where the writers are

July 15

by Red Hot Publishing News

July 15, 2009, 3:34 pm

Find out what's hot in the world of publishing with this selection of recent industry news.

COMIC BOOKS

  • Are you attending Comic-Con (next month in San Diego) in the hopes of meeting publishers? Publishers Weekly has a list of great questions to ask here.
  • The First Asian American Comicon went off without a hitch at New York City's Museum of Chinese in America (MOCA); attendees appreciated the chance to connect personally with panelists and artists.--from Publishers Weekly

PUBLISHING TRENDS

  • Jane Austen and monsters make a winning combination, as far as buyers are concerned: Quirk Books just announced the release of another monster mashup novel to follow in the footsteps of the popular Pride and Prejudice and Zombies. Sense and Sensibility and Sea Monsters will be published on September 15.--from Publishers Weekly
  • On the other end of the spectrum, "an animal odd couple that has captivated the mainstream media and has become a YouTube sensation. . . will soon star in a picture book. In September, Putnam will publish Tarra & Bella: The Elephant and Dog Who Became Best Friends."--from Publishers Weekly

DIGITAL MEDIA

  • In tough times, one author gets creative: Matt Stewart will release the entirety of his book The French Revolution for free on Twitter, one tweet at a time.--from TechCrunch and The New York Times
  • More proof that Twitter is here to stay: the Collins English Dictionary will include a definition of Twitter in its next print edition.--from ITProPortal.com
  • "Chinese IT giant the Founder Group debuted its $200 Kindle-like e-reader for the Japanese and Chinese market this week at Tokyo’s Digital Publishing Fair."--from Publishers Weekly
  • China isn't the only one--"Elonex launches £189 [approximately $310 at this writing] 6-inch eBook reader through Borders UK."--from engadget.com
  • Have you been saving for a Kindle? Now is a good time to buy: "Amazon dropped the cost of the Kindle from $359 to $299."--from SFgate.com

BOOK SALES

  • "Bookstore sales fell 3.0% in May, to $1.11 billion, according to preliminary estimates from the U.S. Census Bureau."--from Publishers Weekly

INTERNATIONAL NEWS

  • "Australian authors are outraged after the country's government moved a step closer to removing restrictions on the importation of books into the country." The removal could have drastic cultural implications, warn authors.--from Guardian.co.uk
  • "Taiwan's largest bookstore operator and one of its biggest mobile phone service providers have teamed up to promote e-books on the island. They plan to launch an e-book service and e-reader by the second quarter of next year."--from PCWorld.com

INDEPENDENT PUBLISHING

  • The Kindle is good news for indie authors: Boyd Morrison landed a book deal with Simon and Schuster after he uploaded his book The Ark and sold it via Kindle, and then made himself visible by contributing to the Kindle Boards.--from CrunchGear.com

THE COURTS

  • "The Justice Department confirmed on Thursday that it was conducting an antitrust investigation into the settlement of a lawsuit filed against Google by groups representing authors and publishers."--from The New York Times

 
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