Authors Guild president and novelist Scott Turow sent a blunt letter to members this afternoon, calling the possibility of a Department of Justice lawsuit against Apple and five major publishers “grim news for everyone who cherishes a rich literary culture.”

We’ve reprinted the entire letter below, but here is an excerpt: “Amazon was using e-book discounting to destroy bookselling, making it uneconomic for physical bookstores to keep their doors open … The irony bites hard: our government may be on the verge of killing real competition in order to save the appearance of competition.”

The news broke yesterday that the DOJ may sue Apple, Simon & Schuster, Hachette Book Group, Penguin Group (USA), Macmillan and HarperCollins for allegedly colluding to fix eBook prices when they established the agency model for eBook pricing.

Read more

In Mediabistro’s online Understanding Analytics class starting March 12, you’ll learn what to look for in analytics reports, what the data means, and how you can use your findings to improve your online initiatives with VH1′s digital marketing manager, Gracey Newman.  Learn more.

Because of his brother’s tepid experience with a traditional agent and a traditional publishing house, author Francis Tapon decided to self-publish when he wrote his first book.

To do so, he created a publishing company called WanderLearn, bought a set of 10 ISBN numbers and used creative low cost ways to get his work edited and designed.

In an interview with eBookNewser, he explains how he found an editor. He said: “Instead of hiring an editor, I found two amateur editors (people very finicky about the English language) who were willing to edit my book for free. In addition, I had dozens of ‘Beta Readers’ who signed up for getting drafts of the manuscript in exchange for their feedback. Some people love seeing books before they go to print and they love the power that they can influence the author’s final work. With all those eyeballs scrutinizing the manuscript, there were no more errors in the book than if it had been professionally edited. I effectively crowd-sourced the editing of my book.”

Author Edith Pearlman has won the National Book Critics Circle (NBCC) award for for fiction for her collection, Binocular Vision: New & Selected Stories (Lookout Books) and Maya Jasanoff has won the nonfiction award for Liberty’s Exiles: American Loyalists in the Revolutionary World (Knopf).

Geoff Dyer took the criticism award for Otherwise Known as the Human Condition: Selected Essays and Reviews (Graywolf Press). On Sunday, we will host a free online viewing of Andrei Tarkovsky’s Stalker in honor of Dyer’s most recent book, Zona.

The award ceremony was held at the New School’s Tishman Auditorium in New York City. We’ve rounded up all the winners below…

Read more

GalleyCat contributor Jeff Rivera interviewed bestselling novelist Jackie Collins for mediabistro.com’s So What Do You Do? feature.

Collins revealed her plans to self-publish an updated version of her 1979 novel, The Bitch, as an eBook. Collins (pictured, via) will continue working with her traditional publisher for other books.

Follow this link to read the whole interview. Here’s an excerpt: “If it ends up doing very well, I will continue to self-publish books probably because I’ve got a series of short stories that have never been published. And I’ve always said to my publisher, ‘I’d like to do a book of short stories.’ And he goes, ‘Oh, short stories don’t sell.’ And dealing with publishers, it might be fun just to deal with myself. I always say, ‘If you have faith in something, do it yourself.’”

Read more

Karen Falkenstrom and her taiko drumming group, Odaiko Sonora, hope to raise $1,800 on Kickstarter to fund the printing costs of their picture book, Asako, The Girl Who Saved Her Village.

Asako was originally conceived as a folk tale used in a taiko drumming performance piece. The book version of this story includes illustrations by Nadia Hagen, artistic director of Flam Chen and the All Souls Procession. These printed books will be given to the local library and school partners that the group works with.

Here’s more about the project: “Scan codes [printed on the books] will allow readers with smart phones to download the [taiko drumming] music and listen to it where it fits into the story. The book will be released at the Tucson Festival of Books, in conjunction with a performance of Asako by current residency students at Prince Elementary and Amphi Middle Schools, and our own Odaiko Sonora Youth Taiko Group.”

Read more

In our age of digital books, pundits love to say “bookstores will disappear, just like record stores.” But the truth is, record stores never disappeared!

Despite the digital shift in music, record stores have built a booming new community in Los Angeles. KCRW recently produced that video embedded above about the city’s record store resurgence. Can bookstores maintain the same kind of loyalty?

In an interview, Record Store Days author Gary Calamar explained why record stores have endured: “I am not of the mind that it has all gone to hell now. I mean I use iTunes and Amazon, and I still love going into record stores. I certainly appreciate the convenience of iTunes, and in a way I could be buying more now than I was then. I think it was good then and I think it is good now … All these great albums are coming out on vinyl now.  I will buy vinyl just for the artwork and keep vinyl just for the great artwork.”

Have you ever loved a film so much that you wanted to write a book about it? Author Geoff Dyer just published Zona: A Book about a Film about a Journey to a Room, an entire book dedicated to Stalker by Andrei Tarkovsky.

Stalker is a spooky film about three men traveling through a magical wasteland, a trip loaded with enough great writing, surreal imagery and existential philosophy to inspire you to write your own book. On Sunday, we will host an online viewing of Stalker with a crew of intrepid writers–posting thoughts, reactions and Dyer quotes on Twitter.

We’d love to have you join us for the online viewing. Simply start watching the movie in whatever format you prefer at 8 p.m. EST on March 11th. Thanks to a Russian film distributor, the entire film is available online for free–simply follow the YouTube links below. As you watch the film, add your thoughts on Twitter with the #StalkerSunday hashtag.

Read more

Unknown thieves stole Nicholas Cage‘s Action Comics No. 1 (reportedly worth $2.1 million) twelve years ago, but the lost comic resurfaced recently. The story of the stolen comic will be immortalized as a movie.

The Hollywood Reporter has more about the new film: “The story revolves around a group of nerds who attempt to steal Cage’s copy of Action Comics No. 1, the landmark 1938 comic that introduced the world to the Man of Steel … To comic-book fans, the story of the book’s theft and its ultimate recovery is as thrilling as any tale of a stolen Monet or Degat.”

Cage will reportedly not play himself in the movie, though the script writers had hoped he could join the cast. According to ABC.com, when the comic was recovered, Cage released a statement claiming: “It is divine providence that the comic was found and I am hopeful that the heirloom will be returned to my family.”

Are you ready to let your career bloom? Timber Press is looking for a new publicist to join its Portland-based team and create publicity plans for its frontlist and backlist titles.

If you land the gig, you’ll plan author tours and local media campaigns around the events. Of course, you’ll help to develop PR materials, including press releases and booksheets, while coordinate mailings, too. Are you savvy when it comes to social media? Perfect. The company will need your skills for online initiatives, as well. Read more

Today is National Proofreading Day, a chance to thank the editor in your life and double-check your writing for mistakes.

You can also check out EditMinion, a robotic copy editor that will spot simple grammar errors before you publish or send an email. Follow this link to check out the free tool online, a quick way to catch adverb abuse, weak words, passive voice and other common mistakes.

Business writing coach Judy Beaver has collected an entire page of proofreading resources to help you with your manuscript. In addition, Grammar Girl has a great essay filled with practical proofreading habits.