in the mystery and thriller category, the others being Montlake Romance, AmazonEncore, AmazonCrossing, and The Domino Project.

Click here for more on this.

Simon & Schuster in India

This from Publisher’s Marketplace: Simon & Schuster has created a New Delhi-based sales, marketing and publishing company, Simon & Schuster India. The company’s exclusive sales agent on the subcontinent Rahul Srivastava will run the new unit locally as director of sales and marketing, reporting to S&S UK executive director Kerr MacRae. HarperCollins India will handle fulfillment and distribution, with “operations expected to commence August 1.” Inventory will come mostly from S&S UK, and they will offer titles from all of S&S’s divisions worldwide and distribution clients.

Davidar Returns to India

David Davidar, the man who, as head of Penguin India, took Indian publishing to new heights, is back. He is setting up the Aleph Book Company in collaboration with Rupa, India. Stay tuned.

Pulitzer Prize Winners Announced

Pulitzer Prize winners have been announced. A few of interest:

FICTION – “A Visit from the Goon Squad” by Jennifer Egan (Alfred A. Knopf)

DRAMA – “Clybourne Park” by Bruce Norris

HISTORY – “The Fiery Trial: Abraham Lincoln and American Slavery” by Eric Foner (W. W. Norton & Company)

BIOGRAPHY – “Washington: A Life” by Ron Chernow (The Penguin Press)

POETRY – “The Best of It: New and Selected Poems” by Kay Ryan (Grove Press)

GENERAL NONFICTION – “The Emperor of All Maladies: A Biography of Cancer” by Siddhartha Mukherjee (Scribner)

MUSIC – “Madame White Snake’” by Zhou Long, premiered on February 26, 2010 by Opera Boston at the Cutler Majestic Theatre.

Click here   for details.

The Publishing Scene in India

With India publishing the third largest number of English books in the world, and to a large reading audience, India is not an insignificant market.  Add to that the indigenous e-book readers, Wink and Infibeam Pi, with built-in Indian language support, and the potential for book sales is huge.

A few independent publishers have come together as Independent Publishers’ Distribution Alternatives. Other small publishers are aligning themselves with larger ones to market their books – like Zubaan Books with Penguin, Permanent Black and with Orient Blackswan.

Click here  for the entire article.