Are small publishers doing all the hard work for the big ones?

These days, it is minimally staffed and funded firms who invest in new authors. The giants avoid such risk, only picking the writers once their names are madePaul McVeigh and Kirsty Logan are authors you may have heard of. Both of their debuts were published by Salt, an independent publisher. Paul McVeigh’s The Good Son was shortlisted for a bunch of awards, and won the Polari first book prize this year. Kirsty Logan’s The Rental Heart and Other Fairytales won three awards — including the Polari in 2015— and Logan had her next book published with Harvill Secker, a division of Penguin Random House. The same trajectory is likely for Paul McVeigh. It’s a familiar story.Independent publishers have existed since the 19th century; it wasn’t until the 20th and the 21st that we saw the industry dominated by a few corporations. “The Big Four” publishers – Simon & Schuster, Penguin Random House, Hachette and HarperCollins – have grown big by buying up small publishers. Hogarth, for example, was founded by Leonard and Virginia Woolf in 1917; now it is an imprint at the Crown Publishing Group, which is in turn a part of Penguin Random House – which itself used to be Penguin and Random House before their merger in 2013. Phew. Related: 'Crazy but fantastic': Man Booker prize pitches tiny publishers into big league Related: A northern powerhouse really is coming – in publishing Continue reading... Continue reading at 'The Guardian'

[ The Guardian | 2016-12-08 00:00:00 UTC ]

Other news stories related to: "Are small publishers doing all the hard work for the big ones?"


Ukraine: Germany’s Börsenverein Joins Leipzig’s ‘Right to Peace’ Campaign

Ahead of the ceremony for the 2022 Leipzig Book Prize for European Understanding, demonstrators will call for Ukraine's 'Right to Peace.' The post Ukraine: Germany’s Börsenverein Joins Leipzig’s ‘Right to Peace’ Campaign appeared first on Publishing Perspectives. Continue reading at Publishing Perspectives

[ Publishing Perspectives | 2022-03-15 17:43:51 UTC ]
More news stories like this


A new story collection is coming from George Saunders.

George Saunders has been busy—teaching the craft of writing (rigorously, one might add) on Substack, as well as continuing to teach at Syracuse—but his personal writing hasn’t taken a backseat: on October 18, Random House will publish Liberation Day, his new short story collection. (!!!)... Continue reading at Literrary Hub

[ Literrary Hub | 2022-03-11 18:09:44 UTC ]
More news stories like this


A new book on songwriting is coming from Bob Dylan.

The times they are a-changin’: Bob Dylan’s first book in eighteen years is coming out this November via Simon & Schuster. It will be Dylan’s first published book since winning the Nobel Prize for Literature in 2016. According to Simon & Schuster, The Philosophy of Modern Song is a... Continue reading at Literrary Hub

[ Literrary Hub | 2022-03-09 17:15:40 UTC ]
More news stories like this


The Future of the Espresso Book Machine

Following the death of legendary Random House editor Jason Epstein, who cofounded On Demand Books with Dane Neller in 2003, Neller said that he believes there is still a place for ODB's signature creation, which the company has called “an ATM for books.” Continue reading at Publishers Weekly

[ Publishers Weekly | 2022-03-04 05:00:00 UTC ]
More news stories like this


In the 19th century, if you had clothes, you had currency — and rights

Married women, enslaved people and others used textiles to assert a place for themselves in the economy and the courts, historian Laura F. Edwards explains. Continue reading at The Washington Post

[ The Washington Post | 2022-02-25 13:00:46 UTC ]
More news stories like this


Gagliano Tapped to Head Boston Book Festival

Gina Gagliano, founder and former publishing director of Random House Graphic, has been named executive director of the Boston Book Festival. Continue reading at Publishers Weekly

[ Publishers Weekly | 2022-02-23 05:00:00 UTC ]
More news stories like this


Simon & Schuster Canada To Open a Canadian Scribner Imprint

The Canadian arm of Simon & Schuster is to open its Scribner Canada imprint with works of Iain Reid and Deborah Thompson. The post Simon & Schuster Canada To Open a Canadian Scribner Imprint appeared first on Publishing Perspectives. Continue reading at Publishing Perspectives

[ Publishing Perspectives | 2022-02-23 01:48:53 UTC ]
More news stories like this


Erroll McDonald Remembers Jason Epstein

Erroll McDonald, v-p and executive editor at Alfred A. Knopf, pays tribute to the legendary Random House editor and industry entrepreneur, who died February 4 at age 93. Continue reading at Publishers Weekly

