Edgar Award Winners (This week in books)

This week! Books!

I wasn’t super plugged into social media and the internet while I was away, but I still collected a few links for your perusing pleasure.

Independent press book distributor Small Press Distribution abruptly closed last month, which sent shockwaves through the small press community. It turned a rare spotlight onto the crucial role distributors play within the industry as many publishers were left in the lurch with uncertain futures.

In happier news, congrats to the Edgar Award winners from the Mystery Writers of America. Some of the selections:

• Best Novel: Flags on the Bayou by James Lee Burke
• Best First Novel By an American Author: The Peacock and the Sparrow by I.S. Berry
• Best Juvenile: The Ghosts of Rancho Espanto by Adrianna Cuevas
• Best Young Adult: Girl Forgotten by April Henry
• Grand Masters: Katherine Hall Page and R.L. Stine

There are an ever-growing number of scams out there targeting unsuspecting authors, and knowing how the publishing industry really works is one of your best safeguards. Book-to-film scams are particularly common. Absolutely take the time to read Jeanne Veillette Bowerman’s post at Writer Beware on how book-to-film deals really work.

Writing in omniscient without head hopping or staying too distant from the characters is a tricky challenge, and I enjoyed Henriette Lazaridis’s post on how she managed it.

A viral Substack went around erroneously cherry-picking some quotes and statistics from the RPH/S&S antitrust trial from a few years back, putting book sales in apocalyptic terms. Lincoln Michel sets the record straight. Among other things: Americans buy more than a billion books a year.

Author Rachel Khong, whose novel Real Americans debuted this week, considers the limitlessness of A.I. and argues that human limitations are what produce great art.

Accra, Ghana is an incredible city, and I enjoyed Peace Adzo Medie’s recent roundup of books for an Accra reading list.

And finally, why is Penguin Books’ mascot a penguin? Matthew Wills delves into the history.

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. Funny Story by Emily Henry
2. The Women by Kristin Hannah
3. A Court of Thorns and Roses by Sarah J. Maas
4. A Calamity of Souls by David Baldacci
5. The Covenant of Water by Abraham Verghese

Adult print and e-book nonfiction:

1. The Anxious Generation by Jonathan Haidt
2. An Unfinished Love Story by Doris Kearns Goodwin
3. The Backyard Bird Chronicles by Amy Tan
4. Knife by Salman Rushdie
5. The Body Keeps the Score by Bessel Van Der Kolk

Young adult hardcover:

1. Powerless by Lauren Roberts
2. The Reappearance of Rachel Price by Holly Jackson
3. Divine Rivals by Rebecca Ross
4. A Door in the Dark by Scott Reintgen
5. Song of the Six Realms by Judy I. Lin

Middle grade hardcover:

1. Wonder by R.J. Palacio
2. Heroes by Alan Gratz
3. Magnolia Wu Unfolds It All by Chanel Miller
4. The Eyes of the Impossible by Dave Eggers
5. Tree. Table. Book by Lois Lowry

This week on the blog

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

• Janet Reid shifted the tide
• What keeps you motived?
• “Here’s what you need to know about me” openings need to feel unique (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, here are some thought-provoking articles related to the conflict in the Middle East that I find worth grappling with no matter one’s pre-existing beliefs:

• Israel: The Way Out by David Shulman
• When a Pro-Free-Speech Dean Shuts Down a Student Protest by Jay Caspian Kang
• We need an exodus from Zionism by Naomi Klein

Have a great weekend!

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

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