BTW News Briefs

Darrin Pratt to Lead Association of American University Presses

Darrin Pratt, director of the University Press of Colorado since 2000, will serve as the new president of the Association of American University Presses (AAUP).

Pratt, who assumed the presidency on June 18 at AAUP’s annual meeting in Philadelphia, will lead the association through June 2017.  He was preceded in the position by Meredith Babb, director of the University of Florida Press.

Pratt has held a seat on the AAUP’s board of directors since 2010, during which time he has served on the Admissions & Standards Committee, Nominating Committee, and twice on the Annual Meeting Program Committee. In his new role as president, Pratt will be a spokesperson and advocate for member presses, working with the executive director and board of directors to help steer the organization.

Sara Nelson to Join HarperCollins

Sara Nelson, former editorial director for Amazon Books and Kindle, will join HarperCollins’ Harper imprint in the newly created role of vice president, executive editor, and special adviser.

Starting July 18, Nelson will be acquiring fiction and nonfiction for the Harper imprint and working as a strategic advisor to publisher Jonathan Burnham.

“After observing the publishing world from the near-outside for many years, I am excited to have this opportunity to be involved directly in the publishing process itself,” said Nelson. “I can’t wait to join my many friends at Harper, and to work closely with them on books that we love.”

Nelson worked at Amazon since 2012 and was responsible for launching the Amazon Book Review. Prior to that, her career included stints as the books editor at O, the Oprah Magazine, where she launched Oprah’s Book Club 2.0, and as editor-in-chief of Publishers Weekly.

Barnes & Noble Launches Self-Publishing Platform

Barnes & Noble has launched Nook Press, a self-publishing print platform that allows authors to turn their e-books into hardcover and paperback print books.

On Monday, June 27, the company announced that authors participating in the program who have sold 1,000 copies of a single e-book in the past year will be eligible to sell their print books on the local, regional, or national level through Barnes & Noble. Authors who want their books to be considered for in-store placement will be able to submit their books for review to B&N’s Small Press Department and one of the company’s corporate category buyers.

The program also allows authors who have sold 500 copies of a single e-book in the past year to apply to participate in B&N in-store events, including book signings and discussions.