AuthorPlanet

A sweet spot between traditional and self-publishing

  • Home
  • Book Proposals/Buy
  • About
    • Jody Rein
    • Author Planet
    • Praise
  • Work
    • Praise
    • Services List
    • Case Studies
    • Client Forms
  • Contact
    • Contact
    • Get Quote

Archives for May 2012

Open Letter to The Department Of Justice

May 11, 2012 By Jody Rein Leave a Comment

Keywords: Amazon. Cats on a Keyboard. Civil society. Books.

So you’ve heard that major publishers colluded to fix ebook prices. I say the related DoJ ruling misses the whole point and will turn more American brains to mush (in the long run) than Moonshiners and Glee combined.

Anyway, here’s  the settlement.  Now is the time to write the Department of Justice.  The AAR wrote a great letter, not yet public.  Simon Lipskar of  Writers House wrote such a fantasic letter I’m linking to him and the letter in a couple places–check it out at Digital Book World, also reprinted on the AAR website.

My own letter is here.  Your comments appreciated.  Reprint if you think it helps.

John R. Read
Chief, Litigation III Section
United States Department of Justice
450 5th St NW
Suite 4000
Washington DC 20530                                                                                       May 8, 2012   

 

Dear Mr. Read:

 

The Board of the Association of Authors’ Representatives recently sent you a letter regarding the proposed settlement between the Justice Department and three publishers with respect to e-book pricing.

 

In that letter, the AAR board urged you to “reject the proposed settlement” and “allow the market to return to one that protects the value of our clients’ intellectual property from unfair and predatory discounting.”

 

I also urge you to reject this settlement. I am a former executive editor (for both Morrow/Avon, which is now a division of HarperCollins, and Bantam/Doubleday/Dell, which is now a division of Random House), and am currently a literary agent and publishing consultant.

 

If you accept this settlement, you will, I believe, abet in the destruction of thoughtful intellectual discourse in America. Well-researched nonfiction books are the optimal vehicles for the dissemination of new ideas. Well-written novels inspire other writers, and encourage imagination, organization, creativity and the pursuit of everything that goes along with intellectual advancement.

 

Such books fortify a civil society.

 

The current system of traditional publishing is not a business with high profit margins, and it is far from perfect. But it does enable multiple companies to pay a variety of editors, writers, designers, and marketers to discover, perfect and promote a broad mix of written works that merit publication. The money that supports this system comes through the individual purchase of commendable books, reasonably priced. It is not a business sustained by advertising revenues, by the sales of other vehicles (such as e-readers), or by a system of patronage.

 

In other words, the book publishing business relies on reasonably priced individual products, sold to individual readers, for its survival.

 

Amazon is a behemoth. If it is able to set any price it wants for the products it distributes–books published by companies with whom it is competing, through the Amazon Publishing Division–Amazon will drive book prices so low reputable publishers will go out of business.

 

Book prices have been consistent for many years; standards have evolved through natural and real market forces weighed against the actual costs of doing business, whether or not [Read more…]

Filed Under: Practical Publishing, Rants and Raves Tagged With: AAR, agent, Amazon, book publishing industry, self-publishing, Writers

General Advice

Praise

Jody is beyond AWESOME! (more)
Mark Kistler
Jody actually takes the time to digest and understand what it is the writer is attempting to do before offering well thought out input. She has a more creative “big picture” mindset than most. (more)
Joe Lieberman
Jody has a gift for communicating in a clear, authoritative, engaging way that inspires trust and affection. (more)
Michael Larsen
Jody gives thoughtful and thorough assessments, a value to me, and I appreciate it. I take her words to heart.  (more)
Bill Nesbit
Jody strives for the best, sets the bar high, and encourages others to do the same. Her success in the world of book publishing reflects her high standards. She knows the business inside and out–and her clients benefit! (more)
Dr. Lucy Spelman
Working editorially with Jody Rein and her team at Author Planet is like getting a graduate degree in writing… (more)
Timothy Ashby
Jody is the consummate professional; she’s creative, a pleasure to deal with and her knowledge of book publishing is profound. I couldn’t recommend her highly enough. (more)
Madeleine Morel
Kudos to Jody! She provided the substance and valuable information we sought. Jody has such an open, upfront approach; it was perfect for our casual atmosphere. (more)
Bonnie F. McCune
Jody’s suggestions are clear and concise, and effectively point me in the direction I need to go with my project. I’ve had a most instructive and enjoyable time working with her! (more)
Louise Hauck
Thanks to (Author Planet), I have been able to serve as the force behind several events that have resulted in change for good…(more)
Trisha Pritikin

