Zakiya Dalila Harris: ‘Publishing is such a spoofable world’

The author of a debut novel about diversity in the workplace on how black people act around white people, embracing her hair, and what’s changed a year after George Floyd’s murderZakiya Dalila Harris was born and raised in Connecticut and is currently based in Brooklyn. Now a full-time writer, she previously worked in book publishing, an experience she draws on in her highly anticipated debut novel, The Other Black Girl, which combines thriller with social satire to tell the story of Nella, the only black employee at a fictional publishing house, until Hazel joins the company. The book charts how the two become frenemies, explores the challenges of surviving in a systemically racist workplace, and was the subject of a 15-way auction prior to publication in the US.What were your own experiences in publishing and how have they played into the book?I worked in publishing for two and a half years. I was an editorial assistant then promoted to assistant editor. I felt fortunate, as a part of me enjoyed editing and I felt I was good at it, but it’s also an exhausting job for an entry-level person in terms of the pay. I was also one of the very few black people in the company – it wasn’t as bad as Nella in the book, but I was the only black woman in editorial in a full-time position for a while. I thought: why does it feel like we’re living in 1955 still, in terms of what we value? Publishing is such a rich, easily spoofable world.Code-switching is the act of switching up how... Continue reading at 'The Guardian'

[ The Guardian | 2021-06-05 17:00:15 UTC ]

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How to be a black woman and succeed: two friends who have written the manual

Elizabeth Uviebinené and Yomi Adegoke have turned a dream into a hot publishing property – a self-help guide for black womenIn March 2015, Elizabeth Uviebinené had a brainwave that a less determined 22-year-old might have dismissed as a water-cooler pipe dream. It was ignited by a single chapter... Continue reading at The Guardian

[ The Guardian | 2018-06-24 00:00:00 UTC ]
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UCL's adventures in Open Access yield global reach

In the two and a half years since its launch, UCL Press has made considerable strides. Benedicte Page reports. Continue reading at The Bookseller

[ The Bookseller | 2017-11-07 00:00:00 UTC ]
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Viking Nabs Former Intelligence Director James Clapper's Book

The yet-to-be-titled book is scheduled for publication in 2018 and will trace Clapper's career in the military and his six and a half years as President Obama’s senior intelligence advisor. Continue reading at Publishers Weekly

[ Publishers Weekly | 2017-07-20 00:00:00 UTC ]
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Not Your Bubbe’s Kasha Varnishkes: Jewish Cookbooks

For many people in the U.S., the phrase “Jewish cooking” calls to mind a specific kind of dish: “heavy, old-fashioned, and maybe not very good for one’s health,” says Kim Lim, assistant editor at Skyhorse. Continue reading at Publishers Weekly

[ Publishers Weekly | 2017-03-03 00:00:00 UTC ]
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HC's Dauman moves to Sphere

Lucy Dauman, assistant editor at HarperCollins for crime and thrillers, is joining Little, Brown Book Group as commissioning editor at Sphere Fiction. Continue reading at The Bookseller

[ The Bookseller | 2016-09-20 00:00:00 UTC ]
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How do we stop UK publishing being so posh, white and male?

The absence of any black, Asian or minority ethnic writers on next year’s World Book Night list provoked an outcry and a Twitterstorm. We asked writers and leading figures within the industry what can be done to encourage greater diversity in British publishingLatest work: Meatspace (Friday... Continue reading at The Guardian

[ The Guardian | 2015-12-11 00:00:00 UTC ]
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Margo Jefferson reveals life inside the black elite in 'Negroland'

At a time when black people are disrupting presidential campaign speeches nationwide in an effort to be recognized as human beings, "Negroland," the new memoir by Pulitzer Prize-winning cultural critic Margo Jefferson, offers poignant insight into what it means to have been raised in the... Continue reading at Los Angeles Times

[ Los Angeles Times | 2015-09-10 00:00:00 UTC ]
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Fourth Estate hires Anna Kelly

