This is not an endorsement of Tribute Books, but merely information that I’m passing along.

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Amazon has announced its quarterly earnings. While it enjoyed a 44% increase in North American revenue because of spending, profits had declined over 70%. Amazon anticipates that there will increase between 20% – 44% compared to last year in net sales. More here.

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Entangled Pub has announced they will begin to compete with Harlequin on a category book basis. Despite invoking the name of Harlequin, it appeared that category means length to Entangled Pub. As any long-time reader of category romances know, the category line promises a specific type of book. The press release, however, indicates a different focus.

Launching the Indulgence imprint offers the company the ability to focus on the 50,000-60,000 word stories which adhere to the tried and true tropes readers expect from category romances.

….

“There will be something for everyone in the Indulgence line,” says publisher Elizabeth Pelletier.

The press release goes on to say that it will offer Flirts which are 10-15K words and “Ever Afters” which are 30,000-40,000 word novellas.  This press release sounds like a reset. Hey guys, we are out here publishing books and we are going to be publishing more, in a variety of lengths. Hopefully the reset will include a reduction of prices. It does appear that prices are declining.  The book I reviewed here (positively I might add) cost $7.99 for an under 80K word novel at the time I reviewed it. The price for it is currently $3.99. It’s sequel is on sale for $6.99. There was no word in the press release about the price of the category books (or the shorter works).

Most of what I have heard about Entangled Pub is their denying legitimate bloggers review ARCs from Net Galley and sending semi offensive rejection notes. One thing I have experienced first hand is that Entangled Pub is very slow at responding to requests. I requested an Entangled Pub book and it took several weeks to get a response. I actually requested the book twice. (And both requests were approved on the same day). Many other bloggers have reported delays in responses, often the response being a rejection.

Lori Wilde, the acquisitions editor for the new line says that these categories are fresher than what is in the current market.

“These aren’t your mother’s category romances,” says Lori Wilde.  “They’re quick paced, exciting contemporary stories, whether funny, sexy, mysterious, edgy, or emotional, that showcase what it’s really like to fall in love in the twenty-first century.”

Hallmarks of the line will be the rapid-fire dialogue, fast moving plot lines, sizzling sex, and realistic characters.  Above all, the heartfelt emotions that speak to the way young people live, love, and work will be at the center of every story. “There has never been a more exciting time in history to be an author,” Wilde says. “Dare to seize the future!

Press releases are a tricky thing. Obviously they want to raise awareness and excitement for their new offerings but instead this release kind of slights existing category readers (and writers) as well as suggesting that their own offerings don’t contain a young, fresh, outlook with rapid-fire dialogue.  I do think that competing with Harlequin is a great idea.  I just don’t know that Entangled, with its near silent marketing squad, is ready to take them on.

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There is something funny about seeing a debate over low brow lit fic and high brow lit fic and what those in the lit fic crowd believe are deserving of literary prizes.  It means more, suggests one judge, when a readable book is judged along side others…less readable?

One anonymous publisher was quoted in the Guardian saying, “We need icy indifference to public opinion from our Booker judges, and we expect at least a few impenetrable, dark, tricky novels on the shortlist. That way it’s all the more surprising when a Life of Pi emerges.”

Impenetrable fiction for the win is the clarion call of some:

And yet there’s a consortium of people, headed by literary agent Andrew Kidd and supported by a host of literary types, who last week announced they were putting together a prize, to be known as The Literature Prize, for “writers who aspire to something finer.”

Why not just have a category for “books we think we are supposed to like because they are incomprehensible to us”?   More here.

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Lionel Shriver writes at Slate.com about the need for more unlikeable characters.  I’m not convinced by Shriver’s piece.  She begins by defining the unlikeable character by parsing out what is not an unlikeable character.  It is not an anti-hero, a villain, or someone unattractive by accident (wherein the author meant to write a loveable character but failed by making the character annoying).  Shriver can’t encapsulate what a truly unlikeable character is that we should enjoy reading.

Maybe we’re getting down to the nugget: it is possible to sympathize with characters, while still despairing of their misjudgments and even finding them irksome. Eva’s plight as the mother of a high school killer is sympathetic, whatever her shortcomings as a parent, for the scale of her punishment has been disproportionate. Willy’s career disappointment is heartbreaking, even if her rivalry with her husband is ugly and catastrophic. We can sympathize with people of whom we sometimes disapprove, and whom we may not entirely like.

I think Shriver wants you to like her characters because they are flawed and difficult but not because they are unlikeable.

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Here is another (expensive) entry into the lighted cover ebook market.  It’s from Lightwedge and the cover is called Verso.  The unique thing about this is that it is charged via a USB cord rather than batteries.  The cost is $59.99.

