Kamila Shamsie: let’s have a year of publishing only women – a provocation

It is clear that there is a gender bias in publishing houses and the world of books. Well, enough. Why not try something radical? Make 2018 the Year of Publishing Women, in which no new titles should be by menSeveral years ago, Martin Amis chaired a literary festival panel on “The Crisis of American Fiction” with Richard Ford, Jay McInerney and Junot Díaz. I was in the audience, and halfway through the discussion leaned over to the person sitting next to me and said: “Clearly the crisis of American fiction is that there are no women in it.” It’s not just that there weren’t any women on the stage. In the entire discussion, which lasted nearly an hour, there was no mention of Toni Morrison, Marilynne Robinson, Annie Proulx, Anne Tyler, Donna Tartt, Jhumpa Lahiri or any other contemporary female writer. A single reference to Eudora Welty was the only acknowledgment that women in the US have ever had anything to do with the world of letters. Díaz, near the end of the hour, made the point that the conversation had centred on white American males, but it was too little, too late.I think of this panel when reading yet another article or survey about the gender imbalance that exists in publishing houses, in terms of reviews, top positions in publishing houses, literary prizes etc. The issue can’t of course be broken down into a story of fair-minded women versus bigoted men. Like any effective system of power – and patriarchy is, over time and space, the world’s most effective... Continue reading at 'The Guardian'

[ The Guardian | 2015-06-05 00:00:00 UTC ]
News tagged with: #anne tyler #donna tartt #jhumpa lahiri #gender imbalance #top positions #literary prizes #effective system #win prizes

Other Publishing stories related to: 'Kamila Shamsie: let’s have a year of publishing only women – a provocation'


Ad Age's Magazine A-List: Bon Appetit is Magazine of the Year

When Conde Nast closed Gourmet in 2009, the company staked much of its epicurean business on Bon Appetit, a staid magazine with a big circulation but little traction outside the food category. But soon enough Conde Nast took another risk, assigning the title's reinvigoration to a pair of leaders... Continue reading at Advertising Age

[ Advertising Age | 2013-10-21 00:00:00 UTC ]
More news stories like this | News stories tagged with: #magazine a-list #bon appetit #conde nast


Should Self-publishing Platforms Censor Objectionable Books?

Several self-publishing ebook platforms have censored rape, incest and other objectionable titles while others appear to continue profiting from them. Continue reading at Publishing Perspectives

[ Publishing Perspectives | 2013-10-18 00:00:00 UTC ]
More news stories like this |


A New Chapter in Puerto Rico: Spanish-Language Publishing 2013

Known for its pristine beaches, El Yunque rain forest, and beautiful Spanish colonial architecture, Puerto Rico is also an important book market for U.S. publishers. Continue reading at Publishers Weekly

[ Publishers Weekly | 2013-10-18 00:00:00 UTC ]
More news stories like this | News stories tagged with: #puerto rico


What Hispanics Are Buying: Spanish-Language Publishing 2013

As book publishers continue to expand their offerings to meet the needs of Hispanic consumers, it is important to look at the genres and formats of the books these consumers are likely to purchase. Continue reading at Publishers Weekly

[ Publishers Weekly | 2013-10-18 00:00:00 UTC ]
More news stories like this |


NewsCred Turns Brands And Marketers Into Publishers With NewsRoom

Although big media brands like The New York Times and The Economist aren't going away anytime soon, the online publishing industry increasingly includes brands, marketers, and independent journalists. With the launch of a new content network, the tech startup NewsCred wants to be the liaison... Continue reading at Fast Company

[ Fast Company | 2013-10-17 00:00:00 UTC ]
More news stories like this | News stories tagged with: #original content #content marketing #core business #media partners #fast company #entry point


Iranian Publishers Hope for Change Under New Regime

Under the Iran's new government, the publishing industry promises to be more open and has produced its first ever Persian translation catalog. Continue reading at Publishing Perspectives

[ Publishing Perspectives | 2013-10-17 00:00:00 UTC ]
More news stories like this |


Pinterest Drives More Traffic to Publishers Than Twitter, LinkedIn, Reddit Combined

When it comes to referral traffic from social networks, there's Facebook and Pinterest — and then there's everyone else. Facebook accounted for more than 10% of overall traffic to publishers in September, by ... Continue reading at Editor & Publisher

[ Editor & Publisher | 2013-10-16 00:00:00 UTC ]
More news stories like this | News stories tagged with: #referral traffic #social networks


Survey Finds Publishers Have Concerns Over Paywalls Being Bypassed

Not being able to control access to content as users bypass the paywall is a major challenge facing publishers. This is according to new research carried out by MPP Global Solutions as part of its latest webinar on the future of digital publishing m ... Continue reading at Editor & Publisher

[ Editor & Publisher | 2013-10-16 00:00:00 UTC ]
More news stories like this | News stories tagged with: #research carried #digital publishing


With Readers Still Willing to Pay, Is Publishing Catching a Break?

