Federal court orders reinstatement of National Endowment for Humanities grants
Given that the administration has ignored other judicial orders, it’s unclear whether the government will pay out the money owed under the grants.
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Prominent children’s author says “94.7 percent of kids’ books are crud”
The children’s writing and publishing community did not take kindly to this opinion and demanded an apology from author Mac Barnett.
“We are an AI inputs company”: a media executive really did say that
News Corp, parent company of HarperCollins and the Wall Street Journal, is negotiating deals with tech companies, seeking licensing income.
Pine State Publicity launches agenting arm
Pine State Literary is led by Zoe-Aline Howard and focuses on literary fiction and narrative nonfiction that speaks to rural and middle America.
On the List: A Wolf Called Wander by Rosanne Parry
Rosanne Parry is the author of nine novels for young readers, which have been translated into more than 14 languages.
Bo-sco: new scouting service for TV/film producers
Believing the book-to-screen pipeline is missing what’s worth finding, UK-based author Arianna Reiche has launched a page-to-screen IP scouting service.
Links of Interest: May 13, 2026
The latest in traditional publishing, scams, culture & politics, and AI.
The Children’s Middle-Grade Slump: How Bad Is It?
Sales data suggests a return to pre-pandemic normalcy, but backlist dominates and it’s tough for new books and authors to break out.
New nonfiction imprint: New Modern Arcade (UK)
The imprint is the second to be announced by Putman Publishing, run by Pete Selby and Doug Putman, owner of music retailer HMV UK.
Eerdmans launches new nonfiction imprint
The imprint will tackle existential questions for readers wherever they are on the spirituality spectrum.
New nonfiction imprint from Bloomsbury India and Say Again Press
The imprint will publish titles across sports, health, autobiography, and business.
Chronicle accepting unagented children’s work through May 10
In honor of Children’s Book Week, Chronicle is accepting unagented manuscripts through May 10.
New children’s imprint at TokyoPop
Starting this fall, TokyoPop Kids will publish manga, graphic novels, picture books, chapter books, and middle-grade novels.
Links of Interest: May 6, 2026
The latest in traditional publishing, marketing & promotion, culture & politics, and AI.
New AI lawsuit against Meta, filed by multiple publishers plus Scott Turow
This latest AI lawsuit seeks class action status against Meta for pirating millions of books to train Meta’s LLM, Llama.
Authors Guild expands and streamlines contract guidance on AI
The Guild has consolidated all AI-related contract clauses—existing ones and new provisions—on a dedicated page on its website.
How Self-Published Authors Thrive on TikTok
We spoke with three authors in the fantasy genre about what TikTok success looks like and how they achieved it.
New horror imprint at Penguin Random House UK
3AM Books will be PRH’s first dedicated horror imprint. The first title, FAWN by debut author and journalist CN Vair, will release this August.
New horror micro-press: Grave Empire
A bookseller in Houston has launched Grave Empire, a one-man publishing operation dedicated to horror fiction.
Gotham Ghostwriters publishes AI guidelines for writers, editors, and authors
The guidelines address usage, disclosure, and tips on understanding and managing AI risks.
New children’s imprint at Little Brown Children’s
Alvina Ling Books will release 15–20 titles per year starting this fall, with an emphasis on fiction, from board books to YA.
Canadians now have an alternative to shopping at Amazon
Booksellers.ca is the first online bookselling platform to serve both the English- and French-language readers across Canada.
New publisher: Lost Kite Editions
The Minneapolis-based nonprofit publishes fiction, poetry, and creative nonfiction from underrepresented writers.
Links of Interest: April 29, 2026
The latest in traditional publishing, the New York Times, culture & politics, and AI.
Audible’s ACX discontinuing legacy royalty model
The service is shifting to a pooling model where audiobook royalties are affected by how much an Audible member consumes in a month.
On the List: This Book Made Me Think of You by Libby Page
The novelist studied bestsellers to learn what could help her reach a wider audience, and identified two crucial elements to incorporate.
New cookbook imprint at Skyhorse
Skyhorse Publishing has launched new cookbook imprint Golden Grove Publishing with Culinary Book Creations CEO James O. Fraioli.
New agent at Mansion Street Literary Management
Katie Ferriello has joined as literary agent, focusing on romance, fantasy, and children’s literature.
Links of Interest: April 22, 2026
The latest in traditional publishing, bookselling, culture & politics, and AI.
High claim rate in Anthropic lawsuit: 91 percent
That breaks down to 119,876 claims that account for 440,490 of the 482,460 works on the official list.
Comprehensive Q&A about Draft2Digital fees
Author Kevin McLaughlin has addressed the change in a long FAQ based on his conversation with D2D CEO Kris Austin.
Authors Guild adds a new AI clause to their model contract regarding publishers’ use of AI on manuscripts
Their statement is in response to a report that some publishing professionals are feeding manuscripts into AI without explicit permission from authors.
How Faire Fills a Distribution Gap for Publishers
Faire is a tech wholesale B2B marketplace built for the gift, jewelry, and home goods market, but increasingly used by publishers and bookstores.
Small Press Insights: bestseller tracking site
Author Jim Hanas has launched a website called Small Press Insights that reveals which small-press books are selling on Amazon.
Draft2Digital introduces account activation and maintenance fees
They write, “We’ve seen a significant increase in automated and low-quality account creation. A modest activation fee can make a real difference.”
Publisher Subscriptions: Cultivating Reader Loyalty and Profitability
Three nonprofit publishers discuss the importance of their subscription programs: McSweeney’s, Open Letter, and Archipelago Books.
New nonfiction imprint at Abrams
Abrams Well will publish five to six wellness titles annually with its inaugural releases beginning next year.
Whoopi Goldberg partners with Blackstone Publishing
Together they are launching an imprint called WhoopInk, focused on bringing “fresh, diverse new talent to the marketplace” in all genres.
New imprint at Skyhorse with Tucker Carlson
Skyhorse Publishing, known for publishing conservative voices, is launching an imprint in partnership with Tucker Carlson’s media company.
New publisher: Paramount Global Publishing
The operation will adapt the company’s IP into books and develop new original stories that might reach the screen.
Links of Interest: April 15, 2026
The latest in viral news, trends, AI, Amazon, and culture & politics.
New imprint: Caleb and Kyle Publishing
It will focus on English-language originals with previously unpublished English translations of successful German titles.
Barnes & Noble Press sets minimum paperback price of $14.99, among other new guidelines
Cost pressures on print have been increasing, but this requirement will prove challenging for novellas, poetry, or works with low page counts.
Defendants in the Crave copyright case demand that their collective $3.4 million in legal fees be covered
US copyright law allows for the prevailing party to recover legal fees, although it’s discretionary and not automatic.
On the List: The Poison Daughter by Sheila Masterson
The Poison Daughter is her fourth novel and her first USA Today bestseller.
Microcosm Publishing makes AI policy available
The announcement is due to demand from authors—and also increasingly from stores and sales reps who are asking them to take a strong stance.
Editors and publishers using AI for manuscript summaries
Based on conversations at London Book Fair, some editors are using AI to generate summaries of manuscripts—which raises numerous questions.
Another AI animation partnership for HarperCollins
HarperCollins-owned Harlequin announced a partnership with Dashverse to produce animated microdramas inspired by their romance titles.
Copyright law professor files blistering objection in Anthropic case
The objection argues that the settlement, while fair in amount, would funnel most of the money away from authors and toward publishers.
US book sales update: first quarter 2026
Compared to the first three months of 2025, print book sales this year are down by 3.1 percent, according to Circana BookScan.