HarperCollins imprint Fourth Estate has appointed Anna Kelly to the position of commissioning editor. Kelly, who is currently assistant editor at Hamish Hamilton, will take up the role on the 17th March. Kelly said she is “very excited” to join the company. “Fourth Estate is home to a dazzling... Continue reading at The Bookseller

[ The Bookseller | 2015-02-12 00:00:00 UTC ]
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Hewson joins Two Roads

John Murray Press imprint Two Roads has hired Kate Hewson as senior non-fiction editor. Two Roads’ editorial assistant Fede Andornino has also been promoted to assistant editor. Hewson, who will report to Two Roads’ publisher Lisa Highton, joins Two Roads on 2nd February from Icon, where she... Continue reading at The Bookseller

[ The Bookseller | 2015-01-14 00:00:00 UTC ]
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Ashby promoted at HC

Martha Ashby has been promoted to editor of commercial women's fiction at HarperCollins. Ashby started at the publisher in 2012 as assistant editor, after five years at Orion, including three in non-fiction. She has worked with authors including Cecelia Ahern and Beatriz Williams, and in 2013... Continue reading at The Bookseller

[ The Bookseller | 2014-12-20 00:00:00 UTC ]
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Morris joins Tonkinson at Pan Mac

Olivia Morris will be assistant editor of Pan Macmillan’s new lifestyle imprint headed up by Carole Tonkinson. Morris comes to Pan Macmillan from Simon & Schuster, where she held the role of Editorial Assistant. She previously worked as assistant to literary agent at Diane Banks... Continue reading at The Bookseller

[ The Bookseller | 2014-12-09 00:00:00 UTC ]
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Shelly Bond Leads DC’s Vertigo Line Into a New Era

For the past year, Shelly Bond has been working almost nonstop as the newly appointed executive editor of Vertigo, DC Entertainment’s nonsuperhero comics and graphic novel imprint. Bond, who began her Vertigo tenure in 1995 as assistant editor, took over the direction of the imprint following... Continue reading at Publishers Weekly

[ Publishers Weekly | 2014-04-11 00:00:00 UTC ]
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New data says less than 3 percent of children's books surveyed in 2013 were about black people

The Cooperative Children's Book Center of the University of Wisconsin – Madison found that of the new children's books they received at their center, less than 3 percent focused on black people and even fewer were by black authors (about 2 percent, according to the CCBC.) Continue reading at The Christian Science Monitor

[ The Christian Science Monitor | 2014-03-18 00:00:00 UTC ]
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Amazon Publishing will get new publisher, based in Seattle

Amazon Publishing will have a new leader when publisher Larry Kirshbaum leaves on Jan. 17 and is replaced by Daphne Durham. Durham will be based in Seattle — not the New York office. She has served as editor in chief and has already taken over responsibility for adult trade books and children’s... Continue reading at Silicon Valley Business Journal

[ Silicon Valley Business Journal | 2013-10-26 00:00:00 UTC ]
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The Recommender: Comic Book Aficionado J.J. McCorvey Shares A Stunning Testament To Grandparents

The three best things Fast Company's assistant editor found on the Internet this week. Name: J.J. McCorveyRole at Fast Company: Assistant Editor, printTwitter: @jmccorveyTitillating fact: J.J. has a massive comic book collection–-thousands--of mostly Marvel Comics. “Pshh, plenty of folks love... Continue reading at Fast Company

[ Fast Company | 2013-07-12 00:00:00 UTC ]
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Atlantic buys history of Taiping Rebellion

Orlando Whitfield, assistant editor at Atlantic Books, has acquired Autumn in the Heavenly... Continue reading at The Bookseller

[ The Bookseller | 2012-02-14 00:00:00 UTC ]
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Collins goes near the Knuckle with acquisition

Written By: Graeme Neill Publication Date: Tue, 23/08/2011 - 14:43 Collins has bought a memoir of an Irish traveller bare-knuckle boxing champion. Craig Adams, assistant editor for Collins, bought world rights in all languages to Knuckle by James Quinn McDonagh, in an unagented deal. The book... Continue reading at The Bookseller

[ The Bookseller | 2011-08-23 00:00:00 UTC ]
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