In the New Republic, Evan Hughes argues that the book business has fared far better than music, movies and other media in sustaining its value to consumers. Continue reading at Publishing Perspectives

[ Publishing Perspectives | 2013-10-16 00:00:00 UTC ]
More news stories like this | News stories tagged with: #book business


Kobo removes all self-published titles. Is this censorship, an overreaction, or just good sense?

Amazon, Barnes & Noble, and Kobo removed self-published pornographic titles from their sites and Kobo stopped sales of self-published titles altogether. Continue reading at The Christian Science Monitor

[ The Christian Science Monitor | 2013-10-16 00:00:00 UTC ]
More news stories like this | News stories tagged with: #self-published titles #good sense #barnes noble


One Year Later, Medium Is Changing the Way Its Writers Write and Its Readers Read

It was just more than a year ago that Ev Williams and Biz Stone created the publishing platform Medium. The Internet officially met the site in August 2012, and since then, Medium’s popularity has grown enough for even the most ske ... Continue reading at Editor & Publisher

[ Editor & Publisher | 2013-10-15 00:00:00 UTC ]
More news stories like this |


Ether for Authors: Is It Time for Publishing to Call a Truce?

Porter Anderson looks at the Frankfurt Book Fair, at Sprint Beyond the Book and Book Sprints, at pen names, and more in Ether for Authors this week. Continue reading at Publishing Perspectives

[ Publishing Perspectives | 2013-10-15 00:00:00 UTC ]
More news stories like this | News stories tagged with: #porter anderson


Digital Publishers Are Fighting the Shift to Programmatic

Are digital sellers undermining the move to automated buying? For a long time, online publishers have worried that the shift to programmatic would undercut their premium business. Some have even created their own private exchanges and are c ... Continue reading at Editor & Publisher

[ Editor & Publisher | 2013-10-15 00:00:00 UTC ]
More news stories like this | News stories tagged with: #digital publishers #long time #online publishers #private exchanges


Year-long promotion for Bear Hunt

The 25th anniversary of We’re Going on a Bear Hunt by Michael Rosen and Helen Oxenbury in... Continue reading at The Bookseller

[ The Bookseller | 2013-10-14 00:00:00 UTC ]
More news stories like this | News stories tagged with: #bear hunt #25th anniversary #michael rosen #helen oxenbury


Big Data Added $156 Billion in Revenue to Economy Last Year [Updated]

Responding to growing Washington attacks on data brokers, the Direct Marketing Association is mounting its biggest defense by unveiling a new study Monday during its annual conference in Chicago. The study quantifies how much of the economy is driven by companies that use consumer-level data to... Continue reading at AdWeek

[ AdWeek | 2013-10-14 00:00:00 UTC ]
More news stories like this | News stories tagged with: #19th century #political organizations


How Much is Too Much? Getting the Content Balance Right in Digital Publishing

As digital publishing slowly but surely comes to eclipse traditional, printed media a big question arises: what happens to the publishing schedule when there are no fixed dealines? This is a problem being tackled head on by the Financial Time ... Continue reading at Editor & Publisher

[ Editor & Publisher | 2013-10-14 00:00:00 UTC ]
More news stories like this | News stories tagged with: #digital publishing #printed media #publishing schedule


AMP Reissues Self-Published Book of Poems

Andrews McMeel Publishing has moved quickly to produce and promote Lang Leav’s Love & Misadventure, a 176-page volume containing 75 poems, as well as prose and illustrations, in which the author ruminates upon the highs and lows that inevitably accompany romantic relationships. Continue reading at Publishers Weekly

[ Publishers Weekly | 2013-10-13 00:00:00 UTC ]
More news stories like this | News stories tagged with: #moved quickly #love misadventure


Publishing’s Leap of Faith

Ed Nawotka examines the publishing industry's changing relationship with data and how that might or might not impact the way publishers acquire and sell books. Continue reading at Publishing Perspectives

[ Publishing Perspectives | 2013-10-11 00:00:00 UTC ]
More news stories like this | News stories tagged with: #publishing industry #sell books


AUDIO: Morrissey book published as classic

Author of Morrissey Dr Gavin Hopps and former literary editor of The Times Erica Wagner, discuss the decision made by Penguin to classify Morrissey's new autobiography as a classic. Continue reading at BBC World

[ BBC World | 2013-10-11 00:00:00 UTC ]
More news stories like this | News stories tagged with: #literary editor #decision made


Back To The (Sustainable) Future: The Year 2050 In Words And Pictures

It's 2050. Somehow we haven't joined the dinosaurs in extinction, succumbed to the Secret Society of Super Villains, or been raptured up to the clouds. And the robots are friendly, not evil. Futurologist and environmentalist Sir Jonathan Porritt's The World We Made: Alex McKay's Story from 2050,... Continue reading at Fast Company

[ Fast Company | 2013-10-11 00:00:00 UTC ]
More news stories like this | News stories tagged with: #space odyssey #parting gift #science fiction #spent years