Amazon to launch…department stores (This week in books)

This week! Books!

In a bid to prove that time is a flat circle, Amazon is developing plans to launch…department stores. Yes, really. The first stores will reportedly be in Ohio and California and will sell all sorts of things and facilitate returns.

In yet another step in the publishing industry’s long, long history of consolidation, Hachette will acquire Workman, one of the largest independent publishers in the U.S., which includes the Algonquin Books imprint and the What to Expect When You’re Expecting franchise.

You may remember hearing a few months back that a mysterious and oddly sophisticated thief was using a range of phishing techniques in order to purloin unpublished manuscripts. Reeves Wiedeman has spent several years diving into the case, and maybe has found the prime suspect or maybe not. What’s going on is super weird no matter who it is.

Inspired by Roy Kent on Ted Lasso, Tirzah Price makes the case that adults should read more middle grade, and recommends a place to start.

Jane Friedman has a really excellent post on what authors should know about distribution. Just because you technically have distribution doesn’t necessarily mean more sales.

Two literary agents, Michelle Brower and Jennifer Chen Tran, talk about the pros and cons of authors publishing their books through small presses and how they think of submitting to them.

And I really liked this post by Tiffany Yates Martin about how to think about an author’s motivations and the way going after that goal results in a new “want.”

This week in bestsellers

Here are the top five NY Times bestsellers in a few key categories. (All links are affiliate links):

Adult print and e-book fiction:

1. Billy Summers by Stephen King
2. Vortex by Catherine Coulter
3. It Ends With Us by Colleen Hoover
4. The Last Thing He Told Me by Laura Dave
5. People We Met on Vacation by Emily Henry

Adult print and e-book nonfiction:

1. American Marxism by Mark R. Levin
2. The Long Slide by Tucker Carlson
3. The Body Keeps the Score by Bessel van der Kolk
4. I Alone Can Fix It by Carol Leonnig and Philip Rucker
5. Giannis by Mirin Fader

Young adult hardcover:

1. One of Us is Lying by Karen M. McManus
2. The Hate U Give by Angie Thomas
3. Stamped by Jason Reynolds and Ibram X. Kendi
4. Realm Breaker by Victoria Aveyard
5. Lore by Alexandra Bracken

Middle grade hardcover:

1. Wonder by R.J. Palacio
2. Refugee by Alan Gratz
3. Black Boy Joy edited by Kwame Mbalia
4. Ground Zero by Alan Gratz
5. The Official Harry Potter Baking Book by Joanna Farrow

This week on the blog

In case you missed them, here are this week’s posts:

• What to cut when your book is too long
• Should you share your work-in-progress with friends and family?
• Appeal to the reader’s senses (page critique)

Don’t forget that you can nominate your first page and query for a free critique on the blog:

• Nominate Your First Page for a Critique on the Blog
• Nominate Your Query for a Critique on the Blog

And keep up with the discussion in all the places!

• Follow me on Twitter
• Follow my page on Facebook
• Join the Facebook Group
• Check out the Bransforums

And finally, Kerry James Marshall is one of our greatest living artists, and I really enjoyed this in-depth profile by Calvin Tomkins.

Have a great weekend!

Need help with your book? I’m available for manuscript edits, query critiques, and coaching!

For my best advice, check out my online classes, my guide to writing a novel and my guide to publishing a book.

And if you like this post: subscribe to my newsletter!

Photo: Manhattan. Follow me on Instagram!