Scott Turow Elected President of Authors Guild; Judy Blume Is Vice President
(PRESS RELEASE) April 28, 2010. At the annual meeting of the Authors Guild in New York yesterday, members elected Scott Turow as their president and Judy Blume as their vice president. Meg Cabot, Michelle Richmond and T.J. Stiles joined the Guild's executive Council.
Roy Blount Jr. concluded his presidency of the Authors Guild, the largest organization of published book authors in the U.S., after serving four years. During his term, Mr. Blount oversaw the negotiation of a landmark settlement with Google, which, if approved, would open up new markets for authors of out-of-print books. He also guided Authors Guild positions and initiatives on many issues involving e-book rights and electronic royalties, including the Guild's backing of the so-called agency model for the sale of e-books and the Guild's launch -- during the showdown between Macmillan and Amazon -- of the Who Moved My Buy Button? website to allow authors to keep track of their "buy buttons" at Amazon.
"See this Google thing through, make sure Amazon doesn't take over the book industry, find out why e-book royalty rates are so shamefully low, and keep the digital pirates at bay," Mr. Blount advised Mr. Turow. "The rest should take care of itself."
"Roy's done a tremendous job, and has kept the Authors Guild in the thick of things during a time of rapid change in book publishing," said Mr. Turow. "It's the Guild's job to do what it can to make sure authors are fairly paid for their work. Roy certainly has kept the Guild focused on that. For authors, as the book industry continues its digital transformation, the challenges are only going to build. Authors are going to need every source of income they can get."
Guild members re-elected Peter Petre as treasurer and Pat Cummings as secretary, and re-elected Council members Barbara Taylor Bradford, Susan Cheever, James Gleick, John R. (Rick) MacArthur and Jean Strouse. On Monday, the Guild's Council appointed Michelle Richmond to fill a vacancy on the board.
About Scott Turow
Scott Turow is a writer and attorney. He is the author of eight best-selling works of fiction, including his first novel, "Presumed Innocent" (1987) and the forthcoming sequel, "Innocent" to be published by Grand Central Publishing in May, 2010. He has also written two non-fiction books about his experiences in the law.
Mr. Turow has been a partner in the Chicago office of Sonnenschein Nath and Rosenthal, a national law firm, since 1986, concentrating on white collar criminal defense, while also devoting a substantial part of his time to pro bono matters. He has served on a number of public bodies, including the Illinois Commission on Capital Punishment to recommend reforms to Illinois’ death penalty system, and was the first Chair of Illinois’ Executive Ethics Commission which was created in 2004 to regulate executive branch employees in the Illinois State government.
In 1997-1998, Mr. Turow served as president of the Authors Guild, completing the term of the late J. Anthony Lukas.
About Judy Blume
Judy Blume’s 28 titles range from picture books to bestselling novels, including "Wifey," "Smart Women," and "Summer Sisters." She is perhaps best known for her books for young people, among them "Are You There God? It's Me, Margaret," "Tiger Eyes," "Forever," and the "Fudge" books. Most recently, Judy has completed a four-title series – "The Pain & the Great One" books – illustrated by New Yorker cartoonist James Stevenson.
Her books have been translated into thirty-one languages. In 1996 she received the American Library Association's Margaret A. Edwards Award for a body of work that has spoken to young adults for more than twenty years. In 2004 she was awarded the National Book Foundation's Medal for Distinguished Contribution to American Letters. She serves on the boards of the National Coalition Against Censorship, the Society of Children's Book Writers and Illustrators, and the Key West Literary Seminar. Judy has begun work on a new YA novel.
