Publishing Sales Up in First Half of 2024; TouchPoint Press Shutters Following Author Complaints

With autumn around the corner, the news cycle is continuing apace. A new AAP report found that publishing sales in the first half of the year were up 5.6% over 2023. Following dozens of author complaints about the poor business practices of TouchPoint Press, the Authors Guild said that TouchPoint founder Sheri Williams will make things right with authors and and close the press. Six major academic publishers were hit by an antitrust lawsuit accusing them of exploiting the peer review process for financial gain. PRH created a new position to fight the battle over book bans on a new front beyond the courts: policy. With conference season well underway, booksellers in New England and California convened on opposite coasts for their respective fall trade shows. The shortlist for the Booker Prize was announced, and included American authors Percival Everett and Rachel Kushner. And industry associations began prepping their members ahead of the new European Union Deforestation Regulations, set to kick in later this year.