A Quake in the Book Biz

The recent decision by HarperCollins, one of the largest U.S. publishers, to cancel 170 book titles that were under contract has been greeted sourly among authors and editors. But HarperCollins’ move, rather than heralding literature’s demise, reflects trends in book buying and bookselling that raise both legitimate concerns and realistic hopes.

HarperCollins, which published more than 1,600 books last year, has every right to pare down its bloated list and manage its finances as it sees fit. It is a commercial publisher and some of the titles it canceled--from obscure novels to eccentric gift books--were not swimming in the mainstream.

Even so, the mass cancellation does illuminate a cultural shift affecting publishers and readers alike. The industry is of necessity becoming more market-savvy, employing some of the tools used by other entrepreneurs. For instance, book publishers used to seek new titles at an annual convention, a search that involved personal relationships and serendipity; today, sales representatives from publishers and book superstores buy only after carefully estimating the market potential of a given author or subject.

Still, publishers should find ways to resist devoting all of their resources to books whose huge sales can be predicted. Historically, the bestsellers underwrote newer and more esoteric authors. And if editors at the big publishing houses can’t make bold decisions, there may be few new classics: George Orwell’s “Animal Farm,” for instance, was initially turned down with a market-driven note saying, “It is impossible to sell animal stories in the U.S.”

America has indeed lost something in the recent changes in book publishing. But as a look at last year’s higher-than-ever book sales, at the singular publishers sprouting on the Internet or at the lively social scenes unfolding in book superstores will show, not all of the auguries are grim.