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Deep in the weeds of publishing economics

March 1, 2017 by Mike Shatzkin 31 Comments

This is a geeky post about publishing economics. Some people like that. If you don’t, you were warned before you invested any time. Two otherwise unrelated projects last week — a book I’m working on with a veteran fellow consultant named Robert Riger and a quick consulting call with a team from a major generalist […]

Filed Under: Authors, General Trade Publishing, Licensing and Rights, Marketing, New Models, Publishing History, Scale, Supply-Chain Tagged With: "The Mathematics of Bookselling", Amazon, Dolphin Books, Doubleday, In Cold Type, Len Shatzkin, Macmillan, Robert Riger, St. Martin's Press, Title P&Ls, Tom McCormack, Unit cost accounting

Market research used to be a silly idea for publishers but it is not anymore

June 2, 2015 by Mike Shatzkin 6 Comments

When my father, Leonard Shatzkin, was appointed Director of Research at Doubleday in the 1950s, it was a deliberate attempt to give him license to use analytical techniques to affect how business was done across the company. He had started out heading up manufacturing, with a real focus on streamlining the number of trim sizes […]

Filed Under: Direct response, eBooks, Global, Licensing and Rights, Marketing, New Models, rights, Scale, Self-Publishing, SEO, Supply-Chain, Technology Tagged With: Amazon, Anchor Books, Andrew Weber, Dolphin Books, Doubleday, Jason Epstein, Leonard Shatzkin, Logical Marketing, Pete McCarthy, Pinterest, Random House, YouTube

Ruth Cavin, great editor and world’s nicest person, gone at 92

January 10, 2011 by Mike Shatzkin 58 Comments

The title of “nicest person on the planet” is now open. The longtime incumbent, Ruth Cavin — also a veteran book editor who was known to many as the doyenne of mysteries — died early Sunday morning at the age of 92. She was still holding down a full time position as an editor with […]

Filed Under: Authors, Autobiographical, General Trade Publishing, Publishing History Tagged With: "Dinners for Beginners", "Trolleys", A.J. Shively, Al Silverman, Bram Cavin, Carnegie Tartan, Carnegie Tech, David Sobel, Dolphin Books, Doubleday, Eleanor Oshry, Eleanor Shatzkin, Emily Cavin, Harper, Joan Kahn, Leonard Shatzkin, Nora Cavin, Norman Thomas, Philip Turner, Ruth Brodie, Ruth Cavin, Sally Richardson, St. Martin's Press, Thomas Dunne Books, Tom McCormack, Tony Cavin, Two Continents, Walker and Company, World Publishing, YPSLs

Oil in the bookstore ecosystem marshlands; danger ahead

May 31, 2010 by Mike Shatzkin 11 Comments

I am finding an eerie similarity between the disastrous Gulf oil spill and the parlous state of America’s bookstores. In both cases, the forces are in place for a disaster that will play out over the coming months and years. And while the tragedy of what is happening in the Gulf is far more consequential to […]

Filed Under: Autobiographical, eBooks, Publishing, Publishing History, Supply-Chain Tagged With: Andy Ross, B. Dalton, Baker & Taylor, Barnes & Noble, Borders, Brentano's, Cody's, Collier Books, Dolphin Books, Doubleday, Ingram, Laredo, Len Shatzkin, Macmillan, Orange County, Waldenbooks, Walmart

A new perspective on some old family publishing history

May 10, 2009 by Mike Shatzkin 4 Comments

After Making Information Pay on Thursday, I had lunch with Michael Cader. One of our topics was some statistical research he is doing on the question “how many orphans”? This is his research to reveal, but I will only tell you “not nearly as many as I thought.” Part of what I learned from Michael […]

Filed Under: Autobiographical, General Trade Publishing, New Models, Publishing, Publishing History, Supply-Chain Tagged With: Anchor Books, Collier Books, Dolphin Books, Jason Epstein, Leonard Shatzkin, Louis Untermeyer, Robert Graves, St. Martin's, Tom McCormack

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Mike Shatzkin

Mike Shatzkin is the Founder & CEO of The Idea Logical Company and a widely-acknowledged thought leader about digital change in the book publishing industry. Read more.

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