Trends

More on the Purchase of Thomas Nelson by HarperCollins

By Steve Laubeon October 31, 2011

One bit of speculation about the sale of Thomas Nelson to HarperCollins comes from PaidContent.org written by Laura Hazard Owen:

And in case you are wondering how much money HarperCollins had to pay for Thomas Nelson consider this bit of info:

“…private equity firm InterMedia Partners purchased Thomas Nelson for $473 million in 2006, and an investor group led by Kohlberg Ventures purchased a majority of its stock in 2010.

News Corp. is letting HarperCollins go on a bit of a shopping spree this month: Last week it purchased independent publisher Newmarket Press.”

HarperCollins Buys Thomas Nelson Publishers

By Steve Laubeon October 31, 2011

BREAKING NEWS! Startling industry news. HarperCollins will purchase Thomas Nelson by the end of this calendar year. HarperCollins already owns Zondervan (which they purchased in 1988). The combination will create the largest and most dominant Christian publishing company in the world. Wow. Here is the official press release.

Category: Book Business, News You Can Use, Steve, TrendsTag: News, Publishing News

Study the Market

By Tamela Hancock Murrayon October 20, 2011

What is the best way to find out what is successful in the current market?

This is a good question because while as an author, you don't want to chase the market, you also don't want to write books that are so far off from the current market that they have no chance of selling. First and foremost, marketing advice from any source assumes that authors submit their best, most polished, highest …

Category: Get Published, Marketing, Tamela, Trends, Writing CraftTag: Get Published, Pitching, Tamela, Trends, Writing Craft

Save Your Inbox!

By Steve Laubeon September 19, 2011

Like you, I have a love-hate relationship with email.
I love it because it allows for quick and easy communication.
I hate it because the flood in the inbox can be overwhelming.

(I also get irritated with that hyphen! email or e-mail?)

A "solution" may be at hand! Some pretty smart folks have created "The Email Charter." Please do yourself a favor, click this link to The Email Charter, …

Category: Book Business, News You Can Use, Steve, TrendsTag: Book Business, News, Trends

En-TITLE-ment: Finding the Perfect Title (Part One)

By Karen Ballon August 17, 2011

One of the most difficult—and important—things we did when I worked in the publishing house was come up with titles for our authors’ novels. Sometimes it was a breeze, either because the author’s title was spot-on or because the story lent itself organically to a certain title. But more often than not, it was a long process of back-and-forth with the author, marketing, and sales. So how can you, …

Category: Get Published, Karen, Marketing, Trends, Writing CraftTag: Book Business, Craft, Karen, Pitching, Titles, Writing Craft

Bon Voyage — or A New Adventure?

By Tamela Hancock Murrayon July 28, 2011

On Monday, Barbour Publishing informed the industry that they will be discontinuing their Heartsong Presents imprint. After 18 years and 1,000 titles, it will end its run in December 2011. Publishing has always been fluid. Steve Laube says that it is important to stay flexible because “A publisher can dramatically change directions after a meeting on Tuesday.”

I never thought Heartsong …

Category: Get Published, Publishing A-Z, Tamela, TrendsTag: Agents, Get Published, Tamela, Trends

The Greatest Thing Since Sliced Bread?

By Steve Laubeon July 11, 2011

Guest Post by Teddi Deppner

Today debuts our first guest post. I first met Teddi at the Mt. Hermon Writers Conference while she sat through my Major Morning Track, listening patiently to 8 1/2 hours of lecture over four days. She has recently been asking some penetrating questions about technology and the publishing industry so I invited her to create a post and express those thoughts for …

Category: Book Business, E-Books, Guest Post, Publishing A-Z, TrendsTag: Book Business, Creativity, E-Books, Get Published, Ideas, Traditional Publishing, Trends

Print: A Thing of the Past?

By Karen Ballon June 22, 2011

by Karen Ball

Remember the musical Oklahoma? Gordon MacRae singing to, of all people, Rod Steiger: "Poor Jud is daid, poor Jud Fry is daid..."

Well, the way folks have been talking lately, I'm waiting for the new musical, "Digital World," where a Gordon MacRae-esque editor will stand next to a book and sing out, "Poor print is daid, poor print books is daid, they're lookin' oh, so tattered …

Category: Book Business, Get Published, Publishing A-Z, TrendsTag: Print, publishing, Trends

Happy to be Here!

By Tamela Hancock Murrayon June 7, 2011

HAPPY TO BE HERE!

I am thrilled to be a part of The Steve Laube Agency and to post my first blog entry. I have been asked lots of questions about my new venture. I'll answer a few here.

Will you continue to represent Christian romance novels?
Yes, I will! Steve was familiar with my client list when I joined the agency and we both believe Christian fiction is a vital part of …

Category: Agency, Get Published, Tamela, TrendsTag: Agents, Book Business, Tamela, Trends, Writing Craft

Book Trailers: Vital or Wasteful?

By Steve Laubeon February 17, 2011

Book trailers, if done well, can be a cool component to the marketing of your project. If done poorly or if done cheaply they do very little to impress a potential reader.

Most authors love to see their work done this way. In some ways if feels like the story has made it to the "big screen."

But does it sell books? When was the last time you clicked and then bought because of the trailer?

Category: Branding, Marketing, Platform, TrendsTag: book trailer, Trends