BTW News Briefs

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Here’s what’s happening this week in the book industry: 

BookExpo has announced the 2019 Buzz Books, which will be featured in this year’s Editors’ Buzz program at the annual trade show in New York City. Editors will present the selected titles by top authors, which are expected to resonate with readers, at the Adult Editors’ Buzz Panel on Wednesday, May 29; the Young Adult Editors’ Buzz Panel on May 30; and the Middle Grade Editors’ Buzz Panel on May 31.

BookExpo also announced the first round of exhibitors to showcase a diverse range of non-book items at the inaugural UnBound event, where merchandise buyers from independent and chain bookstores, museum stores, and specialty retailers can explore various products complementary to their core book business.  

Author James Patterson is partnering with the U.K. and Ireland’s Booksellers Association (BA) to launch the new Young Bookseller Special Achievement Award. Booksellers will nominate colleagues who are 25 and under and have worked in a bookshop for at least 12 months to receive the £500 prizes; winners will be named in July.  

Publishers Weekly has opened nominations for the fifth annual PW Star Watch program, which “highlights and honors publishing professionals in the early stages of their careers who are improving and innovating the industry.” Booksellers who would like to nominate themselves or a colleague can visit the Publishers Weekly website.

HarperCollins is launching a new imprint, HarperVia, which will acquire international titles for World English publication and will be led by Judith Curr, president and publisher of the HarperOne Group. HarperVia will acquire mostly fiction in translation “with an eye toward books that celebrate the universal desire for discovery, understanding, and connection through exceptional storytelling.”

The Horror Writers Association (HWA) and Sourcebooks imprint Poisoned Pen Press have announced the Haunted Library of Horror Classics, a new series of reprinted horror classics. Initial selected titles include The Beetle by Richard Marsh, Vathek by William Beckford, House on the Borderland by William Hope Hodgson, The Parasite and Other Tales of Terror by Arthur Conan Doyle, and The King in Yellow by Robert Chambers.

At Chronicle Books, Mark Tauber has founded Chronicle Prism, a new nonfiction imprint that will publish “narrative, inspirational, and prescriptive nonfiction books written by thought leaders and persuasive influencers that deepen the conversation and practice of our lives.” 

Independent Publishers Group (IPG) will begin distributing NewSouth Books in Australia in August; in addition, Trafalgar Square Publishing will begin distributing Koenemann in April, and Ice House Books, Muswell Press, and Pan Macmillan Australia in July.

Ingram Academic Services has signed a new agreement to handle sales and distribution for Cambridge University Press to independent retailers, independent university bookstores, Christian bookstores, and gift and museum retailers in the U.S. and Canadian national chains.

Effective April 12, Sophy Thompson has been promoted to CEO and publisher at London-based publishing company Thames & Hudson, after the departure of Rolf Grisebach. Thompson has been publishing director there since 2013.

At Random House Children’s Books, Jillian Vandall has been promoted to associate director of publicity. On March 29, Sonali Fry will join as vice president and publishing director for classic brands and preschool.

At Abrams Children’s Books, Anne Heltzel has been promoted to executive editor at Amulet/Abrams Children’s, and Kim Lauber has joined Abrams as senior director of marketing for children’s books. 

Sarah Melnyk has been named assistant director of publicity at St. Martin’s Press/Minotaur, and Jessica Preeg has been named assistant director of publicity at St. Martin’s Press. Also, Jessica Zimmerman has been named assistant director of publicity at St. Martin’s Press.

The longlist for the Man Booker International Prize has been announced, revealing the “Man Booker Dozen” of 13 novels up for the £50,000 prize, which is awarded every year for a work of fiction translated into English and published in the U.K. and Ireland. Authors and translators will split the £50,000 prize between them.

Lambda Literary, the nation’s leading nonprofit organization advancing LGBTQ literature, has announced the finalists for the 31st Annual Lambda Literary Awards, chosen from more than 1,000 books entered by more than 300 publishers. Finalists and winners will be honored on June 3 at the NYU Skirball Center for the Performing Arts.

Finalists were announced for the Publishing Triangle’s 31st annual Triangle Awards, honoring the best LGBTQ fiction, nonfiction, and poetry published in 2018. The awards will be presented on April 25 at the New School in New York City.

Florida by Lauren Groff (Riverhead Books) has been selected as the winner of The Story Prize for books published in 2018. The other finalists were Jamel Brinkley for A Lucky Man (Graywolf Press), the number-one Indie Next List pick for May 2018, and Deborah Eisenberg for Your Duck Is My Duck (Ecco). Groff received $20,000, and Brinkley and Eisenberg both received $5,000.

The American Academy of Arts and Letters has announced the 17 authors who will receive its 2019 awards in literature, totaling $220,000. The awards will be presented in May at the academy’s annual ceremony in New York City.  

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