Less than a year after garnering top honors in the global L. Ron Hubbard Writers of the Future Contest for new science fiction and fantasy writers, Encinitas resident and writer David Parish-Whittaker has sold story rights to Aberrant for its high-profile, miniatures science fiction game "Rezolution."

Parish-Whittaker was first professionally published in 2008 as part of the L. Ron Hubbard Presents Writers and Illustrators of the Future Vol. 24 anthology (Galaxy Press, 2008) for his story A Warbird in the Belly of the Mouse.

In addition to his first professional publication and a contest cash award last year, David also took part in a week-long workshop sponsored by the Contest and led by members of the jury panel of award-winning and best-selling writers.

The part-time writer and full-time airline pilot is currently shopping a young adult Victorian fantasy and revising a "Wodehousian steampunk novel."

"David has used last year's Contest experience and put it to work for him," said Contest Director Joni Labaqui. "The reason that Mr. Hubbard started the contest in 1983 was to give unrecognized talent like David a better chance to make it in publishing."

Other past winners of the Writers of the Future Contest have had over 500 novels, 1,400 short stories, and selling an impressive 31,000,000 books. The Contest was begun by L. Ron Hubbard in 1983 shortly after returning to the field of science fiction with his bestseller Battlefield Earth.

For more information, on the contests, go to http://www.writersofthefuture.com/.
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HBO has exercised its option to purchase the TV rights to the book Boardwalk Empire. Written by Nelson Johnson and published by Plexus Publishing, Inc., Boardwalk Empire chronicles the politics and corruption of Atlantic City from its birth as a quiet seaside health resort through the notorious backroom politics and power struggles.

HBO has recently begun filming the pilot for Boardwalk Empire, which is being directed by Martin Scorsese. In addition, Scorsese is an executive producer on the series along with Terence Winter, Mark Wahlberg, Stephen Levinson, and Tim Van Patten.

Plexus Publishing has also announced a new trade paperback edition of Boardwalk Empire to be released in fall 2009. The book will be distributed to the trade by Independent Publisher's Group (IPG). The purchase of the TV/Film rights by HBO for Boardwalk Empire marks the first time that Plexus has sold those rights for one of its titles.

About Plexus Publishing. Inc.
Incorporated in 1977, Plexus Publishing, Inc. is located in Medford, New Jersey. In addition to being a regional publisher, Plexus also publishes titles in the field of biology and ecology. Plexus' book list extends from technical-scientific works to histories, folklore, and novels. Additional information about Plexus is available at http://www.plexuspublishing.com, and more information about Boardwalk Empire is available at http://www.boardwalkempire.com.

Medford Press is an imprint of Plexus Publishing, Inc. All books published under the Medford Press imprint are available to bookstores through Chicago-based trade distributor Independent Publishers Group (IPG).
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Cerulean's managing director, John Avellanet, has signed a contract with Logos Press to write a book covering the compliance and quality systems landscape over the next decade, including the compliance strategies required for new drug and device development and approval in the era of personalized medicines.

Based in part on Mr. Avellanet's April talk at the NIH on the future of the biopharmaceutical landscape, and his SmarterCompliance newsletter series on personalized medicine and the role of regulatory compliance, the book provides a strategic review of the compliance and quality systems best practices required for marketplace success over the next decade for biotechnology, pharmaceutical, and medical device firms.

The book is sub-divided into three parts: a review of today's landscape, an analyses of the key challenges likely to dominate over the next ten years, and then a step-by-step strategy covering:

• Faster product innovation and development

• Medicinal safety and efficacy by design

• Cost-effective, lean quality systems

• Flexible, regulatory compliance programs

As part of the book's practical, "how to" mindset, readers will be able to access bonus materials, downloads, and supplemental information online through a dedicated book website.

Subscribers to Mr. Avellanet's monthly newsletter, SmarterCompliance, will be able to access pre-publication materials and downloads as part of the lead-in to publication.

John Avellanet is the author of more than 100 articles, is the compliance columnist for several international industry journals, and is a former C-level biotech and medical device executive for a Fortune 50 subsidiary. As the co-founder of the private compliance advisory firm, Cerulean Associates LLC, he publishes the monthly executive newsletter, SmarterCompliance™. He is a frequent speaker at corporate workshops, industry conferences, and meets regularly with regulatory officials. Learn more about Mr. Avellanet on his blog, http://www.ComplianceZen.com, or through his company's website: http://www.ceruleanllc.com
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Innovo Publishing, LLC has expanded its audio book division and capabilities with the release of Innovo Audio--a new Innovo Publishing imprint that provides Christian & wholesome self publishers and ministries with the ability to create and globally market professionally narrated and mixed audio books, audio chapters and audio excerpts. Innovo Audio is supported by an acclaimed VoiceBank team comprised of award winning voice professionals, each of whom was handpicked for his/her outstanding professional experience and dedication to the mission of Innovo Audio to get the Word out for Christian authors and ministries.

