News
- A US District judge has dismissed most claims by Writers Guild of America in its lawsuit against talent agencies. As we reported last summer, the WGA has been fighting against talent agency packaging fees, arguing that they’re illegal. While the judge ruled against the WGA, individual writers can still make claims against their agencies for breaching fiduciary duties. Read Wendy Lee in the LA Times.
Money Woes
- Lambda Literary, the nonprofit serving the LGBTQ writing community, desperately needs funds to continue. The organization does not have cash reserves or an endowment, and its revenue sources have been obliterated by its inability to run events and programs during stay-at-home orders. Read Emma Hine in Poets & Writers.
- A petition asks the Poetry Foundation to financially support the writing and publishing community. Speaking of endowments and cash reserves, the Poetry Foundation is well known for having deep pockets. A growing number of voices are calling on the organization to help those in need. Read Ed Nawotka in Publishers Weekly.
- Most US freelancers have not received unemployment. Freelancers are about one-third of the workforce, yet they’re not yet receiving relief from the government. Read Ella Nilsen at Vox.
- How self-employed writers and freelancers around the world are getting aid (or not). In a few pockets of the world, like Germany, freelancers are getting swift and efficient aid. But in most areas, getting help isn’t easy. Read Chris Erik Thomas at Study Hall.
Coronavirus Trends
- Smart speaker use increases during quarantine. With more people staying at home, devices such as Alexa are getting used more often. Thirty-six percent of US adults say they are using these devices more often to listen to music and entertainment since the outbreak. Thirty-five percent are listening more to news and information. Read the press release from NPR and Edison Research.
- Bookcases are a background of choice for experts doing live TV broadcasts from home. The anonymous Twitter account Bookcase Credibility, taglined “What you say is not as important as the bookcase behind you,” now has 30,000 followers. Read Amanda Hess in the New York Times. For even more fun on this topic, take a look at The Sad Smugness of the Bookshelf Troll from Miles Klee at MEL Magazine.
- Boston Globe offers a fiction serial. On its front page, the paper is now publishing a 22-chapter mystery/thriller novella from author Ben Mezrich. Read Joshua Benton at Nieman Lab.
- Authors collaborate on a serial novel in Portugal. Forty writers are taking turns publishing a new chapter daily; the project has gained almost 15,500 followers on Facebook in a month. Read Alison Flood in The Guardian.
- A neuroscientist explains why it’s so hard to read a book right now. Learn all about the effects of anxiety and uncertainty. Read Constance Grady at Vox.
Culture and Politics
- Oprah magazine looks at the RWA controversy. A look at the history of the organization and its problems with racism. Read McKenzie Jean-Philippe.
- Can you hear your characters speak? You’re not alone. Recent research shows that 63 percent of authors “listen” to their creations and 61 percent feel their characters have their own agency. Read Alison Flood in The Guardian.
Marketing Toolbox
- A former VP of sales at a US-based small press has written a two-part series on essential digital marketing strategies for small publishers. The same principles apply to professional independent authors. Among the key recommendations: get your metadata in order to improve online discoverability—and write better book descriptions. Read part 1 and part 2 from Jennifer Abel Kovitz at Medium.
- Sixteen ways to market your audiobook. Indie author and podcaster Joanna Penn shares an excerpt from her recent guide on audiobooks. Read at her site.
- Eight platforms for doing live book events. BookBub offers a quick and helpful overview of the live broadcast options for free online events, mainly via social media sites. Read Diana Urban.
- Learn how to market effectively to book clubs. Novelist and nonfiction author Amy Stewart shares tips for success and management. Watch the one-hour YouTube session.
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.