Bolton’s book, The Room Where It Happened, released yesterday without approval from the US government. As a result, the Department of Justice has filed a suit against him for breach of contract and fiduciary duty. If the government wins, Bolton would have to give up all proceeds from the book—advance and royalties—and could potentially face criminal charges. (The publisher is not named in the suit and does not have to give up proceeds.) Michael Cader of Publishers Lunch wryly comments, “For at least some, it would be the epitome of justice if citizens get to read what Bolton wrote and he himself is unable to profit from that enterprise” (subscription required).
In December 2019, a judge ruled that Edward Snowden must submit proceeds from his memoir, Permanent Record—and related speaking engagements—to the US government for not securing approval. But in that case, Snowden did not even submit his work for pre-publication review. Bolton submitted his book, but allowed publication to move forward before receiving final notice from the government of material to be scrubbed from the book.
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.
