Did You Know Taylor Swift is Publishing a Book? (and other stories)

One more newsletter before the holiday.

First, thank you for all the personal notes about my last newsletter. They cemented my belief that this community is wonderful, and I am grateful.

Secondly, I lied! I couldn’t resist writing one more newsletter before the holiday. Besides, we all get bored sitting around on Thanksgiving, so allow me to entertain you.

TAYLOR SWIFT IS PUBLISHING A BOOK, and some media can’t stop dissecting “what this means for the industry.”

Unless you’ve been in an early holiday food coma, you might have heard that Taylor Swift is publishing an Eras tour book exclusively with Target. The Wall Street Journal says, “The 256-page book is a glossy recap of the megatour and on many tweens’ (and adults’) holiday wish lists. It has more than 500 images, including costume sketches and rehearsal shots, and musings by Swift herself.” The whole story is here. The book, priced at $39.99, will be available in Target stores on Friday and online Saturday. The initial print run? An incredible two million copies. The publisher? Taylor Swift Publications.

The fact that Swift didn’t pursue a traditional publisher has raised some eyebrows in the industry, with some commenting on how much the book could’ve helped indie bookstores this holiday season. I don’t necessarily disagree about the retail element, but we are talking about the biggest pop star in the world who maintains creative control in all things Taylor Swift. Target is her exclusive retail partner, merchandising her products front and center. Once you have a relationship like that with a big retailer, there are contracts with exclusivity clauses that prevent merchandise from being sold elsewhere. Traditionally, publishing moves at a snail’s pace most of the time, so getting this book printed and distributed would have been a logistical nightmare in the supply chain. It is also, for better or worse, a piece of Taylor Swift merchandise. It is far from a self-published book.

We can dice and slice this many ways, but the fact remains that Taylor Swift doesn’t need a traditional publisher for an Eras tour book. Besides, can you imagine how much her advance would have been and the insane marketing budget it would have consumed? Sure, it would’ve helped with publishers’ bottom lines, but at what cost?

It’s not a secret that publishers rely on frontlist hits to make their fiscal years work, but it is also true that up to 70% of sales come from backlist titles. Both of these scenarios are troubling because they beg the question: What happens to all the other books being published? The Atlantic published a good read about it here. I don’t think other celebrities will easily replicate the method by which Taylor Swift published the Eras book. Why? Because they are not Taylor Swift, Inc. I can see Beyonce (or Beyonce, Inc.) doing it, but no one else. There is no sea change afoot for celebrity books where they will become self-publishers. The bigger question, I think, is how publishers can best serve their stable of authors who are not household names or backlist sellers. This is a topic I will explore a lot in the coming months because I have seen marketing plans from traditional publishers, I have heard what’s going on in publicity and marketing departments, and not much has changed. That is a problem the industry must face sooner rather than later.

SOME TECH BROS THINK IT’S A GOOD IDEA TO USE AI AND PUBLISHED 8000 BOOKS PER YEAR

You just knew they’d look like this:

The skinny: Spines, a start-up (because, of course, it is), secured $16M in Series A funding. Here’s more from The Bookseller: “Spines, founded in 2021 but which published its first titles this year, is a startup technology business which—for a fee—is offering the use of AI to proofread, produce, publish and distribute books. The company charges up to $5,000 a book, but it can take just three weeks to go from a manuscript to a published title.” The full article is here. Oh, and they want to publish 8000 titles per year.

I’m suddenly reminded of my favorite line in Succession:

No one should want this. No one should pay $5000 to have their book proofread, produced, and published in three weeks. Spines doesn’t care what happens to books. Spines wants to make money, which they will, if people fall for the idea that their book will reach readers this way. The founders of this company clearly do not understand the publishing industry. Far too many books are already published, and not enough people read them. That is not a concern for Spines because they want people’s money. Sure, they offer authors 100% of their royalties, but they fail to mention that the books must sell to earn royalties. Never mind how the books will be promoted. Bulk publishing books produced by AI is not the way forward, friends.

MISC.

NPR’s “Books We Love 2024” is here. It’s the most comprehensive roundup every year and makes for a great shopping list.

My friends at The Witches of Pitches have an event on December 4 at NOON EST. It’s called “Learn How to Levitate Above the Slush Pile” and features agent Jen Nadol. You can learn more about it and register here.

END NOTES:

What I’m Watching: I just started “A Man on the Inside,” which stars Ted Danson as a retired, widowed college professor who works as a PI and goes undercover in an elder community. It’s delightful.

What I’m Reading: Scaffolding by Lauren Elkin. It’s a complex book, so read a review in The Guardian. I’ve recently noticed that when I read books that reviewers classify as hilarious or comedic—I fail to find them funny. I am a tough crowd, but I wonder if others feel the same.

What I’m Listening To: My dogs snoring :)