The New York Times speaks to an author, literary agent, marketer, publicist, editors, and booksellers about race. Some of the most notable responses come from those working inside the Big Five. Tracy Sherrod, editorial director at Amistad, says, “I don’t feel comfortable overpaying for a book as an editor of color. I feel a responsibility to watch out for my authors’ careers so that they can continue to publish. If an author gets a particular advance, they need to ask their agent, ‘How many copies do I need to sell to earn this out?’ Because it’s going to be tougher for them to publish again if they don’t earn it out. It hasn’t been proven to be the case, from my observations, for white authors.”
Jane Friedman has spent her entire career working in the publishing industry, with a focus on business reporting and author education. Established in 2015, her newsletter The Bottom Line provides nuanced market intelligence to thousands of authors and industry professionals; in 2023, she was named Publishing Commentator of the Year by Digital Book World.
Jane’s expertise regularly features in major media outlets such as The New York Times, The Atlantic, NPR, The Today Show, Wired, The Guardian, Fox News, and BBC. Her book, The Business of Being a Writer, Second Edition (The University of Chicago Press), is used as a classroom text by many writing and publishing degree programs. She reaches thousands through speaking engagements and workshops at diverse venues worldwide, including NYU’s Advanced Publishing Institute, Frankfurt Book Fair, and numerous MFA programs.
