Change is a constant in life, and with Amazon and e-books, especially so. The e-retailer’s business terms for publishers and authors lurch from point to point like pinballs. Last summer, Amazon launched its Kindle Unlimited e-book subscription service, featuring...
When the American Library Association convenes its annual conference later this month in San Francisco, book authors are the honored guests – and not only famous names like Ms. Magazine founder Gloria Steinem and Rock and Roll Hall of Famer Robbie Robertson of The...
The E.L. James penned trilogy that began with 50 Shades of Grey has sold over 100 million copies worldwide and has been translated into more than 50 languages. Throughout a remarkable 2011-2013 run, booksellers were ecstatic but sales have since suffered while waiting...
For a business with a global, contemporary outlook like book publishing, BookExpo America is full of small ironies. Print has regained some of its lost luster quite recently, while educational programming remains focused on the digital. And though China has prominent...
A class action lawsuit … Or a series of gripes? That’s the question before a familiar name in a Manhattan federal court. In the same courtroom that once heard arguments about the Apple e-book price-fixing case, Judge Denise Cote is now hearing charges that Author...
Be careful what you wish for, book people. In recent years, Big Five publishers have fought to keep e-book prices out of the bargain basement, just where Amazon wanted them. With the return of so-called “agency” pricing, though, the battle may be won, but the war is...
Amazon and publishing are stuck together like peanut butter and jelly. The e-commerce giant built its customer base as a virtual bookshop, and for a number of years, it has even played the role of publisher. Established in 2009, Amazon Publishing is the umbrella brand...
On May Day 2015, the workers of the book publishing business in this country face an uncertain future. Of one thing only can they sure: That just like so many May flowers, BookExpo America will soon open its colorful show in New York. Running from May 27 through May...
In 2015, the opening of an independent bookstore is an event rare enough to attract attention from bystanders – rather like spotting a vintage automobile with shiny chrome bumpers and flashy fins sailing through your town’s streets. When the Gulf Coast Bookstore flung...
It’s a sunny afternoon, but no yet summertime as The Kinks sang – it’s April, of course – and publishers are hardly complaining about the nice weather. The London Book Fair opened on Monday under blue skies, and even as the sunlight streamed through the arcaded...
