Turning a new page: the rise of #Merky Books

Malorie Blackman sold her life story to them, other hot authors are lining up. What makes Stormzy’s imprint so different?In a glass-walled meeting room on the fifth floor of Penguin Random House headquarters in Pimlico, Theophina Gabriel is talking about her love of reading while laughing at her trigger-happy printing: “The last thing that came in I found so magical, it was 329 pages and I printed it all… Don’t worry I checked if I was allowed to first!” She’s part of a team that makes up one of the year’s most exciting literary imprints, #Merky Books. Today, the team is gathered around, drinking coffee and chatting about their pop-up event in east London the week before, which invited a community of young writers to dance and seek writing advice from the likes of playwright Inua Ellams and musician Wretch 32.The team are all characters worth reading about themselves. Twenty-two-year-old editorial assistant Gabriel, who routinely dresses all in purple (today she has a crop of lilac hair, violet glasses and a purple jumper), currently on an internship programme, was the first in her British Grenadan family to go to university, and publishes a radical zine, Onyx, which celebrates black creatives. Emma Wallace, 30, the senior audience and brand manager, is British Sri Lankan and English, and previously worked at start-ups and the BBC doing social media. The softly spoken founder and editorial director Tom Avery, 36, brings 13 years of publishing experience. And there’s... Continue reading at 'The Guardian'

[ The Guardian | 2019-12-16 08:00:15 UTC ]
News tagged with: #brand manager #previously worked ##merky books #penguin random house

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London Book Fair 2014: Open Source for an Open Publishing Ecosystem: Readium.org Turns One

Last month marked the one-year anniversary of the formation of the Readium Foundation (Readium.org), an independent nonprofit launched in March 2013 with the objective of developing commercial-grade open source publishing technology software. Continue reading at Publishers Weekly

[ Publishers Weekly | 2014-04-04 00:00:00 UTC ]
More news stories like this | News stories tagged with: #org turns #open source #one-year anniversary


Sony turns the page on ebooks in North America

The PC business isn’t the only one Sony will abandon. The electronics giant is also closing the books on its North American ebook efforts.“Wait,” you’re probably saying after reading that sentence: “Sony was making an ebook effort in North America?”And you know, that’s pretty hurtful.Still, you... Continue reading at PC World

[ PC World | 2014-02-07 00:00:00 UTC ]
More news stories like this | News stories tagged with: #sony reader #electronics giant #barnes noble


E-reading on the rise but print books still dominate

New research by the Pew Internet and American Life Project shows that the percentage of American adults who read an ebook in the past year has risen to 28 percent, up from 23 percent in 2012. Yet the tree book isn't dead yet, at least in the popularity sense, as the results show most ebook... Continue reading at Betanews

[ Betanews | 2014-01-16 00:00:00 UTC ]
More news stories like this | News stories tagged with: #print books #pew internet #american adults


Bold and Beautiful turns a new page

An Australian publisher has acquired the global rights to turn the TV drama into romance novels.     Continue reading at The Sydney Morning Herald

[ The Sydney Morning Herald | 2013-12-11 00:00:00 UTC ]
More news stories like this | News stories tagged with: #australian publisher #global rights #tv drama #romance novels


Sales Dip, Losses Rise at Books-A-Million

Sales for the third quarter ended November 2 at Books-A-Million fell 3.5%, to $100.4 million, and its net loss deepened to $7.1 million, from $2.8 million in the third period of 2012. Continue reading at Publishers Weekly

[ Publishers Weekly | 2013-11-26 00:00:00 UTC ]
More news stories like this | News stories tagged with: #sales dip #losses rise


Book Country Debuts Curated Kickstarter Page

Book Country, the Penguin Group’s online writing community and self-publishing platform, has launched a curated page on Kickstarter, the popular online crowdfunding site, to highlight funding projects by Book Country members. Continue reading at Publishers Weekly

[ Publishers Weekly | 2013-11-14 00:00:00 UTC ]
More news stories like this | News stories tagged with: #book country #penguin group #self-publishing platform


New E-Book Services Borrow a Page From Netflix

Oyster and Scribd let you read an unlimited number of books for a monthly fee, but is there enough content to make it worth it? Continue reading at AllThingsD

[ AllThingsD | 2013-10-31 00:00:00 UTC ]
More news stories like this | News stories tagged with: #unlimited number #monthly fee


