Around the Word

From gloom to boom?: A brand new statistical analysis of U.S. book sales released this week suggests the sky may not be falling on the publishing industry. BookStats, which claims in a press release to be "the deepest, most comprehensive statistical survey ever conducted of the modern, U.S. publishing industry," found that net revenues and units sold are both up over the last three years -- and that's not counting the e-book surge this year. To get a fuller breakdown of the numbers, check out the analysis at Publishers Marketplace. Do these macro stats comport with what you're seeing on the ground day-to-day?

Movies for book lovers: It's National Book Lovers Day today, and Flavorpill is helping us celebrate with a list of the best movies about books and writers. Though watching a movie to celebrate a love of books is admittedly a little illogical, these movies have so many neurotic writers that you will feel gleefully sane by comparison. So sit back, relax and celebrate your inner bibliophile with films like Wonder Boys, Capote and Adaptation.


Style guidance, Part II: Earlier this week we examined the question of style guides for social media, and the expert we advice we relayed was that each host should have their own clear, consistent set of rules. The next day Ragan honed in on the particular style challenge facing businesses, and the experts they consulted came to the same conclusion -- your best bet is a customized, in-house style guide for your specific company. What system do you use for keeping your shop's writing in style?

Authors who make house calls: With publishing budgets shrinking, authors are often left to to market their books on their own. Since organizing and scheduling a book tour can seem hopelessly daunting, GalleyCat is offering to help by connecting authors with book clubs who want to meet them. The online database -- Authors Who Visit Book Clubs -- enables clubs to contact their favorite authors and ask them to visit. If you want to be added to the list of authors who are willing to chat about your book, fill out the form on GalleyCat's Facebook page.

The price is wrong? As we've noted before, e-books have created some tricky pricing conundrums. Though the digital product may cost less to produce than a hard copy, the time and money that goes in to writing the book stays the same. So why does the cost vary so widely? In his soon-to-be released book, Free Ride: How Digital Parasites are Destroying the Culture Business, and How the Culture Business Can Fight Back, author Robert Levine spends a whole chapter on the publishing industry, investigating what determines the price of books. For a look at his argument, check out the review in the Guardian's book blog. Spoiler alert: Amazon may be the bad guy. (h/t GalleyCat)