Innovo Audio provides unique and affordable access to the global audio book market for Christian & wholesome self publishers and ministries. With Innovo Audio, new and established authors and Christian ministries can affordably extend their title’s reach beyond the hardback and paperback markets to the expanding global audio book segments.

Innovo Audio allows self publishers and ministries to personally select their preferred voice talent by listening to excerpts from Innovo’s VoiceBank team (http://www.innovopublishing.com/Pricing-Audio-Books.html). Self publishers and ministries may choose to have their Innovo Audio titles available for purchase and immediate download or physically shipped on Audio CD or MP3 CD. All Innovo Audio titles are compatible with the latest phones, PCs and MP3 players.

In addition to complete audio books services, Innovo Audio offers Christian self publishers and ministries an affordable, high quality and fast process for creating audio excerpts and audio chapters--which can easily be used for advertising and marketing on the author's or ministry's web sites, blogs, and social media sites like Facebook, MySpace or YouTube.
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Simon & Schuster announced a global multi-book, multi-imprint co-publishing agreement with Glenn Beck, one of America's leading radio and television personalities and #1 New York Times bestselling author. This multi-tiered publishing program will draw on the resources of numerous imprints at Simon & Schuster to create a comprehensive catalog including more of Beck's unique brand of adult fiction and nonfiction as well as picture books and fiction for children, young adult literature, and eBook and audiobook originals. Beck's titles will also be published internationally by Simon & Schuster's publishing companies in the United Kingdom, Canada, and Australia. This announcement comes on the heels of Beck's debut as a #1 bestselling novelist with the publication of THE CHRISTMAS SWEATER in 2008, which followed his #1 nonfiction bestseller AN INCONVENIENT BOOK in 2007.

The new agreement kicks off with three diverse titles in 2009 including ARGUING WITH IDIOTS, Beck's return to hardcover nonfiction, to be published by Threshold Editions in September. The first two projects under the partnership are AMERICA'S MARCH TO SOCIALISM, an audio original read by Beck (May) and GLENN BECK'S COMMON SENSE, which will be published first as an eBook original and then as a trade paperback original, in which Beck channels the spirit of Thomas Paine (June). Both COMMON SENSE and ARGUING WITH IDIOTS will be available as audiobooks.
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Leadership advisor Dr. Anthony F. Smith has signed with John Wiley & Sons to publish ESPN: The Company--The Story and Lessons Behind the Most Fanatical Brand in Sports. Publication is slated for September 2009, coinciding with ESPN's 30th anniversary.

Dr. Anthony F. Smith has distilled key lessons from ESPN's invention of 24/7 sports coverage and evolution into cable television's most profitable network. Grounded in his 20-year experience advising ESPN's leadership, Dr. Smith and coauthor Keith Hollihan have written a playbook that will benefit leaders of any business, while it entertains sports fans and fanatics alike.

Proceeds from the sale of ESPN: The Company will benefit The V Foundation for Cancer Research, established in honor of legendary college basketball coach Jimmy Valvano who lost his battle with cancer. Dr. Smith is a member of the Board of Directors of the V Foundation.

ESPN will be Dr. Smith's second book. In 2007 Jossey-Bass (an imprint of John Wiley & Sons) published Taboos of Leadership: The 10 Secrets No One Will Tell You About Leaders and What They Really Think authored by Smith.
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Author Solutions (ASI) (http://www.authorsolutions.com/), the world leader in indie book publishing - the fastest-growing segment of book publishing, announced Monday the acquisition of the publishing assets of Trafford Publishing of Victoria, British Columbia. Since its founding, Trafford has helped more than 15,000 authors from more than 120 countries publish and bring to market nearly 20,000 new titles.

"As more and more authors turn to indie book publishing, we are seeing strong double-digit growth in North America as well as the UK, and we believe the time is right to accelerate our international expansion. The Trafford brand gives us a platform to help more writers become published authors around the globe," said Kevin Weiss, ASI president and chief executive officer.
Established in 1995, Trafford was the world's first company to offer an on-demand publishing service and an early adopter of the Internet bookstore model. Weiss added, "Trafford's strong Canadian and UK presence and roster of more than 15,000 authors make it a valuable addition to our family of author services brands."

In 2008, the ASI author services brands brought to market more than 21,000 new titles, including one out of every 20 new titles put into distribution in the U.S. Overall, ASI's catalog now includes more than 120,000 titles from more than 85,000 authors
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PubEasy, the global inquiry and ordering service for the book industry, today announced that Oxford University Press in the U.S., which is affiliated with the largest scholarly press in the world, has joined the growing PubEasy community of booksellers and suppliers.

