The Development of the Audiobook Sector: A Discussion at PRH
Audiobooks have proven that they are a viable option for publishers going forward. But what does that mean for the industry, libraries, and for readers and booksellers? Just how far will the sector grow and change before it flatlines?
Publishers Weekly is hosting a discussion series that will take on audiobooks and their development.
“Set for Aug. 20 at the Penguin Random House building in New York City, the panel will feature Ana Maria Allessi, v-p digital innovation & publisher, HarperAudio; Esther Bochner, communications manager at Audible; Amanda D’Acierno, senior v-p and publisher, Penguin Random House Audio; and James Tonn, co-founder, v-p/acquisitions, Podium Publishing.”
Payment Model for News Media Site Slant
The method in which publications source articles and pay their writers is up for discussion. Is one better than the others?
News publication Slant is taking things into their own hands, not only with the payment model they’ve adopted but with the way in which they source articles for their site. Writers submit their multimedia content, which goes through Slant’s editorial board. After publication, writers have access to a dashboard view to see the progress their stories are making. In terms of payment, writers“get 70% of whatever that is, plain and simple.”
It’s not like this approach hasn’t been tried before, as Nate Hoffelder notes in his article for The Digital Reader, but perhaps this newer approach to news media will yield quality information successfully with the pay-per-click payment method?
Just How Important is Social Media Presence?
Everybody is talking about the importance of having a presence online, and there’s no denying that it’s important to give yourself that platform of engagement. When an author is being considered for a book deal, one of the things they’re judged on is their social media presence. What is the engagement level like? It’s one of the first things we look for.
But how accurately does social media presence indicate an author’s potential success?
In an article on Digital Book World, Rob Eager puts forth a call to lessen the social media pressure that publishing professionals put on authors.
“Making acquisitions and marketing decisions based in large part on an author’s social media popularity is like assigning grades to students based on their accent or physical attractiveness: it’s subjective and largely unrelated to the actual skillset needed to succeed.”
Understandably, social media means a lot, but it’s not everything.
(Featured Image source: Penguin Random House)
