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Bookforum closes after nearly 30 years

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When its sister publication, Artforum, was sold to Penske Media, Bookforum became financially untenable without Artforum’s income.
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USA Today bestseller list on “hiatus”

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After a round of layoffs at USA Today, the longtime editor of the USA Today bestseller list, Mary Cadden, lost her job.
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Before You Hire a Developmental Editor: What You Need to Know

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Three editors discuss the types and stages of editing, whether publishing industry experience matters, hiring guidelines and much more.
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What I Learned From 90 Queries

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Even with an excellent query and opening pages, you’ll still get rejections. A lot of them. Success comes to those who refuse to give up.
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Blurb Matters: A Quiet Manifesto

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If we were to reposition blurbs as affirmations as opposed to marketing tools, would that also shift the way we traffic in them?
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How Writing Your Synopsis Can Fix Your Book

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More than just a tool to sell your book, your synopsis is a roadmap to making the next draft of your manuscript much stronger.
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What If You’re New to Writing and Don’t Know How to Fix Things?

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Like writing, editing and revision are skills that take time to learn, and they develop only with practice.
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Links of Interest: December 7, 2022

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The latest in traditional publishing, supply chain & inflation, bookselling, TikTok, audio, AI, Amazon, and culture & politics.
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Draft2Digital authors can now sell in the Smashwords store

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To get started, Draft2Digital authors need only login to their account.
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New agent alert at Westwood Creative Artists

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Based in Vancouver, Sara Harowitz has joined as a literary agent. She seeks narrative nonfiction, essays, and memoir.
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IMHO: Hive, Post, and Pretty Much Whatever Else Arises

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When considering alternatives to Twitter, there’s more to keep in mind than simply what’s new or popular.
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Spotify Seeks to Grow the Audiobook Market

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The audio streaming service wants to target casual listeners who have never listened to an audiobook by making the format easier and more convenient to try
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Book Visibility on Amazon Has Changed (for Now)

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Amazon has new category ranking limitations; whether these changes are intentional or a glitch remains unclear
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Book sales update: December 7, 2022

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According to NPD BookScan, this holiday season is underperforming compared to 2021.
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Speculation begins on new potential buyers for Simon & Schuster

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Parent company Paramount may seek or prefer a buyer that doesn’t require yet another review by the Department of Justice.
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Nearly 200 agents express support for HarperCollins strike

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A large group of agents have signed an open letter supporting the HCP Union, which has been striking since Nov. 10.
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Bob Dylan apologizes for autopen signing

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Bob Dylan posted on Facebook that, owing to a combination of vertigo and the pandemic, he wasn’t able to sign art prints or his latest book.
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ChatGPT is the talk of the town

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OpenAI, the research laboratory responsible for GPT-3, recently debuted ChatGPT, a general-purpose chatbot that uses GPT-3.5.
Image: a person stands on a rotting wooden plank of a derelict footbridge. Between planks are large gaps through which water is visible. On one plank are painted the words "Take life one step at a time."

Build Your Writing Self-Efficacy

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Here are four ways to help create the mindset that we can realistically accomplish something we’ve never tried before.
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Unlock Better Reach: Bridge the Gap Between Online and Offline Activities

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To build an audience, close the gap between your offline-self and online-self by showing up with consistent value on your core topics.
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An Argument for Setting Aside Arc in Story Development

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It might not be essential to impose a standard arc structure on a character who’s non-traditional or isn’t affected by the story’s actions.
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The Necessity & Power of Sitting With Your Critiques

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We writers know that critiques are an integral part of improving our work. But we rarely learn how to receive feedback or what to do after.
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Nobody Knows Marketing Like Romance Authors: Q&A with Kitty Thomas

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The author of dark- and paranormal romance discusses negative attitudes toward the genre, why sex scenes are the hardest to write, and more.
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Links of Interest: November 23, 2022

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The latest in traditional publishing, social media, Amazon, and culture & politics.
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Linktree rolls out Payment Lock (still in beta)

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The new feature, for pro tier users only, allows you to turn any story, photo, or video file into something people have to pay for online.