Related posts:

1. Thursday Midday Links: “Beauty and the Beast become a single character”
2. Wednesday Midday Links: February Book Specials
3. Wednesday Midday Links

2010 RITA for Best First Book Finalists

• * WINNER * One Scream Away by Kate Brady, Grand Central Publishing, Forever, Editor: Celia Johnson (ISBN: 978-0-446-54152-7).   Reviewed here by Jane.
• He Calls Her Doc by Mary Brady, Harlequin Enterprises, Harlequin Superromance, Editor: Kathryn Lye (ISBN: 978-0-373-71561-9)
• The Gladiator by Carla Capshaw, Harlequin Enterprises, Steeple Hill Love Inspired Historical, Editor: Melissa Endlich, (ISBN: 978-0-373-82824-1)
• Angel Vindicated by Viola Estrella, Ellora's Cave, Cerridwen Press, Editor: Helen Woodall, (ISBN: 978-1-419-92068-4) (NOTE: this book is cheaper if you buy direct from the Cerridwen site which is different than Jasmine Jade. It took me about 10 minutes last night to find the ebook to purchase).
• The Better Part of Darkness by Kelly Gay, Simon & Schuster, Pocket Books, Editor: Ed Schlesinger, (ISBN: 978-1-439-10965-6)
• Stolen Fury by Elisabeth Naughton, Dorchester Publishing, Love Spell, Editor: Leah Hultenschmidt, (ISBN: 978-0-505-52793-6)
• Nothing Like You by Lauren Strasnick, Simon & Schuster Children’s Publishing, Editor: Anica Rissi, (ISBN: 978-1-416-98264-7)
• The Last Will of Moira Leahy by Therese Walsh, Random House Group, Shaye Areheart Books, Editor: Sarah Knight, (ISBN: 978-0-230-746157-5)

We have reviewed   One Scream Away by Kate Brady,  Angel Vindicated by Viola  Estrella, and  The Last Will of Moira Leahy by Therese Walsh.

2010 RITA for Contemporary Series Romance Finalists

• *WINNER * A Not-So-Perfect Past by Beth Andrews, Harlequin Enterprises, Harlequin Superromance, Editor: Victoria Curran, (ISBN: 978-0-373-71556-5)
• From The Outside by Helen Brenna, Harlequin Enterprises, NASCAR, Editor: Tina James, (ISBN: 978-0-373-18522-1)
• The Snow-Kissed Bride by Linda Goodnight, Harlequin Enterprises, Harlequin Romance, Editor: Allison Lyons, (ISBN: 978-0-373-17561-1)
• Single Mom Seeks…” by Teresa Hill, Harlequin Enterprises, Silhouette Special Edition, Editor: Melissa Jeglinski, (ISBN: 978-0373654314)
• Revealed: A Prince and a Pregnancy by Kelly Hunter, Harlequin Enterprises, Mills and Boon Modern Heat, Editor: Joanne Grant, (ISBN: 978-0-263-87252-1)
• The Christmas Love-Child by Jennie Lucas, Harlequin Enterprises, Harlequin Presents, Editor: Kimberly Young, (ISBN: 978-0-373-52742-7)
• One-Night Mistress…Convenient Wife by Anne McAllister, Harlequin Enterprises, Harlequin Presents, Editor: Jenny Hutton, (ISBN: 978-0-373-12871-6)
• Duty, Desire and the Desert King by Jane Porter, Harlequin Enterprises, Mills and Boon Modern, Editor: Kim Young, (ISBN: 978-0-263-87447-1)
• I Still Do by Christie Ridgway, Harlequin Enterprises, Silhouette Special Edition, Editor: Patience Smith, (ISBN: 978-0-373-65432-1)

We have reviewed none of these but I have read the McAllister since the nomination and enjoyed it.

2010 RITA for Contemporary Series Romance: Suspense/Adventure Finalists

• Mountain Investigation by Jessica Andersen, Harlequin Enterprises, Harlequin Intrigue, Editor: Allison Lyons, (ISBN: 978-0-373-69414-3)
• The Christmas Stranger by Beth Cornelison, Harlequin Enterprises, Silhouette Romantic Suspense, Editor: Allison Lyons, (ISBN: 978-0-373-27651-6)
• * WINNER* The Soldier’s Secret Daughter by Cindy Dees, Harlequin Enterprises, Silhouette Romantic Suspense, Editor: Patience Smith, (ISBN: 978-0-373-27658-5)
• In Care Of Sam Beaudry by Kathleen Eagle, Harlequin Enterprises, Silhouette Special Edition, Editors: Leslie Wainger and Charles Griesman, (ISBN: 978-0-373-65451-2)
• Silent Watch by Elle Kennedy, Harlequin Enterprises, Silhouette Romantic Suspense, Editor: Diana Ventimiglia, (ISBN: 978-0-373-27644-8)
• Cold Case Affair by Loreth Anne White, Harlequin Enterprises, Silhouette Romantic Suspense, Editor: Susan Litman, (ISBN: 978-0-373-27652-3)
• The Christmas Present The Christmas Present by Tracy Wolff, Harlequin Enterprises, Harlequin Superromance, Editor: Wanda Ottewell, (ISBN: 978-0-373-71607-4)

We have not reviewed any of these books.

