For decades, I sat in meetings with all-white teams. The industry needs an independent body to advise on equalityI’m a literary agent and at the height of last year’s Black Lives Matter protests I was sent a list, with accompanying photographs, of the top editors working across the major publishing houses in the UK. When I read it I burst into tears. It showed a sea of almost totally white faces, some of whom had been approaching retirement when I started out as an editorial assistant 20 years earlier. The stagnation in the industry was stark and filled me with despair.Analysis of the industry since then, partly led by pressure from BLM and an open letter from the Black Writers Guild, has only further highlighted this imbalance. Two of the biggest global publishers, Penguin Random House and Hachette, revealed that just 2.7% of their staff – in both cases – are black; and the Guardian reported that you are eight times more likely to see an animal as lead character in a children’s book than a person of colour.Natalie Jerome is a literary agent, deputy chair of Literature Wales, and a former publisher Continue reading... Continue reading at 'The Guardian'
[ The Guardian | 2022-01-01 10:00:46 UTC ]
Decades after its first publication, Margaret Wise Brown’s classic children’s book “Goodnight Moon” still brings families together. Continue reading at The Christian Science Monitor
[ The Christian Science Monitor | 2022-09-01 15:59:00 UTC ]
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Women-operated and founded podcast network Lemonada Media is launching a book club in partnership with publishing company Penguin Random House. Starting September, the Lemonada Book Club will select recent or upcoming fiction and nonfiction book releases under PRH--aligned with topics related to... Continue reading at AdWeek
[ AdWeek | 2022-08-31 12:13:11 UTC ]
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High inflation and supply chain challenges combined to drop earnings at Penguin Random House 20.7% in the first half of 2022 compared to a year ago. Revenue rose 6.2%, to €1.92 billion, but even there the news was disappointing with parent company Bertelsmann noting that excluding the favorable... Continue reading at Publishers Weekly
[ Publishers Weekly | 2022-08-31 04:00:00 UTC ]
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Every few months, I receive an email or phone call from someone who claims to work for a literary agency or publishing entity. In the lengthy messages variegated with bold-faced sentences, or voicemails in which the speaker mispronounces my maiden name, I’m promised six-figure book deals with... Continue reading at Literrary Hub
[ Literrary Hub | 2022-08-22 08:52:55 UTC ]
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The proposed merger of Penguin Random House and Simon & Schuster could lead to fewer voices — including marginalized voices — being published. Continue reading at Los Angeles Times
[ Los Angeles Times | 2022-08-18 10:09:48 UTC ]
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Today’s edition of kids' book deals is sponsored by The Elephant Girl from Jimmy Patterson Books `The Elephant Girl from Jimmy Patterson... Continue reading at Book Riot
[ Book Riot | 2022-08-17 14:24:08 UTC ]
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Cookbook fans ‘heartbroken’ after John Clark’s derogatory outburst on social mediaThe cookbook author known as the Meal Prep King will no longer be published by Penguin Random House after he posted a misogynistic video on social media.John Clark, whose book The Meal Prep King Plan was a Sunday... Continue reading at The Guardian
[ The Guardian | 2022-08-16 17:55:17 UTC ]
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The antitrust trial to block the merger of Penguin Random House and Simon & Schuster has riveted the industry—and raised larger questions about the business of books. Continue reading at New Yorker
[ New Yorker | 2022-08-16 16:22:22 UTC ]
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After she was dropped by her agent, Alex Aster turned to a books-obsessed corner of TikTok to gauge interest in her YA novel … and now Lightlark is one of the most eagerly anticipated releases of the yearHaving finally published her first novel, Alex Aster was feeling disheartened. The book had... Continue reading at The Guardian
[ The Guardian | 2022-08-16 13:32:30 UTC ]
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As the Department of Justice’s case against the proposed acquisition of Simon & Schuster by Penguin Random House entered its third week, the defense called PRH US CEO Madeline McIntosh, plus merger and acquisition executives from ViacomCBS and PRH, to the stand to discuss why approval of the... Continue reading at Publishers Weekly
[ Publishers Weekly | 2022-08-16 04:00:00 UTC ]
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As attorneys for Penguin Random House and Simon & Schuster took their turn to defend PRH's purchase of S&S, William Morris Endeavor's Jennifer Rudolph Walsh, Gallery publisher Jennifer Bergstrom, and Norton's John Glusman found themselves in the witness chair. Continue reading at Publishers Weekly
[ Publishers Weekly | 2022-08-11 04:00:00 UTC ]
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“The Snowman,” a picture book that tells the story of a boy whose snowman comes to life, sold millions of copies worldwide and became an Oscar-nominated film. Continue reading at The Washington Post
[ The Washington Post | 2022-08-10 19:54:52 UTC ]
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Richard Charkin offers 'a heartfelt apology,' writing that he now finds literary agents 'trusted go-betweens and understanding partners.' The post Richard Charkin: Dear Literary Agent appeared first on Publishing Perspectives. Continue reading at Publishing Perspectives
[ Publishing Perspectives | 2022-08-10 17:00:17 UTC ]
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Allow a budget of £4,000 to do-it-yourself, from the editing and design through to marketing“A top-of-her-game literary agent tells us she receives about 3,000 submissions a year,” says Joe Sedgwick, the head of writing services at The Literary Consultancy. “Of those, she requests to see the... Continue reading at The Guardian
[ The Guardian | 2022-08-09 06:00:19 UTC ]
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The Justice Department’s legal effort to block the merger of book publishing giants Penguin Random House and Simon & Schuster is more than just a showcase for the Biden administration’s tougher approach to corporate consolidation Continue reading at ABC News
[ ABC News | 2022-08-06 14:26:56 UTC ]
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In 2008, after 13 years together, my literary agent and I parted ways. (To preserve her anonymity, let’s call her Michael Ovitz.) Between 1995 and 2002, Michael Ovitz sold two of my novels, including my debut, Hunger Point. By any measure, our partnership was a terrific success. Michael Ovitz... Continue reading at Literrary Hub
[ Literrary Hub | 2022-08-05 08:53:09 UTC ]
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In roughly five hours of testimony on Thursday, Penguin Random House CEO Markus Dohle jousted with government lawyers over PRH's market share, his commitment to allow PRH and S&S editors to bid on the same books if the merger is completed, and other issues tied to what the impact of a... Continue reading at Publishers Weekly
[ Publishers Weekly | 2022-08-05 04:00:00 UTC ]
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The children’s book characters had a makeover and now TikTok users really want to know which one they are. Alyx Gorman explains it to Josh TaylorSo Alyx, I’ve seen lots of Little Miss memes all over the elderly internet (Instagram and Facebook), but apparently they’ve now morphed into quizzes... Continue reading at The Guardian
[ The Guardian | 2022-08-03 06:11:48 UTC ]
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Stephen King testified for the government today, arguing that writers will be harmed if Penguin Random House and Simon & Schuster merge. Continue reading at Los Angeles Times
[ Los Angeles Times | 2022-08-02 22:41:59 UTC ]
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The justice department is seeking to block the $2.2bn merger between Penguin Random House and Simon & SchusterThe government and publishing titan Penguin Random House exchanged opening salvos in a federal antitrust trial Monday as the US seeks to block the biggest US book publisher from... Continue reading at The Guardian
[ The Guardian | 2022-08-01 16:24:36 UTC ]
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