‘The Art Forger:’ Can Lightning Strike Twice for Algonquin?

In a day and age when computer data rule book ordering and midlist authors can be penalized for their track records, Algonquin Books of Chapel Hill is trying to give Barbara Shapiro a fresh start for The Art Forger. It’s a tack that the press, an imprint of Workman Publishing, used successfully six years ago when it bought Sara Gruen’s novel about the world of the circus. Water for Elephants became a huge hit and was turned into a movie. Although Algonquin never claimed that the book, which was widely embraced by independent booksellers, was Gruen’s first, it did nothing to promote the fact that she had previously published two others, Flying Horses and Riding Lessons.

Margins Up At Wiley

Although total sales for the fiscal year ended April 30 rose only 2%, to $1.79 billion, at John Wiley, operating income increased 13%, to $280.4 million, boosting the company’s operating margin to 15.7%. Wiley said 40% of its revenue came from digital products and the company will continue to focus on publishing “must have” information. That focus led to the purchase earlier in the fiscal year of Inscape Holdings and the decision to put up for sale some consumer assets (travel, culinary, general interest, nautical, pets, crafts, Webster’s New World, and Cliff’s Notes), which had sales in fiscal 2012 of $80 million and a $6 million contribution to profit. Wiley had little updated information on the possible divestiture, with CEO Stephen Smith telling analysts only that “we are fully engaged in the process of finding a right buyer and situation for our consumer assets.”

HC Adapts App To Push Excerpts On Facebook

The idea of excerpting a book to drum up interest is nothing new, but releasing excerpts in stages, based on the number of “likes” a book gets on Facebook, is a whole new ballgame for promotion in the digital age. Employing just this strategy, HarperCollins has driven 7,324 “likes” and 18,630 total views since early May to the Facebook excerpts of Into the Darkest Corner by Elizabeth Haynes, the inaugural book using the HarperCollins Like to Read application.

More Skirmishing in E-book Antitrust Cases

Ahead of a status conference set for today in the three lawsuits--by the Justice Department, numerous states’ attorneys general and the class action suit led by Hagen’s Berman--against Apple and five publishers charging them with fixing e-book prices, the judge received letters from most involved parties on various procedural issues.

Podcast: PW's Week Ahead for Friday, June 22

Billed as the world’s largest event for the library community, the American Library Association conference underway in Anaheim features appearances from the likes of Dan Rather and Gaby Rodriguez. Listen to our coverage of the conference and much more here.

Authors on the Air June 22, 2012: Daniel Fairbanks, Hod Lipson

Daniel Fairbanks will be on “Science Fantastic” with Dr. Michio Kaku on June 25 to talk about his book Evolving: The Human Effect and Why It Matters (Prometheus Books, 978-1-61614-565-1).

Hod Lipson, author of Fabricated: The New World of 3D Printing (Wiley, 978-1118350638), will be on NPR's "Science Friday."

Tracking Amazon: Colbert Boosts Krauss

On June 21, Lawrence M. Krauss appeared on The Colbert Report for his book A Universe from Nothing: Why There Is Something Rather Than Nothing (Free Press). On the morning of June 22, the book is ranked #54 on Amazon's bestseller list, up from #936 before the appearance. The book also got a huge bump on Kindle, jumping to #342 from #4,000.

Twitter and Publishing: How the Industry is Faring in 2012

Here is our expanded listing of publishers' presence on Twitter, meant to show as wide of a range as possible. Please note that we’ve only included individual feeds—we haven’t combined numbers from the same publishers though some of the imprint feeds are from the same company.

50 Shades Boxed Set Starts Hot

At outlets tracked by Nielsen BookScan, the boxed set of the 50 Shades trilogy sold nearly 84,000 print copies in its first full week on sale and has sold nearly 87,000 copies since its release.

Tracking Amazon: Nagorski's 'Hitlerland' Spikes After PBS Spot

On June 20, Andrew Nagorski appeared on PBS's NewsHour. On June 21, his book, Hitlerland: American Eyewitnesses to the Nazi Rise to Power (Simon & Schuster), jumped to #81 from #6,775. The book also made a jump on Kindle, going to #369 from #11,590.

Random House of Canada Merges M&S and Doubleday Canada

Random House of Canada has created a new publishing division, combining its new acquisition McClelland & Stewart with Doubleday Canada.

National Geographic Brought to Libraries

Gale has announced the extension of the National Geographic Magazine Archive, 1888-1994 to 1995 onwards, as well as access to a new virtual reference collection of National Geographic books, maps, videos, images.

Tracking Amazon: Summer Reading Heats Up the Classics

As school ends and summer school/summer reading for schools approaches, a number of classics have increased on Amazon's bestseller list.

Harper Realigns Sales Group

HarperCollins has become the latest major publisher to overhaul its sales organization in response to a changing marketplace.

Earnings Up at Wiley; Changes Planned

Although total sales for the fiscal year ended April 30 were below expectations, profits rose at John Wiley for the full year. Sales increased 2%, to $1.78 billion and operating income rose 13%, to $280.4 million.

DoJ Trial Could Start Next March

Motions made late last week pertaining to lawsuits filed against Apple and five publishers over e-book price fixing charges indicate that a trial in the Department of Justice case could go to trial next March.

In Holtzbrinck Reorg, Sargent Named Head of Global Trade

The von Holtzbrinck Group, which has organized its international publishing operations along geographic lines, will now operate along publishing segments. Under the restructuring, announced today, Macmillan U.S. CEO John Sargent has been appointed head of the global trade division.

Tracking Amazon: Bezos Gives 'Flat-Out Love' Front Page Hype

Flat-Out Love, priced at $3.99, is quickly rising up the Kindle charts thanks to its front page placement--in the morning hours of June 18, the title has jumped to #641--climbing over 300 spots in one hour.

News Briefs: Week of June 15, 2012

EDC Earnings Up, Sales Down and more