2010 RITA for Contemporary Single Title Romance Finalists

• Talk Me Down by Victoria Dahl, Harlequin Enterprises, HQN, Editor: Tara Parsons, (ISBN: 978-0-373-77356-5)
• True Love and Other Disasters by Rachel Gibson, HarperCollins Publishers, Avon Books, Editor: Lucia Macro, (ISBN: 978-0-061-57906-6)
• For the Love of Pete by Julia Harper, Grand Central Publishing, Forever, Editor: Amy Pierpont, (ISBN: 978-0-446-61918-9)
• *WINNER* Too Good To Be True Kristan Higgins, Harlequin Enterprises, HQN, Editors: Keyren Gerlach and Tracy Farrell, (ISBN: 978-0-373-77355-8)
• A Little Light Magic by Joy Nash, Dorchester Publishing, Leisure Fiction, Editor: Alicia Condon, (ISBN: 978-0-505-52693-9)
• Dirty Sexy Knitting by Christie Ridgway, Penguin Group USA, Berkley, Editor: Cindy Hwang, (ISBN: 978-0-425-22829-6)
• Instant Attraction by Jill Shalvis, Kensington Publishing Corp., Brava, Editor: Kate Duffy, (ISBN: 978-0-758-23123-9)
• Fireside Fireside by Susan Wiggs, Harlequin Enterprises, MIRA Books, Editor: Margaret O’Neill Marbury, (ISBN: 978-0-778-32910-7)

We have Haiku reviews of Talk Me Down by Victoria Dahl and   True Love and Other Disasters by Rachel Gibson; Too Good to Be True by Kristan Higgins,  For The Love of Pete by Julia Harper, and  Instant Attraction by Jill Shalvis.

2010 RITA for Historical Romance Finalists

• Wicked All Day by Liz Carlyle, Simon & Schuster, Pocket Books Romance, Editor: Lauren McKenna, (ISBN: 978-0-4165-9492-5)
• With Seduction in Mind by Laura Lee Guhrke, HarperCollins Publishers, Avon Books, Editor: Erika Tsang, (ISBN: 978-0-06-145683-1)
• To Beguile A Beast by Elizabeth Hoyt, Grand Central Publishing, Forever, Editor: Amy Pierpont, (ISBN: 978-0-446-40693-2)
• Make Me Yours by Betina Krahn, Harlequin Enterprises, Blaze, Editor: Brenda Chin, (ISBN: 978-0-373-79483-6)
• Knight of Pleasure by Margaret Mallory, Grand Central Publishing, Forever, Editor: Alex Logan, (ISBN: 978-0-446-55338-4)
• The Lone Texan by Jodi Thomas, Penguin Group USA, Berkley, Editor: Wendy McCurdy, (ISBN: 978-0-425-23062-6)
• *WINNER* Not Quite a Husbandby Sherry Thomas, Bantam Dell Publishing Group, Editor: Caitlin Alexander, (ISBN: 978-0-553-59243-6)
• Taming Her Irish Warrior by Michelle Willingham, Harlequin Enterprises, Harlequin Historical, Editor: Joanne Grant, (ISBN: 978-0-373-29566-1)

We reviewed  Wicked All Day by Liz Carlyle, Not Quite a Husband by Sherry Thomas (here and here),  Make Me Yours by Betina Krahn  (reviews here and here), To Beguile a Beast by Elizabeth Hoyt, and  Knight of Pleasure by Margaret Mallory.

2010 RITA for Inspirational Romance Finalists

• *WINNER * The Inheritance (Women of Faith Fiction) by Tamera Alexander, Thomas Nelson, Inc., Women of Faith Fiction, Editors: Ami McConnell and Natalie Hanemann, (ISBN: 978-1-59554-632-6). Alexander won in 2007 for Revealed.
• A Lady Like Sarah by Margaret Brownley, Thomas Nelson, Inc., Editor: Natalie Hanemann, (ISBN: 978-0-59554-809-2)
• The Gladiator by Carla Capshaw, Harlequin Enterprises, Steeple Hill Love Inspired Historical, Editor: Melissa Endlich, (ISBN: 978-0-373-82824-1)
• Entertaining Angels by Judy Duarte, Kensington Publishing Corp., Editor: John Scognamiglio, (ISBN: 978-0-7582-2016-5)
• An Eye for an Eye by Irene Hannon, Baker Publishing Group, Revell Books, Editor: Jennifer Leep, (ISBN: 978-0-8007-3311-7)
• The Silent Governess by Julie Klassen, Bethany House Publishers, Editor: Karen Schurrer, (ISBN: 978-0-7642-0707-5)
• Breach of Trust by Diann Mills, Tyndale House Publishers, Editor: Stephanie Boerne, (ISBN: 978-1-414-32047-2)
• The Confidential Life of Eugenia Cooper by Kathleen Y’Barbo, Random House Publishing, WaterBrook Multnomah, Editor: Jessica Barnes, (ISBN: 978-0-307-44474-5)

I don’t read inspirationals so I haven’t a clue here although I believe that Tamera Alexander has won before. Jayne did read and review the Capshaw book here.