[ Publishers Weekly | 2022-02-11 05:00:00 UTC ]
More news stories like this


Awards Season: British Academy Prize Names Jurors, Opens Submissions

The 2021 jury for the British Academy Book Prize for Global Understanding returns in the 2022 cycle, seeking works that  'public understanding of world cultures.' The post Awards Season: British Academy Prize Names Jurors, Opens Submissions appeared first on Publishing Perspectives. Continue reading at Publishing Perspectives

[ Publishing Perspectives | 2022-02-10 17:07:21 UTC ]
More news stories like this


Jason Epstein, Legendary Editor and Book Biz Innovator, Dies at 93

The longtime Random House editor, who combined a deep passion for books with a shrewd business mind and, as a result, made multiple major contributions to 20th Century literary and publishing history, died on February 4. Continue reading at Publishers Weekly

[ Publishers Weekly | 2022-02-07 05:00:00 UTC ]
More news stories like this


Jason Epstein, publishing executive who shaped literary tastes, dies at 93

He founded Anchor Books, publishing high-quality paperbacks in the 1950s, then led Random House and helped launch the New York Review of Books. Continue reading at The Washington Post

[ The Washington Post | 2022-02-05 02:25:43 UTC ]
More news stories like this


Book Deals: Week of February 07, 2022

Former U.S. attorney general Eric Holder sells a book about voting rights to One World, Random House buys a memoir from Deadwood creator David Milch, and more. Continue reading at Publishers Weekly

[ Publishers Weekly | 2022-02-04 05:00:00 UTC ]
More news stories like this


Publishers, Agencies Start Receiving Subpoenas as DoJ-PRH Case Ramps Up

As Penguin Random House and the Department of Justice continue to prepare for an August trial in which PRH hopes to block the government’s effort to kill its acquisition of Simon & Schuster, professionals throughout the industry are finding themselves pulled into the legal fray. Continue reading at Publishers Weekly

[ Publishers Weekly | 2022-02-01 05:00:00 UTC ]
More news stories like this


Rubin's behind the scenes publishing memoir goes to Applause Books

Stephen Rubin, a consulting publisher at Simon & Schuster US, has written a behind the scenes memoir, Words and Music: Confessions of an Optimist, to be published by Applause Books in the US in January 2023.  Continue reading at The Bookseller

[ The Bookseller | 2022-01-24 03:29:19 UTC ]
More news stories like this


Norman Mailer is far from canceled. He's history

As Skyhorse announced it will pick up a posthumous essay collection Random House didn't want, it's worth considering what Mailer is. He isn't canceled. Continue reading at Los Angeles Times

[ Los Angeles Times | 2022-01-06 21:32:06 UTC ]
More news stories like this


Skyhorse picks up Mailer anthology, as Random House passes

Norman Mailer's long-term US publisher Random House has declined to publish an anthology of his writing, with indie Skyhorse Publishing picking up the book instead, though the late author's son stressed his father has not been "cancelled". Continue reading at The Bookseller

[ The Bookseller | 2022-01-06 02:12:21 UTC ]
More news stories like this


Skyhorse picks up Norman Mailer collection amid Random House drama

Skyhorse Publishing's acquisition of a collection of the late Norman Mailer's essays comes after reports that his regular publisher declined it. Continue reading at Los Angeles Times

[ Los Angeles Times | 2022-01-05 21:10:06 UTC ]
More news stories like this


Jessica Chastain has optioned Jessamine Chan’s The School for Good Mothers for TV.

Deadline has reported that Jessica Chastain, through her cutely named production company Freckle Films, has beaten out several others to the TV rights to Jessamine Chan’s The School for Good Mothers. The School for Good Mothers, published this week by Simon & Schuster, is Chan’s debut novel;... Continue reading at Literrary Hub

[ Literrary Hub | 2022-01-05 16:49:39 UTC ]
More news stories like this


Norman Mailer has not been ‘cancelled’, his son insists

Random House has not dropped a collection of essays by the late writer as reports have suggested – the publisher declined to make an offer on the book in the first instanceNorman Mailer’s son has denied reports that the late writer has been “cancelled” over his controversialist views.Earlier... Continue reading at The Guardian

[ The Guardian | 2022-01-05 12:15:32 UTC ]
More news stories like this


Penguin Random House, Simon & Schuster file withering response to DOJ antitrust suit

Penguin Random House and Simon & Schuster are putting up a fight against federal efforts to scuttle their merger, alleging the government is wrong. Continue reading at Los Angeles Times

[ Los Angeles Times | 2021-12-13 21:40:35 UTC ]
More news stories like this