Founded in 1586, Oxford University Press (OUP) is the largest scholarly press in the world, with a network of divisions, branches and related companies around the globe, from Australia and New Zealand to South Africa, India, Japan, and the United States. OUP first opened an office in New York in 1896 and the publisher's titles have won 14 Pulitzer Prizes, in addition to many other major book awards and New York Times bestsellers.

As a new PubEasy member, joining its affiliate OUP, which is an existing member, Oxford University Press, Inc.'s (OUP USA's) catalog of more than 25,000 titles will now be available to retail booksellers for purposes of checking price and availability on various book titles, placing online orders, receiving email acknowledgments of new orders, and tracking the status of book orders.

OUP USA joins a growing number of academic publishers who are making their catalogs available on PubEasy, including McGraw-Hill, SAGE, Bedford, Freeman & Worth, and Chicago Distribution Services, which includes the University of Chicago Press among its 70 academic press distribution clients.

Website: http://www.pubeasy.com/
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Chicken Soup for the Soul Publishing, LLC., the company behind the Chicken Soup for the Soul book series, one of the best-selling and most-beloved series of all time, is launching its first-ever book club in April 2009. The company has teamed up with two industry leaders, Traffic Marketplace, the world's fifth largest online advertising network [source: ComScore], which is set to handle global marketing, and Alta Resources, the global leader of integrated sales, service and fulfillment solutions supporting many other world-class brands.

Upon joining the book club, members will receive three books and sign up to buy eight more within 18 months. In a unique feature, members will be able to direct the shipment of each month's books to friends or family members as gifts by managing their account online.

Website: http://www.chickensoup.com/

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"Especially in an economic downturn, books are a great resource and that is proven in increased sales," said Aimee White, Business Development Manager of Antitype Press in the UK. "And that's especially true in the lesbian fiction market, where there is quite a stunted growth in formats that break away from the community norm of detective or Mills and Boon type lesbian fiction. We're responding to calls for novels that are more quirky."

The lesbian fiction market has seen a boom over the last few years with an increase in publishers, especially in the US that has filtered through the UK.

One of the main issues facing publishers is attracting a suitable calibre of writer. Ensuring that submission process runs smoothly, Antitype Press has secured a small team of professional editors. Aimee explained, "It's easy for a publisher to want to bulk their books up with authors en masse because of the savings this can have with Print On Demand, but this can also damage your brand and that's something we really don't want to so. Also, with increased authors on your books it is easy to create an impersonal culture and that's not what we're about."

Antitype Press' first signing was E.A.Gray and her dark religious fiction about salvation and redemption in Heaven and Hell.

"I wanted to do something that made Heaven and Hell seem more accessible for the lesbian community," said E.A.Gray, "not for any specific religious beliefs myself, but because the Bible is a pretty good story. So I dragged it all into a modern day setting but kept it dark, following the premise of a Greek Tragedy."

Despite the difficulties faced by some areas in the economy the demand for books remains steady, and in some sectors, it is even increasing.

"I really think it comes down to this, if you're a good writer then you'll go far no matter what the economy is doing," Aimee concluded.

Website: http://www.antitype-press.co.uk
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Amy Allgeyer Cook's entry "The Iron Bodkin" took Grand Prize in the PM Moon Publishers, LLC First Annual New Authors' Writing Contest.

According to Mara C. Forsythe, Managing Editor, they are currently working on a title change. "We are moving forward with Amy's book, including a look at a number of different titles".

Ms. Forsythe refused to offer any hints as to what the new title will be.

"Amy will announce it on her new blog at the same time that we send out the information," said Mara.

Although this is Amy's first book, she has been published in Family Fun, Stories for Children, and A Fly in Amber. She is a member of the Society of Children's Book Writers and Illustrators, and holds a diploma from the Institute for Children's Literature.

A graduated from NC State University with a degree in Architecture her first job was designing churches. She is also an alumnus of the Highlights Foundation Workshop for Children's Writers at Chautauqua.

These days, Amy spends her time renovating historic homes and working on her next novel. She's written five books, including the sequel to The Iron Bodkin. She lives in a hundred-year old home in Boise, Idaho with her husband and son, one cat and the oldest living Betta fish on the planet.

She loves to play soccer, volleyball and tennis. Whenever possible, she travels the world. The most exotic place she's been is Morocco, where they serve boiled sheeps-brains in open-air marketplaces.

Someday, she hopes to own a little stone house in Europe …she doesn't even care which country. She loves reading fiction and her favorite author is Susan Cooper. Amy also enjoys eating brussel sprouts, cheese and Indian food but doesn't care much for chocolate...or sheeps-brains.
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Recognizing the dearth of traditional publishing outlets for teen authors, Andrea Colston launched Youthful Wisdom Press, a Green publishing house that provides young aspiring writers an opportunity to be seen, heard and appreciated in print.

