Uncategorized | March 07, 2005
And So It Goes
There is writing and there is the business of writing, which is to say, publishing. And for those of us who celebrate great literature, past, present, and future, irrespective of the financial bottom line, there’s more bad news. A recent article in Crain’s New York Business chronicles the shift at Random House “away from its highbrow heritage and toward the lowbrow commercialism that marks most of its competitors.” It points out that publishers “desperate to keep their revenues growing” have turned to diet and yoga books as means to a profitable end. The article quotes Lorraine Shanley, a principal of Market Partners International, a publishing consultancy: “Lifestyle, how-to and makeover titles are easier to market.” The best-selling authors of 2004 for Random House? Donald Trump and Clay Aiken.
SEE THE ISSUE
SUGGESTED CONTENT
Poem of the Week
Jan 30 2023
Excerpt from “Epistle” by Robert Laidler
This week’s Poem of the Week is excerpted from “Epistle” by Robert Laidler. Robert Laidler, Assistant Professor of Teaching in the Wayne State Department of English, is the author of… read more
Poem of the Week
Jan 23 2023
“Stone Fruit” by Rebecca Foust
This week’s Poem of the Week is “Stone Fruit” by Rebecca Foust. Rebecca Foust’s fourth full-length book ONLY (Four Way Books 2022) received a starred review from Publisher’s Weekly. Recognitions… read more
Poem of the Week
Jan 16 2023
“Of the Country I Left” by Kyoko Uchida
This week’s Poem of the Week is “Of the Country I Left” by Kyoko Uchida. Kyoko Uchida was born in Hiroshima, Japan and raised there and in the United States… read more