The latest publishing news and opinion can be found at blog.rightreading.com.
"What is this world of ours? A complex entity subject to sudden changes, all of which exhibit a tendency to destruction; a swift succession of beings that follow one another, assert themselves and disappear; a fleeting symmetry; a momentary order."
— Denis Diderot (1713-1784), patron saint of editors
-> How to get a book published. 10 not-so-easy steps.
“I would have written a shorter letter, but I did not have the time.”
— Blaise Pascal
Tom's highly authoritative glossary of book publishing terms.
My guest posts at ForeWord Magazine
KHSU interview with Mark Sommer on the subject of publishing.
Literary Publishing in the San Francisco Bay Area, 1980-
Mercury House: Complete List of Publications through 1999 (and more)
(Jeremy Bigalke, executive director, 2006 - )
(Kirsten Janene-Nelson, executive director, 2001-2005)
(Thomas Christensen, executive editor / executive director, 1990–1999)
(Alev Lytle Croutier, executive editor, 1985–1990)
North Point Press: Complete List of Publications
(Jack Shoemaker, editor-in-chief, 1980–1991)
(Thomas Christensen, editor/senior editor, 1980-1988)
Neil Postman on Thomas Paine's Common Sense, and on the printed word
Style Manuals
Chicago Manual of Style Crib Sheet
CSUC Style Guide (Cal State University, Chico)
Electronic version of Strunk & White's Elements of Style
Yale Style Manual
University of South Carolina Style Guide
Tiresome self-promotion
On October 19, 2000, I received an award from the American Literary Translators Association for my work as an editor promoting the cause of translation. That reminded me that I should probably mention a few of the editorial awards we won during my tenure as director of Mercury House, which include: a nomination for an M. Carey Thomas Award for Innovative Publishing (perhaps the most prestigious award given to book publishers); a Best Nonfiction Book of the Year by Publishers Weekly (Severo Sarduy’s Christ on the Rue Jacob): a PEN USA West translation award (Sung Po-jen, Guide to Capturing a Plum Blossom): a PEN Oakland Josephine Miles Award for Excellence in Literature (Alfred Arteaga, House with the Blue Bed): a Firecracker Alternative Book Award (Dale Pendell, Pharmako/Poeia: Plant Powers, Poisons, and Herbcraft): a Before Columbus American Book Award and a San Francisco Mayor's Medal (Thomas Avena, Life Sentences: Writers, Artists, and AIDS): a School Library Journal Best Adult Book for Young Adults (Lucille Eichengreen, From Ashes to Life: My Memories of the Holocaust): an American Library Association Notable Book of the Year (Alison Moore, Small Spaces Between Emergencies): a New York Times Book Review Notable Book of the Year (Leonard Michaels, Sylvia): etc.
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From manuscript to art book in four weeks,
How to protect unpublished work.
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"Her only full-time paid employee is a pleasant young woman with a nose ring named Rebecca ..."
--Peter J. Boyer, "Club
Rules," The New Yorker, Feb. 17 and 28, 2003
"After having osteoarthritis
for eight years, Mrs. Lucille
P. Leisure's wheelchair is gathering dust."
--Adelle Davis, Let's Get
Well, Signet/New American Library, 1965
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