2010 RITA for Novel with Strong Romantic Elements Finalists

• The Better Part of Darkness by Kelly Gay, Simon & Schuster, Pocket Books, Editor: Ed Schlesinger, (ISBN: 978-1-439-10965-6)
• Scandal Sheet by Gemma Halliday, Dorchester Publishing, Editor Leah Hultenschmidt, (ISBN: 978-0-505-52805-6)
• Red’s Hot Honky-Tonk Bar by Pamela Morsi, Harlequin Enterprises, MIRA Books, Editor: Valerie Gray, (ISBN: 978-0-7783-2729-5)
• *WINNER * The Lost Recipe for Happiness by Barbara O’Neal, Bantam Dell Publishing Group, Discovery, Editor: Shauna Summers, (ISBN: 978-0-553-38551-9) (this is Barbara Samuels for those not familiar with the author)
• Silent On The Moor by Deanna Raybourn, Harlequin Enterprises, MIRA Books, Editor: Valerie Gray, (ISBN: 978-0-7783-2614-4)
• The Accidental Bestseller by Wendy Wax, Penguin Group USA, Berkley, Editor: Wendy McCurdy, (ISBN: 978-0-425-22767-1)
• The Virgin’s Daughters: In the Court of Elizabeth I by Jeane Westin, Penguin Group, USA, NAL Trade, Editor: Ellen Edwards, (ISBN: 978-0-451-22667-9)
• Lakeshore Christmas by Susan Wiggs, Harlequin Enterprises, MIRA Books, Editor: Margaret O’Neill Marbury, (ISBN: 978-0-778-32689-2)

Jayne reviewed Silent on the Moor.

2010 RITA for Paranormal Romance Finalists

• What Would Jane Austen Do? by Laurie Brown, Sourcebooks, Inc., Casablanca, Editor: Deb Werksman, (ISBN: 978-1-4022-1831-6)
• Untouchable in Deep Kiss of Winterby Kresley Cole, Simon & Schuster, Pocket Books, Editor: Lauren McKenna, (ISBN: 978-1-439-15966-8)
• *WINNER* Kiss Of A Demon King by Kresley Cole, Simon & Schuster, Pocket Books, Editor: Lauren McKenna, (ISBN: 978-1-416-58094-2). Cole won in 2007 for A Hunger Like No Other (reviewed here and here).
• My Forbidden Desire by Carolyn Jewel, Grand Central Publishing, Forever, Editor: Michele Bidelspach, (ISBN: 978-0-446-17824-2)
• The Fire King by Marjorie M. Liu, Dorchester Publishing, Leisure Books, Editor: Chris Keeslar, (ISBN: 978-0-843-95940-6)
• For the Earl’s Pleasure by Anne Mallory, HarperCollins Publishers, Avon Books, Editor: May Chen, (ISBN: 978-0-061-57914-1)
• Darkness Unknown by Alexis Morgan, Simon & Schuster, Pocket Books, Pocket Star, Editor: Micki Nuding, (ISBN: 978-1-4165-634-3)
• Covet by J.R. Ward, Penguin Group USA, Signet, Editor: Kara Cesare, (ISBN: 978-0-451-22821-5)
• Mortal Sins by Eileen Wilks, Penguin Group USA, Berkley Sensation, Editor: Cindy Hwang, (ISBN: 978-0-425-22552-3,

I did review Kiss of a Demon King.   We also reviewed My Forbidden Desire by Carolyn Jewel,  Mortal Sins by Eileen Wilks, and   Covet by J.R. Ward.

2010 RITA for Regency Historical Romance Finalists

• Surrender of a Siren by Tessa Dare, Ballantine/Bantam Dell, Editor: Kate Collins, (ISBN: 978-0-345-50687-0)
• Scandal (Berkley Sensation) by Carolyn Jewel, Penguin Group USA, Berkley Sensation, Editor: Kate Seaver, (ISBN: 978-0-425-22551-6)
• Tempting Fate by Alissa Johnson, Dorchester Publishing, Leisure Books, Editor: Leah Hultenschmidt, (ISBN: 978-0-843-96156-0)
• A View to a Kiss by Caroline Linden, HarperCollins Publishers, Avon Books, Editor: Lyssa Keusch, (ISBN: 978-0-061-70635-6)
• Revealed by Kate Noble, Penguin Group USA, Berkley Sensation, Editor: Cindy Hwang, (ISBN: 978-0-425-22174-7)
• * WINNER * What Happens in London by Julia Quinn, HarperCollins Publishers, Avon Books, Editor: Lyssa Keusch, (ISBN: 978-0-061-49188-7). This is the third win in a row for Quinn.   Prior to 2007, she had been nominated but never won.   She is now part of the RITA hall of fame.
• Lord Braybrook’s Penniless Bride by Elizabeth Rolls, Harlequin Enterprises, Harlequin Historical, Editor: Linda Fildew, (ISBN: 978-0-373-29548-7)

We reviewed Surrender of a Siren by Tessa Dare, Scandal by Carolyn Jewel, and What Happens In London by Julia Quinn.

