The crisis in non-fiction publishing

When it comes to high-calibre non-fiction, risk-averse trade publishing houses are producing too many copycat ‘smart thinking’ books that promise more than they deliver. But praise should be given to the university pressesAmid the ambient wails of doom about the publishing industry, I’d like to enter a note of encouragement. The mainstream may be getting dumber by the day, but we are living in what looks like a golden age of publishing for, of all people, the university presses.At the moment, I don’t think there’s a trade publishing house producing high-calibre, serious non-fiction of the quality and variety of Yale University Press; and snapping at its heels are Harvard, Oxford, Princeton, Cambridge and Chicago. As the literary editor of a middlebrow news magazine I’m finding ever more of the reviews I commission are from such presses. Continue reading... Continue reading at 'The Guardian'

[ The Guardian | 2015-06-26 00:00:00 UTC ]

Other news stories related to: "The crisis in non-fiction publishing"


Trade figures limber up for London Marathon

Figures from across the publishing industry are limbering up for the Virgin London Marathon this Sunday (26th April). Nick Coveney, head of digital at Blink Publishing, will be running to raise money for the Alzheimer's Society and the Albert Kennedy Trust via his fundraising page. Continue reading at The Bookseller

[ The Bookseller | 2015-04-25 00:00:00 UTC ]
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PW Picks: Books of the Week, April 27, 2015

This week: Werner Herzog walks on ice, Oliver Sacks's new memoir, and the golden age of murder. Continue reading at Publishers Weekly

[ Publishers Weekly | 2015-04-24 00:00:00 UTC ]
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Workflow Management that Works: Digital Solutions in India 2015

The publishing industry is constantly evolving with improved workflows and processes. Continue reading at Publishers Weekly

[ Publishers Weekly | 2015-04-24 00:00:00 UTC ]
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SoA and HC back call for more diversity in publishing

The Society of Authors has said that a “publishing industry which does not reflect society fails writers, readers and itself”. Nicola Solomon, the organisation’s chief executive, and HarperCollins’ director of people John Athanasiou have backed a new report calling for improved diversity across... Continue reading at The Bookseller

[ The Bookseller | 2015-04-21 00:00:00 UTC ]
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Spanning the Globe

The last 10 days have been an especially busy period for all parts of the publishing industry, with major events taking place in London, Minneapolis, and Austin. Continue reading at Publishers Weekly

[ Publishers Weekly | 2015-04-17 00:00:00 UTC ]
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Lightning strikes 50:50 deals

A new publishing model has launched, offering authors a 50% share of revenue on book sales.  Lightning Books, the fiction imprint of the newly created Eyestorm Media, operates a co-publishing model. It was founded by Eye Books owner Dan Hiscocks, a former director of the Independent Publishers’... Continue reading at The Bookseller

[ The Bookseller | 2015-04-17 00:00:00 UTC ]
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Liz Thomson to Step Down at BookBrunch

Thomson, a founding editor of the London-based online daily newsletter and website about the publishing industry, will leave her post after the London Book Fair. Continue reading at Publishers Weekly

[ Publishers Weekly | 2015-04-15 00:00:00 UTC ]
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Frankfurt Book Fair Unveils New Opener: Digital Spotlight 2015

Through countless discussions, experiments, challenges, and conferences, the digital transition has been front and center in the publishing industry for over a decade now. Continue reading at Publishers Weekly

[ Publishers Weekly | 2015-04-03 00:00:00 UTC ]
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5 Digital Magazine Trends to Keep an Eye On in 2015

By Ron Matejko A fter speaking to numerous professionals within various segments of the publishing industry, there's a clear consensus about the key trend for digital magazines in 2015 and it can be summed up in... Continue reading at Publishing Executive

[ Publishing Executive | 2015-04-01 00:00:00 UTC ]
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Publishing Industry Antics on April Fools

Books are a serious business, but the publishing industry had a little fun on April 1 to commemorate April Fools' Day. Continue reading at Publishers Weekly

[ Publishers Weekly | 2015-04-01 00:00:00 UTC ]
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Poisoned Pen to Bring Back Golden Age Mysteries

With "Downton Abbey" reviving interest in the period between the two world wars, the publishing arm of the British Library has been releasing new editions of forgotten classics published in Britain’s golden age of mystery (considered to span most of the 1920s and ’30s) since 2012. Continue reading at Publishers Weekly

[ Publishers Weekly | 2015-03-27 00:00:00 UTC ]
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IPA Congress probes future role of publishers

Bloomsbury chief executive Nigel Newton has compared the state of publishing to the bus teetering half-way off a cliff edge at the end of the film "The Italian Job", on the opening day of the 30th International Publishers Congress in Bangkok (today, 24th March). But HarperCollins c.e.o. Brian... Continue reading at The Bookseller

[ The Bookseller | 2015-03-25 00:00:00 UTC ]
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Legality of Spotify’s lyrics feature called into question

The real-time lyrics feature that Spotify added to its desktop app this past week hasn’t impressed the U.S. karaoke industry. Joseph C Vangieri, the CEO of DigiTrax, has called it “unfair competition for us American ‘Karaoke’ companies.”Lest you think that he has a beef with Spotify, know that... Continue reading at PC World

[ PC World | 2015-03-06 00:00:00 UTC ]
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How Data Is Accelerating the Publishing Industry

By Denis Wilson Yes, data has become a buzzword and anyone with a little extra hot air will be eager to tell you it's the cure to what ails your business. The collection of articles in this issue of Publishing... Continue reading at Publishing Executive

[ Publishing Executive | 2015-02-02 00:00:00 UTC ]
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ABA Winter Institute 2015: Working Together

Independent booksellers have long had an outsized impact on books from indie publishers and university presses. Continue reading at Publishers Weekly

[ Publishers Weekly | 2015-01-30 00:00:00 UTC ]
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ABA Winter Institute 2015: Conversations with Keynoters

Winter Institute offers many ways for booksellers to interact with authors, with dozens participating in Tuesday evening’s author reception and Wednesday’s closing event with writers from small presses and university presses. Continue reading at Publishers Weekly

[ Publishers Weekly | 2015-01-30 00:00:00 UTC ]
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On Writers and Writing review – Margaret Atwood on her profession

Drawing on her panoramic reading and her experiences of the authorly life cycle, Atwood surveys her trade with a mix of seriousness and gentle fun“You may find the subject a little peculiar,” warns Margaret Atwood, before she discusses the writer’s relationship with mortality. “It is a little... Continue reading at The Guardian

[ The Guardian | 2015-01-30 00:00:00 UTC ]
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TV books programmes: if nobody watches them, make better ones

The novelist Robert Harris was right to call the BBC’s lack of a books show a ‘disgrace’. There’s plenty the corporation could do to make a popular literary programme on TVWith injury, there is always a little insult. When a BBC spokesperson, responding to Robert Harris’s complaints at the Costa... Continue reading at The Guardian

[ The Guardian | 2015-01-29 00:00:00 UTC ]
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James Patterson resorts to blowing up new book Private Vegas

James Patterson, already among the world's best-selling authors, plans to shake up the publishing industry with the launch of his new novel, Private Vegas, which will self-destruct within 24 hours. Continue reading at Stuff

[ Stuff | 2015-01-21 00:00:00 UTC ]
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Authors speak out against ethnic and cultural stereotyping

Writers believe that the publishing industry still views them largely through a prism of ethnicity, but industry insiders say that there is no pigeonholing based on race. Authors told The Bookseller they are still defined by their racial identity for marketing purposes and receive more success... Continue reading at The Bookseller

[ The Bookseller | 2015-01-20 00:00:00 UTC ]
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