Recent Posts

  • Literary Agents: The Right Way to Nag
  • Thru Dec. 9! Holiday Raffle for Art Books, Lessons and Equipment

More Posts

Publishing News

Writing a book? Confused about publishing options? Need a marketing plan? Don’t miss the 7th annual Nonfiction Writers Conference—a virtual event unlike any other.

Join 15 top speakers May 3-5, 2017 from the comfort of your home or office. For details and registration got to NonfictionWritersConference.com.

Note: This is an affiliate link. Jody knows and respects the people who run this conference.

RSS General News

  • 10 Things You (Probably) Didn't Know About James and Nora Joyce January 19, 2021
    James and Nora Joyce's first date, erotic letters, itinerant lifestyle, and more.

RSS Publishing Trends Feed

  • Top 5 Publishing Articles/Blog Posts of the Week 1/11-1/15 January 15, 2021 PT Editors

Self-Publishing News

RSS Self-pub news from PW

  • Autofiction: What It Is and What It Isn’t January 8, 2021
    Whether writing autobiographical fiction or memoir, writers must own their truths.
  • First Lines: January 2021 January 8, 2021
    Our monthly look at some of the best first lines by BookLife authors.
  • Pantser or Planner? January 8, 2021
    In many writing communities, there are two common approaches to writing a novel.

RSS The Book Designer Feed

  • e-Book Cover Design Awards, November 2020 December 28, 2020
    e-Book Cover Design Awards, November 2020 including The post e-Book Cover Design Awards, November 2020 appeared first on The Book Designer.
    Joel Friedlander
  • Self-Publishing: Carnival of the Indies Issue #123 December 25, 2020
    Self-Publishing: Carnival of the Indies Issue #123 including Darcy Pattison, Frances Caballo, Sandra Beckwith and many others The post Self-Publishing: Carnival of the Indies Issue #123 appeared first on The Book Designer.
    Joel Friedlander

Author Planet, Jody Rein News

Looking forward to the upcoming 2018 San Francisco Writers conference February 14-17, 2018. Jody will be teaching many classes, and offering free coaching sessions.

Hey, hey, teaching again at the wonderful 2018 Willamette Writers Conference, August 2-5 in Portland, Oregon. This time taught a SIX HOUR Query Master workshop–super fun!

Jody is doing the morning keynnote for theCastle Rock Writers Conference 2018, in October, in Castle Rock, Colorado.

Jody was interviewed by Stephanie Chandler in a teleseminar for the Nonfiction Authors Association on April 13, 2016.

Recent Tweets

  • Tweet Avatar RT @indivisiblefrr: Thank you for covering, @KDVR. Coloradans want accountability and we want freedom from elected officials who incite… https://t.co/zH3skHi6FM 1 week
  • Tweet Avatar @CharlesSchwab You didn't respond to @forbes request to stop donating to MoC's who spread lies that incite US terro… https://t.co/gmxWlw39OT 1 week
  • Tweet Avatar @TMobile Thanks for saying you're re-evaluating your donations to MoC's who spread lies that incite US terrorists t… https://t.co/btL121vMZt 1 week
Follow @authorplanet
  • Sitemap
  • Contact Us
  • Policies and Terms
  • Blog
  • Product List

Copyright © 2021 · Log in