With a veritable "children should be seen, not heard" mentality, the young adult (YA) genre has traditionally been dominated by adult writers. Andrea Colston, founder of the newly launched Youthful Wisdom Press, believes that young aspiring writers should be seen, heard and appreciated for their unique literary perspective. As such, she has dedicated herself to publishing works by authors between the ages of 13 and 18.

A mentor of at-risk youth, Colston is well aware of the outlet writing can provide for young people. "At the end of the day, teens are who I write for, so I can't help but want to give back to them. Completing a novel, seeing your work selected for print, and putting some elbow grease into promoting your book. It's a wonderful self-confidence builder," Colston explains of her impetus for launching the press.

"Besides, teens have unbelievable stories to share; stories we—and their peers—should hear," she adds.

Other than the fact that they do not receive an advance (payment is in royalties), authors who publish with Youthful Wisdom Press will enjoy a traditional publishing experience—from acceptance to first pass pages to promotion tours (albeit virtual). Writers will also enjoy an expedited publication schedule—typically 9 months to 1 year—and the knowledge that their books are printed on acid free, virgin fiber paper.

"The Janette Rallisons, Tina Ferraros and Louise Rennisons of the YA world shouldn't get nervous just yet about our young authors nipping at their heels," explains Colston. According to recent reports, sales in this genre are rising, even amidst flailing adult book sales. A December 2008 Publisher's Weekly article noted that juvenile fiction sales at the end of the Thanksgiving holiday were up 33.7% more than last year, and a recent Children's Book Counsel sales survey indicated a more than 25 percent increase in the past few years. "There are plenty of readers to go around!" she reassures.

Youthful Wisdom Press is an independent traditionally run company that specializes in publishing material written by young adults, ages 13-18. Not merely youth-conscious, but Earth-conscious as well, Youthful Wisdom Press is a Green Press Initiative member. All their books are printed on acid free, virgin fiber paper; promotional material is printed on 30% post consumer recycled paper. To learn more about Youthful Wisdom Press or founder Andrea Colston, please visit www.youthfulwisdompress.com
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Orson Scott Card, author of the enduring bestseller ENDER'S GAME and winner of the 2008 YALSA Margaret A. Edwards Award for Lifetime Contribution to Young Adult Literature, will publish an exciting new series for younger readers with Simon Pulse, an imprint of Simon & Schuster Children's Publishing. Card has published numerous works in many genres, but is best known for his science fiction and fantasy work. Anica Rissi from Simon Pulse acquired World English rights to the first three books in this as-yet-untitled Young Adult series through Barbara Bova at The Barbara Bova Literary Agency. The series-launching debut hardcover title is set to be published in Spring 2011.
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HarperCollins Publishers, one of the largest English-language publishers in the world, today announced the launch of It Books, a new popular culture imprint dedicated to entertainment, music, fashion, design, and sports.

The first books in the new imprint will be published in September 2009. Among the projects on the inaugural list are books by burlesque artist Dita Von Teese, style guru Amanda Brooks, bestselling author Neil Strauss, and comedians Paul Provenza and Aaron Karo; Charlie Cross's illustrated history of Led Zeppelin; the legendary Larry "Bozo" Harmon's posthumous autobiography; and the first authorized Twitter book. Future authors will include actress Molly Ringwald and bestselling recording artists Debbie Harry, Johnny Rotten, Toni Braxton, and the mythical metal band Spinal Tap.

It Books will be directed by Carrie Kania, Senior Vice President and Publisher. The editorial team for the imprint will be lead by Mauro DiPreta, Vice President/Associate Publisher, and Cal Morgan, Vice President/Editorial Director. Ms. Kania and Mr. Morgan are currently the Publisher and Editorial Director of Harper Perennial respectively, and will retain those roles.

"It Books will be a new way for us to reach readers like us--people with an endless appetite for pop culture, who live for music and film and art and fashion and the Internet," said Carrie Kania. "An It book should be fun. It should be interesting. It should be cool. It should look great. Working with Cal and Mauro, we're going to have the chance to publish some great books and market them in new and interesting ways. I'm really excited about this opportunity."
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Book publisher Marion Street Press of Oak Park., Ill., has been acquired by Acorn Guild Press of Portland.

According to Ed Avis, the founder and president of Marion Street, the time was ripe for selling the firm to a publisher capable of continuing to expand the brand.

Acorn Guild acquires 38 titles in the Marion Street portfolio. Included in the sale are such popular books as "The Art of Column Writing," "The Buzzword Dictionary," "Pen & Sword," and "The Concise Guide to Copy Editing."

Marion Street Press books are distributed by Independent Publishers Group. Acorn Guild plans to move its distribution to IPG.

The sale was effective on March 1.

The acquisition of Marion Street Press by Acorn Guild was brokered by Noel Griese of Anvil Brokers of Atlanta. Financial terms were not disclosed.
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