- Publishers Lunch has released Buzz Books 2016: Romance just in time for Romance Writers of America’s annual conference, which starts July 13 in San Diego. It offers excerpts from twenty forthcoming romance titles. You can get the EPUB of the trade edition straight from Publishers Lunch or from NetGalley.
- Amazon recently launched Amazon Inspire, where K-12 teachers can share instructional materials and lesson plans. But it didn’t take long for copyright issues to emerge. Read more at the New York Times.
- Month9Books, a publisher of YA and middle-grade fiction, has been experiencing some troubles. You can find an overview of the issues at Writer Beware, as well as a Q&A with owner Georgia McBride.
- The Harlequin settlement has been approved. Qualifying authors who signed Harlequin contracts between 1990 and 2004 will share a pool of $3 million. Find out more at Publishers Weekly.
- Are you aware of Amazon’s in-house book reviewers? Their work may not get as much attention as the New York Times Book Review, but having your book selected by Amazon’s book review team undoubtedly leads to bigger sales. Read more in the Seattle Times.
- Harlequin is launching a new literary imprint, Park Row Books, focusing on “thought-provoking and voice-driven novels.” Read more at the Associated Press.
- Random House is launching a new children’s imprint, Make Me a World, focused on diversity. Author and artist Christopher Myers provides the vision for the imprint; read more at Publishing Perspectives.
- Scholastic has partnered with American Girl to publish books in print and digital formats; the deal includes a nonfiction chapter book series, a middle-grade series, novelty items (guided journals, yearbooks, etc.), and more. Read more at Publishers Weekly.
- In Germany, Amazon Publishing is adding an imprint called Edition M for crime novels and thrillers by German authors. Read more at Publishing Perspectives.
- Industry consultant Mike Shatzkin has announced he will no longer be programming Digital Book World, the annual industry publishing conference held in New York City. Read his blog post for background on why.
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.