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Merchants of culture : the publishing business in the twenty-first century / John B. Thompson.

By: Publication details: Cambridge, UK ; Malden, Mass. : Polity, 2010.Description: viii, 432 p. ; 24 cmISBN:
  • 9780745647869
Subject(s): LOC classification:
  • Z325 .T47 2010
Contents:
The growth of the retail chains -- The rise of literary agents -- The emergence of publishing corporations -- The polarization of the field -- Big books -- Extreme publishing -- Shrinking windows -- The wild West -- The digital revolution -- Trouble in the trade -- Conclusion: facing an uncertain future -- Appendix 1. Selected imprints of the main publishing corporations -- Appendix 2. Note on research methods.
Summary: "In this book . . . Thompson situates the current challenges facing the industry in a historical context, analysing the transformation of trade publishing in the United States and Britain since the 1960's. He gives a detailed account of how the world of trade publishing really works, dissecting the roles of publishers, agents and booksellers and showing how their practices are shaped by a field that has a distinctive structure and dynamic. By reconstructing this dynamic he is able to shed fresh light on how bestsellers are made and on why many thousands of books and authors find themselves marooned in an industry increasingly focused on short-term growth and profitability. Against this backcloth Thompson analyses the impact of the digital revolution on book publishing and examines the pressures, both economic and technological, that are re-shaping the field of trade publishing today." - BOOK JACKET
Holdings
Item type Current library Shelving location Call number Copy number Status Date due Barcode
Book Book NMC Library Stacks Z325 .T47 2010 1 Available 33039001160562

Includes bibliographical references (p. 416-420) and index.

The growth of the retail chains -- The rise of literary agents -- The emergence of publishing corporations -- The polarization of the field -- Big books -- Extreme publishing -- Shrinking windows -- The wild West -- The digital revolution -- Trouble in the trade -- Conclusion: facing an uncertain future -- Appendix 1. Selected imprints of the main publishing corporations -- Appendix 2. Note on research methods.

"In this book . . . Thompson situates the current challenges facing the industry in a historical context, analysing the transformation of trade publishing in the United States and Britain since the 1960's. He gives a detailed account of how the world of trade publishing really works, dissecting the roles of publishers, agents and booksellers and showing how their practices are shaped by a field that has a distinctive structure and dynamic. By reconstructing this dynamic he is able to shed fresh light on how bestsellers are made and on why many thousands of books and authors find themselves marooned in an industry increasingly focused on short-term growth and profitability. Against this backcloth Thompson analyses the impact of the digital revolution on book publishing and examines the pressures, both economic and technological, that are re-shaping the field of trade publishing today." - BOOK JACKET

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