A group of writers are quids in following an experiment to sell a bundle of DRM-free ebooks. Sales of The Humble Bundle, which included works from authors Cory Doctorow, Neil Gaiman and the much-loved xkcd comic strip, have been anything but humble, with over 84,000 bundles sold, earning the authors $1.1 million in sales. What made the experiment so extraordinary was the fact that buyers could choose what they paid for the bundle, and how much of their price went to charity. WIth the average price coming in at $14.18: anyone who paid more than that got extra content included. One user even paid $1,238 for his 13 books which, if bought separately, would cost $157. One of the writers has been left gobsmacked. Lauren Beukes, author of Zoo City, initially saw the concept as a crazy experiment. "I didn't realise there would be over 75,000 of them spending more than a million dollars in two weeks on books!" she said. "This is New York Times bestseller-level sales." The online publishing industry will have been given a real fillip by this - especially authors who choose to publish their own work by themselves. Larger publishing houses and retailers such as Amazon, both of which swear by the draconian DRM, will be looking to see how future bundles, already in the Humble Bundle pipeline, fare. Continue reading at 'Fast Company'
[ Fast Company | 2012-10-24 00:00:00 UTC ]
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The Lviv BookForum was vibrant this year, but still there is the backdrop of conflict and the need to find a place for storytellingLast year’s Lviv BookForum, a literary festival in the elegant western Ukrainian city, was mostly an online affair, held in a basement lecture theatre that might... Continue reading at The Guardian
[ The Guardian | 2023-10-21 05:00:38 UTC ]
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In his fond memoir “Making It So,” the actor traces the path from the working class to the Shakespearean stage to “Star Trek” superstardom. Continue reading at The New York Times
[ The New York Times | 2023-10-03 09:00:17 UTC ]
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Solid-selling new books, including the new biography of Elon Musk, weren't enough to stop unit sales of print books from falling 5.7% last week from the comparable week in 2022. Continue reading at Publishers Weekly
[ Publishers Weekly | 2023-09-21 04:00:00 UTC ]
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The National Book Foundation has rescinded Drew Barrymore's invitation to host the National Book Awards while her show tapes amid the Hollywood strikes. Continue reading at Los Angeles Times
[ Los Angeles Times | 2023-09-12 23:23:20 UTC ]
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Take a fun quiz about things that scare you and receive a great book recommendation to scare you even more! Continue reading at Book Riot
[ Book Riot | 2023-08-31 10:37:00 UTC ]
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A library card is one of the most useful things you can have in your wallet. Libby offers free access to ebooks and audiobooks if you have a supported library card (some 90 percent of public libraries in North America now use OverDrive's app). Not only that, you can also use Libby to read a host... Continue reading at Engadget
[ Engadget | 2023-08-28 17:00:30 UTC ]
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Policies in response to book bans are pushing kids out of libraries — plus, this week's censorship and book banning news. Continue reading at Book Riot
[ Book Riot | 2023-08-04 10:40:00 UTC ]
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An April report by the UK-based publishing site, The Bookseller, showed that more than half of the debut authors they surveyed said the experience of publishing a book adversely affected their mental health. Further reporting from The Guardian reveals that (some) publishers have quickly... Continue reading at Literrary Hub
[ Literrary Hub | 2023-07-19 19:03:31 UTC ]
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The authors of a picture book about a penguin family with two fathers sued the state and a school district that removed the book from libraries. Continue reading at The New York Times
[ The New York Times | 2023-06-20 14:25:50 UTC ]
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“So many come to mind,” says the author, whose novel “The Rabbit Hutch” won a National Book Award last year and will be out in paperback this month. “I guess I’m often furious?” Continue reading at The New York Times
[ The New York Times | 2023-06-08 09:00:31 UTC ]
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Dolly Parton's Imagination Library will expand its program to send children free books across all 58 California counties, Gov. Gavin Newsom announces. Continue reading at Los Angeles Times
[ Los Angeles Times | 2023-06-07 15:51:03 UTC ]
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The nonprofit of an independent bookstore in California is making book fairs accessible to underserved students. Continue reading at Book Riot
[ Book Riot | 2023-06-01 18:58:52 UTC ]
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Pollack, who created the first mainstream transgender superhero, Kate Godwin, had been fighting Hodgkin’s lymphomaRachel Pollack, award-winning author, leading authority on tarot and the occult, trans activist and comic-book writer who created the first mainstream transgender superhero, has died... Continue reading at The Guardian
[ The Guardian | 2023-04-08 10:45:56 UTC ]
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Longtime publisher Hardie Grant is kicking off their North American line of food and lifestyle titles in style. (Sponsored) Continue reading at Publishers Weekly
[ Publishers Weekly | 2023-03-31 04:00:00 UTC ]
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The Little Free Library nonprofit literacy organization announced that it hopes to eliminate book deserts across the U.S. by partnering with local community organizations to install and maintain book-sharing boxes. Continue reading at Publishers Weekly
[ Publishers Weekly | 2023-03-29 04:00:00 UTC ]
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If the directors of superhero movies are considered auteurs, why aren’t the writers and artists who created the comics they’re based on? Continue reading at The Conversation
[ The Conversation | 2023-02-20 19:01:51 UTC ]
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Leading bookfluencer and budding book business entrepreneur Zibby Owens discusses the newly launched Zibby Books; her first bookstore, Zibby’s Bookshop, which will open in Santa Monica, Calif., this month; and more. Continue reading at Publishers Weekly
[ Publishers Weekly | 2023-02-10 05:00:00 UTC ]
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A Chicago-based independent publisher has responded to the recent attack on Black History by offering free books. Continue reading at Book Riot
[ Book Riot | 2023-02-08 16:46:55 UTC ]
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The owner of the hybrid publisher has promised representatives from the Authors Guild that he will address the myriad complaints brought against his company that have piled up for about five years. Continue reading at Publishers Weekly
[ Publishers Weekly | 2023-02-01 05:00:00 UTC ]
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Phenomenal Media, a company launched by Kamala Harris’ niece that celebrates underrepresented women, is debuting a new partnership with Hachette Books. In 2016, Meena Harris started designing statement t-shirts that quite literally made a statement. Her most famous one read “Phenomenal Woman,”... Continue reading at Fast Company
[ Fast Company | 2023-01-24 08:00:00 UTC ]
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