Books in Browsers IV: The Rise of the Reader

At Books in Browsers 2013, the summit kicked off with several discussions about how readers, both as consumers and creators of content, are transforming the book publishing industry. Continue reading at Publishing Perspectives

[ Publishing Perspectives | 2013-10-25 00:00:00 UTC ]
More news stories like this | News stories tagged with: #browsers iv


Brazilian Children’s Books on the Rise in Frankfurt

Leading Brazilian children's publishers are in the spotlight this year at the Frankfurt Book Fair, and demonstrate Brazil's growing rights business with markets around the world. Continue reading at Publishing Perspectives

[ Publishing Perspectives | 2013-10-11 00:00:00 UTC ]
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Comic Book Artist Turns Breaking Bad</em> Episodes Into Killer Posters

If you're not already in a state of advanced excitement over the Breaking Bad finale, Francesco Francavilla's episodic images will put you over the edge.     Continue reading at Wired

[ Wired | 2013-09-28 00:00:00 UTC ]
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Ellen Page Could Be Your New Comic Book Action Star

Ellen Page is reportedly talking to 20th Century Fox to headline a big-screen adaptation of Greg Rucka's Queen &amp; Country. Could she be the next big comic-book-inspired action star?     Continue reading at Wired

[ Wired | 2013-09-10 00:00:00 UTC ]
More news stories like this | News stories tagged with: #big-screen adaptation #greg rucka


BookVibe Turns Twitter Data into Book Discovery Tool

BookVibe allows users to search their tweets and extract the books that are being discussed by the people they follow on Twitter. Continue reading at Publishers Weekly

[ Publishers Weekly | 2013-07-25 00:00:00 UTC ]
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Star Tribune Publishes Serialized Novel in Paper, Turns it Into an e-Book

Lynn Liedman wakes up every morning looking for the Minneapolis Star Tribune. She&amp;rsquo;s been a loyal subscriber for years, but it wasn&amp;rsquo;t until this summer that she really got hooked. She&amp;rsquo;s not reading for news. Inst ... Continue reading at Editor & Publisher

[ Editor & Publisher | 2013-07-03 00:00:00 UTC ]
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Unloved books turned into artwork

A bookseller who turns unwanted books from charity shops into miniature sculpted works of art, opens a British Academy exhibition. Continue reading at BBC News

[ BBC News | 2013-05-20 00:00:00 UTC ]
More news stories like this | News stories tagged with: #charity shops


DOJ Filing Calls Apple "Ringmaster" of E-Book Pricing Rise

The gist: "Apple knew that the plan it was proposing involved a ‘dramatic business change’ for publisher defendants." Continue reading at AllThingsD

[ AllThingsD | 2013-05-15 00:00:00 UTC ]
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Turning over a new page

The new children's book House of Secrets was written by a first-time novelist but there are already predictions that it will be a runaway bestseller. Continue reading at Stuff

[ Stuff | 2013-05-11 00:00:00 UTC ]
More news stories like this | News stories tagged with: #book house #runaway bestseller


When Creativity Takes A Wrong Turn: Lousy Book Covers

Aptly titled new Tumblr "Lousy Book Covers" collects the delightfully dubious achievements in jacket design. The book Spending Christmas With a Yeti is already at a marketplace disadvantage, what with that title, but then there’s the book cover. Oh boy, where to start. The real-life... Continue reading at Fast Company

[ Fast Company | 2013-01-10 00:00:00 UTC ]
More news stories like this | News stories tagged with: #book cover #book covers #chip kidd #covers featured


Printed book sales rise £8m week on week

Printed book sales soared by £8m in the UK last week, as shoppers flocked to the high... Continue reading at The Bookseller

[ The Bookseller | 2012-12-04 00:00:00 UTC ]
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Apple owns a patent for page-turning – kind of

Apple now holds the patent for the appearance of their animation which makes it look as if the reader of an ebook is turning a physical page. Continue reading at The Christian Science Monitor

[ The Christian Science Monitor | 2012-11-21 00:00:00 UTC ]
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ICM Partners Turns Books into Film and TV

Bestselling authors Cormac McCarthy, Walter Isaacson, the late Nora Ephron, and Jennifer Egan are among the many authors represented by ICM Partners, whose book sales are boosted by the adaptation of their work to film and television, all under the watchful eyes of agents Ron Bernstein, Josie... Continue reading at Publishers Weekly

[ Publishers Weekly | 2012-08-17 00:00:00 UTC ]
More news stories like this | News stories tagged with: #management buyout #literary agencies