This Hartford Courant Article [Reg. Req.] says the U.S. publishing industry is churning out ever more books each year, an embarrassment of riches for publishers, reviewers and readers alike.
In 2002, total output of new titles and editions in the U.S. grew by nearly 6 percent, to 150,000. General adult fiction exceeded 17,000 – the single strongest category. Juvenile titles topped 10,000, the highest total ever recorded. And there were more than 10,300 new publishers, mostly small or self-publishers.
Librarians are gifted at selecting books and can help readers make good choices.
And, she says, completion of phase one of the library’s expansion project, which was celebrated with a party last week, will offer space for at least 5,000 new books.
“It’s just as exciting as Barnes & Noble or Borders, and the books on the shelves will be even better,” she says, “because they are selected by librarians.”
“Publishing is not a business driven by focus groups or market studies but by word of mouth. Every book is a gamble,” Minton Quigley says. “Publishers rely on their editors, and sometimes they hit it right on the nose, and sometimes they miss. So the publisher puts out a big list,” though only about 10 percent of books each year “earn out” what was invested in them.
This Hartford Courant Article [Reg. Req.] says the U.S. publishing industry is churning out ever more books each year, an embarrassment of riches for publishers, reviewers and readers alike.
In 2002, total output of new titles and editions in the U.S. grew by nearly 6 percent, to 150,000. General adult fiction exceeded 17,000 – the single strongest category. Juvenile titles topped 10,000, the highest total ever recorded. And there were more than 10,300 new publishers, mostly small or self-publishers.
Librarians are gifted at selecting books and can help readers make good choices.
And, she says, completion of phase one of the library’s expansion project, which was celebrated with a party last week, will offer space for at least 5,000 new books.
“It’s just as exciting as Barnes & Noble or Borders, and the books on the shelves will be even better,” she says, “because they are selected by librarians.”
“Publishing is not a business driven by focus groups or market studies but by word of mouth. Every book is a gamble,” Minton Quigley says. “Publishers rely on their editors, and sometimes they hit it right on the nose, and sometimes they miss. So the publisher puts out a big list,” though only about 10 percent of books each year “earn out” what was invested in them.Rebecca Skloot, a science writer for magazines who frequently reviews books on medical and scientific topics and is on the board of the National Book Critics Circle, says managing the flow of review copies is “an organizational nightmare” and “endless joke” to her Manhattan apartment building’s doormen.
“Reviewing is a labor of love,” says Skloot, “but the sheer volume of books is so great that some get lost in the shuffle.” Yet even though she wishes publishers would not send out “blanket mailings” of review copies, “the system does work. I can pass along books to others” who may review them,” she says.
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