2010 RITA for Romance Novella Finalists

• “A Little Night Magic” by Allyson James in Hot for the Holidays, Penguin Group USA, Berkley, Jove, Editor: Kate Seaver, (ISBN: 978-0515-14700-1)
• "The Robber Bride" by Marjorie M. Liu in Huntress, St. Martin's Press, Editor:, (ISBN: 978-0-312-94382-0)
• "Annalise and the Scandalous Rake" by Deb Marlowe in The Diamonds Of Welbourne Manor, Harlequin Enterprises, Harlequin Historical, Editor: Linda Fildew, (ISBN: 978-0-373-29543-2)
• “Charlotte and the Wicked Lord” by Amanda McCabe in The Diamonds Of Welbourne Manor, Harlequin Enterprises, Harlequin Historical, Editor: Joanne Grant, (ISBN: 978-0-373-29543-2)
• "This Wicked Gift" by Courtney Milan in The Heart of Christmas, Harlequin Enterprises, HQN, Editor: Ann Leslie Tuttle, (ISBN: 978-0-373-77427-2)
• "On a Snowy Christmas" by Brenda Novak in The Night Before Christmas, Harlequin Enterprises, Editor: Paula Eykelhof, (ISBN: 978-0-373-83736-6)
• * WINNER * "The Christmas Eve Promise" by Molly O’Keefe in The Night Before Christmas, Harlequin Enterprises, Silhouette Special Releases, Editor: Stacy Boyd, (ISBN: 978-0-373-83736-6)

2010 RITA for Romantic Suspense Finalists

• One Scream Away by Kate Brady, Grand Central Publishing, Forever, Editor: Celia Johnson, (ISBN: 978-0-446-54152-7)
• Waking the Dead (Mindhunters) by Kylie Brant, Penguin Group USA, Berkley Sensation, Editor: Cindy Hwang, (ISBN: 978-0-425-23114-2)
• A Dark Love by Margaret Carroll, HarperCollins Publishers, Avon Books, Editor: Carrie Feron, (ISBN: 978-0-06-165278-3)
• * WINNER * Whisper of Warning by Laura Griffin, Simon & Schuster, Pocket Books, Pocket Star, Editor: Abby Zidle, (ISBN: 978-1-416-57064-6)
• Stolen Fury by Elisabeth Naughton, Dorchester Publishing, Love Spell, Editor: Leah Hultenschmidt, (ISBN: 978-0-505-52793-6)
• Dark Country by Bronwyn Parry, Hachette Livre, Hachette Australia, Editor: Bernadette Foley, (ISBN: 978-0-733-62323-3)
• Promises in Death (In Death, No. 28) by J.D. Robb, Penguin Group USA, Putnam, Editor: Leslie Gelbman, (ISBN: 978-0-399-15548-2)
• Kill for Me by Karen Rose, Grand Central Publishing, Vision, Editor: Karen Kosztolnyik, (ISBN: 978-0-446-51030-1)

We reviewed  A Dark Love by Margaret Carroll,  Whisper of Warning by Laura Griffen, Promises in Death by J.D. Robb, and recently I reviewed As Darkness Falls by  Bronwyn Parry (not her RITA nominated book, though).

2010 RITA for Young Adult Romance

• Fairy Tale by Cyn Balog, Random House Group, Delacorte Press, Editor:, (ISBN: 978-0-385-738494)
• Don’t Judge a Girl by Her Cover by Ally Carter, Hyperion Books for Children, Editor: Jennifer Besser, (ISBN: 978-1-423-11638-7)
• * WINNER * Perfect Chemistry by Simone Elkeles, Walker Books for Young Readers, Editor: Emily Easton, (ISBN: 978-0-8027-9823-7)
• Going Too Far by Jennifer Echols, Simon & Schuster, Pocket Books, MTV Books, Editor: Jennifer Heddle, (ISBN: 978-1-416-57173-5)
• The ABC’s of Kissing Boys by Tina Ferraro, Random House Group, Delacorte Press, Editor: Krista Marino, (ISBN: 978-0-385-73582-7)
• Nothing Like You by Lauren Strasnick, Simon & Schuster Children’s Publishing, Editor: Anica Rissi, (ISBN: 978-1-416-98264-7)

Will you be buying any of the winners or the nominees? Have thoughts about what went down?

