The industry’s pace of change quickens as digital content technologies advance, print-on-demand becomes more prevalent, and declining readership and reaching today’s consumers continue to pose significant challenges.

By James Sturdivant

“People don’t know what to read,” agrees Patricia Schroeder, CEO of the Association of American Publishers (AAP). The principal challenge for book publishers in 2008, she says, will be penetrating the “clutter and noise” of the contemporary media environment.

“It’s a very personal choice, and publishers are always frustrated by how to get the word out. There’s a renaissance in writing going on, and not enough people know about it,” Schroeder adds.