There was a lengthy article in Sunday's New York Times on the "New Austerity" in publishing.
The story details staff cuts and a move to holding sales conferences by Webcam instead of at glitzy resorts. The famed long lunches are being moved from expensive restaurants to more modest venues.
Book sales have deteriorated since the beginning of October, falling about 7 percent compared with the same period the previous year, according to Nielsen BookScan, which tracks about 70 percent of sales. That slide is driving much of the immediate cutbacks, but the publishing industry is also being convulsed by longer-term trends, including a shift toward digital reading and competition from an array of entertainment options like video games and online social networking.What does this mean for writers?
According to the article, "smaller advances and fewer books being acquired.'
Read the article here.
1 comment:
Maya,
More and more I'm beginning to think that a major part of this recession is just an overblown market correcting itself. Businesses truly cannot expect to sustain growth, especially the kind of growth we've seen in the 90s and 00s. It's become a commonplace attitude for people to buy buy buy, way outside their means, because the culture supports credit and consumerism. Healthy consumerism is barely a glittering thought in anyone's mind. Now I think people are either getting smarter and buying smarter, or they're getting in trouble.
Case and point, three years ago when we bought this house we looked at a bigger one that was in better shape, but was over twice as expensive. The Realtor pushed and pushed and we said no way. Yes, we were approved for that much and more, but looking at our bills now I cannot imagine double the mortgage every month.
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