Related posts:

1. 2008 RITA WINNER for Contemporary Series Romance
2. 2008 RITA WINNER for Contemporary Series Romance: Suspense/Adventure
3. 2008 RITA WINNER for Best First Book

I can’t see any mention of Horizons or DellArte Press over at the Harlequin boards (but I also confess to not being very familiar with these boards and could have totally missed it).   There is no word whether this will pacify the writing organizations.   To use Chicklet’s terminology, it appears that Harlequin will be participating in some form of publisher cash for service program in fact, but no longer in name.

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Choire writing for the Awl describes the new publishing venture that Talking Points Memo has undertaken.   TPM, one of the largest, oldest, and most visible liberal blogs, has been responsible for breaking quite a few stories in the last couple of years.   It has hired a publisher.

This publisher will be responsible for making the publication hum and grow. The first duty in the listing is “audience growth.” This is what a publisher should do: ensure the ongoing financial success and growth of his or her publication. Instead, what we have now in the media industry are publishers who believe their duties include dictating the editorial mission on behalf of a business principle. This is when publishers go wrong and, generally, is when they should be taken out back and shot.

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Teleread has a piece on how to get a bargain ebook reader.   It recommends both the high end which is buying a subscription to the Globe & the Kindle Dx or heading off to eBay for a sub $50 PDA.   PDAs with a 3.5″ screen or larger can be   a good reading device.

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Nathan Bransford takes a look at the economics of publishing.   Lynn Viehl had shared that she was paid a $50,000 advance and earned an additional $24,517.36 in profit after taxes.   It was estimated that the gross revenue for the publishing was $450,000.00.   Bransford points out that the profit for the publisher takes into consideration all of the expenses and that bestsellers make up for the majority of books that don’t make any money (or may actually lose money for publishers).   Of course, for authors to get a greater chunk of the profit, they’ll have to move away from the traditional publishing model.

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Edan Lupicka writing for The Millions points out the hazards of giving out awards because of gender or ethnicity.   It’s demeaning to those groups of writers whose talent and skill should speak and be judged for themselves.   (Via @glecharles).   But Lupicka isn’t certain on how to erase gender or race bias but lamenting the lack of diversity amongst winners of prestigious awards can lead to awards given on something other than merit or somehow diminishing the work of the author based on gender or ethnicity.

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Persona Non Data tackles the issue of publishing and pricing. It’s a pretty fascinating article and I definitely recommend interested parties take a look.   PND was in the airline industry and each seat had a different value.   Books are not priced differently but are subject to a band of pricing.   PND then goes on to talk about researchers of the music industry and students’ sensitivity to price:

The authors also experimented with a subscription type model that had a fixed price component with a per-use fee, and this model appeared to be more effective at maximizing revenue and value for both retailer and consumer.

Google Books is based on a subscription based model.   The key to an author’s increased revenue from subscription based models is volume. In other words, from a pool of subscribers, the author gets revenue by virtue of being in the pool from a large number of people who would have never bought her book in the first place.   Depending on the subscription price, this has real interest to me as a reader.

In self publishing setting, authors could set up coops to have effectively the same result.

Related posts:

1. Harlequin Horizons, What’s In It For You
2. Wednesday Midday Links: Quartet Press Closes
3. Wednesday Midday Links RoundUp: Big Changes at Simon & Schuster

The new rules are thus:

Contest Rules Specific to the RITA

Books entered in the 2009 RITA contest must:

 ·                    Have an original copyright date (printed on the copyright page) or a first printing date or a first North American printing date of 2008.

 ·                  Not have been previously entered.

 ·                  Be mass-produced by a non-Subsidy, non-Vanity Publisher in print book format.

 ·                  Meet the requirements for the category in which it was entered.

 ·                  Be a work of original fictional narrative prose.

http://www.rwanational.org/cs/contests_and_awards/rita_awards/contest_rules

This means that books that are print on demand are not eligible nor are books that are published by what RWA considers to be a Subsidy or Vanity Publisher.   So some authors who are members of PAN submitted their books and now are out the contest fee and cost of the copies of the books (around $250+ for some) because the books submitted are not “mass produced.”   

This has led to some hard feelings and authors pulling out of the contest as judges and generally stirring up a lot of controversy.   I guess my feeling is that if an author is PAN member then she should be able to submit books to the RITA contest.   An online petition can be found here in support of changing the rules.

Related posts:

1. June Ebook Contest
2. Winners of the Jill Shalvis Contest and the Rita Ballot Contest
3. July Ebook Contest

Related posts:

1. Shortlist for Romantic Novelists’ Association Awards
2. Harlequin Makes a Call for Paranormal Shorts
3. Privacy and the Internet. Makes for Great Drama.

Grimshaw is a voracious reader of romance as well as general fiction and mystery. She devours a minimum of three to five romance books per week, most days enjoying an hour of reading before arriving at work in the morning and then reads a few hours more each night during the week and several hours on the weekend.

