TODAY'S NEWS

At a Slightly Smaller Fair, Michael Jackson Project Draws Lots of Chatter
By Rachel Deahl & Liz Thomson
There’s no denying that there are fewer exhibitors at Frankfurt Book Fair, with some major stayaways—but in terms of visitor numbers, on day one at least, there was little change from last year. Attendance was 45,753, down 0.8% from last year (353 fewer visitors), while traffic in the agents center was up 5.8% from last year to 3,850 visitors. Table occupancy was up 2%, and some agents felt there were “more transactions” this year.

At a Q&A session Wednesday, fair director Juergen Boos said he was pleased with the success of the China initiative, which has already (with help from translation subsidies) increased the number of titles translated from Chinese into German: last year eight literary titles were translated versus 160 this year, while some 400 “other” books were also translated. He praised “the multiplicity of voices” that can be heard, “official and dissident." It was, Boos said, “an important first step, more than we could have expected.” Read on »

YA or Not YA?: 'Stitches' Gets NBA Nomination
By Karen Springen
Yesterday, Caldecott Medalist David Small’s graphic novel-style memoir, Stitches, became a 2009 National Book Award finalist in the Young People’s Literature category—which led to criticism along with the usual congratulations.

Publishers, not National Book Award judges, nominate books for particular categories. And W.W. Norton, which normally publishes general-interest books and textbooks for adults, submitted Stitches for the children’s award rather than the nonfiction adult one. It was a “house decision,” said Robert Weil, executive editor at Norton, who acquired the book at auction and edited it. “It has been a crossover book. We found a great appeal to kids between 12 and 18. Many of the comments we’ve gotten are from teens. It is a growing-up story, but the issues addressed in the book are ones that a lot of teens face.” Read on »

Friedman Expounds on Open Road Integrated Media
By Jim Milliot
From the Frankfurt Book Fair, where she is promoting her new company, former HarperCollins CEO Jane Friedman has added a few more details about her new operation, Open Road Integrated Media. As previously reported, Kohlberg Ventures is paving the Open Road with $3 million in funding, and Friedman called Open Road “a multilayered company” that will be centered around the publication of e-books, both originals and backlist, while also doing print-on-demand, producing films for theatrical release and promoting e-books from other publishers through Open Road's proprietary marketing platform. Open Road will not release any titles until its marketing platform—which it described in the release as “being designed to reach consumers where they live, socialize and shop online”—launches, sometime in early 2010. Read on »

SBS Unveils New E-commerce Hub
International supply chain manager SBS Worldwide Publishers has unveiled what it claims is “a faster, cheaper and easier way to ship books from printers to customers.” “We have taken our logistics expertise and combined it with our extensive knowledge of the publishing industry to develop eDC (electronic Distribution Center) specifically for this market,” explained SBS chairman Steve Walker, who was at the Frankfurt Book Fair. “We wanted to offer our publishing customers the speed, cost-effectiveness and visibility that is available in other industries, such as automotive and retail. We wanted to integrate supply chain capabilities with total web-based visibility to the ISBN level.” Read on »

Bantam Signs Koontz for New Frankenstein Novels
By Lynn Andriani
Bantam has signed Dean Koontz for three new Frankenstein novels, which will be the first of the series—launched with two volumes in 2005—that will be published in hardcover. The first new volume, Lost Souls, will be published in May 2010 and begins a new story cycle that will continue with the two subsequent books, to be released in May 2011 and May 2012. Read on »

Blogs

MORE STORIES

Baker & Taylor Unveils TextStream
U.S.-based wholesaler Baker & Taylor, which has added a number of digital services this year, has launched TextStream, a service that will provide publishers with a variety of print-on-demand and short run services. TextStream is being managed by the recently formed B&T digital media services group headed by Larry Bennett. The service utilizes R.R. Donnelley’s digital printing capabilities and although TextStream is based in B&T’s Illinois distribution center, it can provide POD and short run books to customers around the world.

FiledBy Partners with StudioNow for Book Trailers
Online author Web site directory FiledBy is partnering with StudioNow, a company that provides online video production, asset management and syndication services. As a result of the collaboration, FiledBy will offer video book trailers and on-location author interview videos. FiledBy CEO and president Peter Clifton acknowledged that producing commercial-quality video can be prohibitively expensive for authors, and that the alliance with StudioNow will “make on-location video shoots and custom book trailers more accessible and affordable." Read on »

The PW Morning Report: Thursday, October 15, 2009
Wherever there’s publishing news (on the Internet), the PW Morning Report will be there: TOC to Return to Frankfurt in 2010; FSG Acquires Mandela Diaries; HuffPo and NYT on E-Books; Kindle Designers Tapped for B&N Reader; New Yorker Dress Up Contest; Lydia Davis Reviewed. Read on »

AUTHORS ON THE AIR

Authors on the Air: Mean Mothers; Jimmy Carter; Keynes
On today’s Good Morning America, Peg Streep analyzed Mean Mothers: Overcoming the Legacy of Hurt (William Morrow, 978-0061651366, $24.99). Read on »

PICTURE OF THE DAY

A Lone Voice
The expected demonstrations against various Chinese policies failed to materialize as Chinese Vice President Xi Jinping arrived for the opening of the 61st Frankfurt Book Fair, at which China is the somewhat controversial guest country. A lone protester made it through the airport-style security and into the Congress Centre, where German Chancellor Dr. Angela Merkel officially opened the proceedings. The Chinese Vice President, who spoke for 12 minutes, observed that “literature can contribute to the development of a harmonious world." Photo: Amy Webster. Submit your pictures here »