BTW News Briefs

Daniyal Mueenuddin Wins The Story Prize

The winner of the sixth annual Story Prize was announced on March 3 at an awards ceremony in Manhattan. Debut writer Daniyal Mueenuddin accepted the prize for his collection In Other Rooms, Other Wonders (Norton), a book of eight connected stories set in southern Pakistan and centering around the estate of a feudal landowner.The other two finalists were Victoria Patterson (Drift, Houghton Mifflin Harcourt) and Wells Tower (Everything Ravaged, Everything Burned, FSG).

At the event, all three authors read from their story collections and discussed their work with Larry Dark, the director of The Story Prize, who began the night by saying that "short fiction was on something of a roll" and that he expected it to continue. It was the first time that all three finalists were debut authors. Mueenuddin received $20,000, in addition to an engraved silver bowl. Patterson and Wells each received $5,000.

Macmillan CEO Discusses Plans for E-Book Pricing and Availability

On March 2, Macmillan CEO John Sargent posted a blog entry about the company's plans to begin selling e-books via the "'agency model' (publishers set the price, and retailers take a commission on the sale to readers)" at the end of the month.

Among the changes, which he said would go into effect for all of the company's e-book retailers simultaneously, new adult trade books for which Macmillan has the rights to publish in e-book format will be available at the first release of the printed book. Publication of e-books will no longer be windowed.

Sargent also said thatMacmillan would price e-books at a wide variety of prices. E-book editions of hardcover new releases generally will be priced between $14.99 and $12.99, and e-book editions of paperback new releases will be generally priced between $9.99 and $6.99. 

He also noted that as with physical books, where the majority of new release hardcovers are published in cheaper paperback versions over time, Macmillan will "mirror this price reduction in the digital world."

Lambda Literary Launches New Online Home for LGBTQ Book Lovers 

On March 1, the Lambda Literary Foundation announced the launch of a new online webzine and blog community for LGBTQ writers and readers. The new Lambda Literary webzine will aggregate the best links from LGBTQ and mainstream book news websites and newspapers; feature interviews, under-reported stories, and book reviews; and encourage a social community that comments, critiques, links back, twitters, blogs, and interacts both online and in person.

The site launched March 1 and was produced by Nicola Griffith, LLF executive director Tony Valenzuela, web producer/editor Antonio Gonzalez, and designer Karina Melendez. Editors are Colleen Lindsay, Karen Schechner, and Victoria Brownworth. 

CBC Announces Finalists for Children's Choice Book Awards 

On March 2, the Children's Book Council (CBC) in association with Every Child a Reader, Inc. announced the finalists for the Third Annual Children's Choice Book Awards. The favorite book finalists were determined by close to 15,000 children and teens. Thousands more will be able to cast their votes for their favorite books, author, and illustrator at bookstores, schools, libraries, and at www.BookWeekOnline.com from March 15 - May 3.  

The Children's Choice Book Awards winners will be announced live at the Children's Choice Book Awards gala on May 11 in New York City as part of Children's Book Week (May 10 - 16, 2010).

The Children's Choice Book Award finalists for Author of the Year are:

• Suzanne Collins for Catching Fire (The Second Book of the Hunger Games) (Scholastic Press)
• Carl Hiaasen for Scat (Knopf/Random House)
• Jeff Kinney for Diary of a Wimpy Kid: The Last Straw and Diary of a Wimpy Kid: Dog Days (Amulet Books/Abrams)
• James Patterson for Max (A Maximum Ride Novel) (Little, Brown)
• Rick Riordan for The Last Olympian (Percy Jackson & the Olympians, Book 5) (Disney Hyperion)

For more information and the full list of finalists, visit www.cbcbooks.org.