Sue stated "I was very honored to be chosen as this year’s recipient of the Vivian Stephens award. As you know, I really enjoy the genre & it is a wonderful feeling to be recognized for doing what you love to do."

Related posts:

1. RWA Announces 2008 Award Recipients
2. Sue Grimshaw is now talking an…
3. Sue Grimshaw, Borders Romance …

DRAMA: August: Osage County by Tracy Letts

HISTORY: What Hath God Wrought by Daniel Walker Howe (Oxford University Press)

BIOGRAPHY: Eden’s Outcasts by John Matteson (W.W. Norton)

POETRY: Time and Materials by Robert Hass (Ecco/HarperCollins)

POETRY: Failure by Philip Schultz (Harcourt)

Pulitzer.org

Related posts:

1. 2008 RITAs and Golden Heart Finalists Announced
2. Quill Winners Announced: Include McCormick and Roberts
3. RWA Announces 2008 Award Recipients

• RWA Nora Roberts Lifetime Achievement Award – Vicki Lewis Thompson (this used to be the Lifetime Achievement Award but was renamed to the Nora Roberts Lifetime Achievement Award)
• RWA Emma Merritt Service Award – Linda Winstead Jones
• RWA Service Award – Jill Limber, Nicole Burnham
• RWA Vivian Stephens Industry Award – Sue Grimshaw, Romance Buyer, Borders Group Inc.
• RWA Steffie Walker Bookseller of the Year Award – Dianne Defonce, Borders, Fairfield, Connecticut
• RWA Librarian of the Year – Susan Gibberman, Schaumburg Township District Library, Schaumburg, IL
• RWA Veritas Award — no nominations submitted.
• The RWA Grant recipient for 2008-2009 is Sarah S. G. Frantz, Assistant Professor of Literature, Fayetteville State University (Woot! Dr. Sarah. We can’t wait to read your papers that come out of this grant).

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1. Essence.com Announces Its Winners
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It has awarded the The Pirate’s Daughter by Margaret Cezair-Thompson its first ever Essence Literary Award for fiction.

Terry McMillan was given the inaugural Lifetime Achievement Award. There was a certain synergy in this award since McMillan had won ESSENCE’s first ever college-writing contest in 1974.

All other winners can be seen at the Essence.com site.

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Fiction

• Matthew Eck, author of The Farther Shore (Milkweed Editions)
• Joshua Ferris, author of Then We Came to the End (Little, Brown)
• Vendela Vida, author of Let the Northern Lights Erase Your Name (Ecco)

Nonfiction

• Kate Braestrup, author of Here If You Need Me: A True Story (Little, Brown)
• Elizabeth D. Samet, author of Soldier’s Heart: Reading Literature Through Peace and War at West Point (FSG)
• Yaroslav Trofimov, author of The Siege of Mecca: The Forgotten Uprising in Islam’s Holiest Shrine and the Birth of Al Qaeda (Doubleday)

The winners will be announced on Wednesday, February 27. Winners in each category receive a $10,000 prize and a year of addition promotion at B&N. Second-place finalists win $5,000; third-place finalists $2,500.

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Card is a Latter Day Saint and has more than one disturbing article regarding his views on homosexuality.

The argument by the hypocrites of homosexuality that homosexual tendencies are genetically ingrained in some individuals is almost laughably irrelevant. We are all genetically predisposed toward some sin or another; we are all expected to control those genetic predispositions when it is possible. . . .We are compassionate and forgiving of those who cannot resist this temptation, but we do not regard as adult anyone who has not overcome it; and we can only help others overcome those “genetic predispositions” by teaching them that we expect them to meet a higher standard of behavior than the one their own body teaches them.

Reading the above article does, indeed, make one wonder why an award that is supposed to honor those who are “helping adolescents become aware of themselves and addressing questions about their role and importance in relationships, society, and in the world” is given to one who speaks so passionately and ardently about the “sin” of homosexuality and how that it should be curbed with “swift but mild” punishment for small children, growing more severe as the child ages.

This is especially thought provoking given the discussion on Sunday about separating the author from the author’s work.

Via Galley Cat.

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• The Secret Life of Lady Gabriella – Liz Fielding
• Driving him Wild – Julie Cohen
• Her Parenthood Assignment – Fiona Harper
• English Lord, Ordinary Lady – Fiona Harper
• The Mediterranean Rebel’s Bride – Lucy Gordon
• Breakfast at Giovanni’s – Kate Hardy

The RNA gives out a Romance Prize and Romance Novel of the Year. This years judging panel of authors are Zoë Barnes, Trisha Ashley and bestseller Katie Fforde. The three determine the winner of the Romance Prize 2008.

