Book Publishing Report

A few years ago, when I was reading several annual SEC reports from the soon-to-be defunct Borders Group, I came across a sentence that not only defined the dysfunction of one retailer, but the dangerous mindset that has been crippling the book industry for decades.

Representing just 6% of the total trade book market, the sci fi/fantasy segment will grow 3.4% in 2011, despite the overall market's expected 5.2% decline.

Simba Information, publisher of the "Book Publishing Report" newsletter, has estimated about 35% of iPad owners haven't used the devices to read e-books.

Ever since the Book Industry Study Group (BISG) hit upon the theme of “Making Information Pay” for its annual spring event several years ago, it has been filling the room with industry analysts and marketing and business development executives eager for new insights into the mysteries of our industry’s operation, well-being and future. The attendees are generally more interested, I think, in road signs pointing to where we’re going than in measures of where we are—more acutely aware that, in some ways, the information camera may not focus as well on today’s industry snapshots. Useful and reliable industry information always has been hard to

Nine hundred billion dollars. That’s the estimated buying power expected of the Latino market within the next five years. Today its buying power is $500 billion here in the United States, and it is considered the 12th largest economy in the world. Information like this can be found on www.SpanishBookMarket.com—a Web site built and maintained by Mark Wesley of Rosa + Wesley, a development firm specializing in graphic design, book production and Spanish translation located in Wheaton, Ill. For those in any business, such numbers are enough to make one’s head spin. Yet some in book publishing are just now waking to this

From its inception, BookTech West has been designed for attendees by industry experts, editors and inventive coordinators. This year, Conference Coordinator Rebecca Churilla invites participants to e-mail questions to her prior to the show to be included in "On the Cutting Edge" sessions listed below. According to Churilla, "BookTech West is founded on the ideal that one-to-one communication is a good business practice. That's why I'm inviting curious professionals to send their questions to me even before the show begins." Churilla explains that by opening up dialogue before the show begins, she'll compile and present the inquiries to each speaker to consider. "If the