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• Blossom Time by Joan Smith (Regency with one of my favorite themes: friends to lovers)
• The Book, the Film, The T-Shirt by Matt Beaumont (Contemporary comedy but not a romance)
• Challenge the Wind by Debra Tash (Revolutionary War romance)
• Cousinly Connexion by Sheila Simonson (Regency romance)
• Edge of Sweetness by Anya Bast (Contemporary erotic romance with light BDSM)
• Forbidden by Lila Dubois (Fantasy erotic romance with good world building)
• Game Over by Sahara Kelly (Fantasy featuring a role playing game)
• Samburu Hills by Jennifer Mueller (Arranged marriage story set in Edwardian period)
• Tempted by Two by Anya Bast (Urban fantasy erotic romance)

There were plenty of other ebooks that we read (mostly Jayne) that were rated B or better. You can read all the reviews in the archives.

We would love to hear your top e published books for 2007 and what you are anticipating in 2008. I noticed that my own ebook reading was down in 2007 and I would like to broaden my horizons. Make some suggestions for us.

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Minneapolis, Minnesota, population 372811, was named 2007′s Most Literate City. The methodology used by Central Connecticut State University includes only cities with a population in excess of 250,000 according to the US Census Data as of July 1, 2006. The study calculates the ranking based on newspaper circulation, number of bookstores, library resources, periodical publishing resources, educational attainment, and Internet resources.

The top ten list includes

1. Minneapolis, MN
2. Seattle, WA
3. St. Paul, MN
4. Denver, CO
5. Washington, DC
6. St. Louis, MO
7. San Francisco, CA
8. Atlanta, GA
9. Pittsburgh, PA
10. Boston, MA

Interestingly, the 2007 report concludes that literate behavior is down, pointing to the lack of support for independent bookstores and declining newspaper circulation. Given that my family gave up the newspaper delivery to read news on the internet, I don’t know that literate behavior is being correctly or adequately measured today.

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• Red River, Lalita Tademy (Grand Central)
• Casanegra, Blair Underwood, Steven Barnes, and Tananarive (Atria)
• The Pirate’s Daughter, Margaret Cezair-Thompson (Unbridled)
• New England White, Stephen L. Carter (Knopf)
• Knots, Nuruddin Farah (Riverhead)

STORYTELLER OF THE YEAR You may need to be a subscriber to vote for this.

• Eric Jerome Dickey
• Lori Bryant-Woolridge
• Trisha R. Thomas
• L.A. Banks (authors the urban fantasy series called “Vampire Huntress Legend”)
• Tananarive Due

Via Publisher’s Weekly.

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So Klara turned head to foot, and put her most unmentionable part down on his hard-breathing nose and mouth, and took his old battering ram into her lips. Uncle was now as soft as a coil of excrement. She sucked on him nonetheless with an avidity that could come only from the Evil One – that she knew. From there, the impulse had come. So now they both had their heads at the wrong end, and the Evil One was there. He had never been so close before.

The Hound began to come to life. Right in her mouth. It surprised her. Alois had been so limp. But now he was a man again! His mouth lathered with her sap, he turned around and embraced her face with all the passion of his own lips and face, ready at last to grind into her with the Hound, drive it into her piety.

SB Sarah loved his use of the word “piety”.

Personally, I loved this entry by Ali Smith in Boy Meets Girl because in the purple-y prose, she actually uses the word “purple”:

Her hand opened me. Then her hand became a wing. Then everything about me became a wing, a single wing, and she was the other wing, we were a bird. We were a bird that could sing Mozart. I was a she was a he was a we were a girl and a girl and a boy and a boy, we were blades, were a knife that could cut through myth, were two knives thrown by a magician, were arrows fired by a god, we hit heart, we hit home, we were the tail of a fish were the reek of a cat were the beak of a bird were the feather that mastered gravity were high above every landscape then down deep in the purple haze of the heather were roamin in a gloamin in a brash unending Scottish piece of perfect jigging reeling reel can we really keep this up?

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Weirdly all the genre suspense and thrillers were deemed fiction such as Laura Lippman’s, What the Dead Know, and Karin Slaughter’s, Beyond Reach.

In the romance genre, PW picked the following books:

Twice the Temptation by Suzanne Enoch a connected novella book which I thought wasn’t well stitched together and used worn out themes.
The Perfect Bride by Brenda Joyce which I started but couldn’t make past the first chapter.
Wired by Liz Maverick which I thought was a greatly conceived idea but failed in the execution.
One with the Shadows by Susan Squires which I never read.
The Winter Lodge by Susan Wiggs, another I never read.

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Harper Lee published just one book but it was a classic. To Kill a Mockingbird is the biggest selling novel of all time according to Guinness Book of World Records and was awarded the Pulitizer Prize in 1961. It is the number one book that every adult should read before they die according to the World Book Day poll conducted in the UK last year.

According the Guardian article, Harper Lee is a famous recluse who is known only for her one novel and one interview in forty years. To Kill a Mockingbird is said to have sold over 30 million copies, helped in no small part I believe to the fact that it is on the required reading list in many junior high and high school curriculums. A book like Harper Lee’s “To Kill a Mockingbird” should be on everyone’s required reading list.

Via The Guardian.

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