DeRay Mckesson Civil rights activist DeRay Mckesson is writing a book. On the Other Side of Freedom: The Case for Hope, which will be published by Viking next September, examines “how deliberate oppression persists, how racial injustice strips our lives of promise, and how technology has added a new dimension to mass action and social change.” The Washington Post is opening two new international bureaus, one in Hong Kong and another in Rome. The paper has also hired a second correspondent for its Mexico City bureau. PEN America has awarded the PEN/Barbey Freedom to Write Award to Wa Lone
Angela Y. Davis Presidential historian Doris Kearns Goodwin is writing a new book, to be published by Simon Schuster next fall. Leadership explores the “unique journeys” of Abraham Lincoln, Theodore Roosevelt, Franklin D. Roosevelt, and Lyndon B. Johnson and “analyzes how they emerged to confront the challenges and contours of their times.”
Lucinda Williams. Photo: Dina Regine Vanity Fair’s Joe Pompeo speculates on which of Time Inc’s titles will be sold by Meredith Corporation first. Most observers agree that Sports Illustrated is most likely to be sold quickly as “it is undoubtedly the sorest thumb in a stable that serves a predominantly female audience—the Better Homes and Gardens-Real Simple-Rachael Ray Every Day demographic,” writes Pompeo.
Jeanine Pirro Jeanine Pirro, the Fox News mainstay and friend of Donald Trump, has reportedly been considering the possibility of writing a book that rebukes Michael Wolff’s bestselling White House expose/takedown Fire and Fury. Sources say that Pirro has discussed the book with Trump, whom she has visited frequently at the White House. The president has agreed to be interviewed by Pirro. It is currently unclear if Pirro’s forthcoming book, Liars, Leakers, and Liberals, which is due out in June, will serve as the foundation for this Trump-boosting tome, or if Pirro will be starting a new book entirely.
Daniel Raeburn. Photo: Andrew Corrigan-Halpern The New York Times’s books desk has hired Rumaan Alam as a special projects editor. Alam is a regular contributor to many sections of the paper, and his writing has been published by the New Yorker, the Wall Street Journal, and many other publications. The Los Angeles Times is discontinuing its book blog, Jacket Copy. When Jacket Copy was created ten years ago, writes Carolyn Kellogg, “Blogs were a thing then . . . a way to get news and commentary onto the internet quickly.” But now, as the newspaper has adapted to the
Jesmyn Ward Jesmyn Ward has signed a two book deal at Simon Schuster. The first book is a still-untitled novel that “centers on an enslaved woman sent south from the Carolinas to New Orleans, site of the country’s largest slave market,” which will be published by Scribner. Ward will also write a young adult novel about “a black Southern female protagonist who possesses special powers,” which will be published by Caitlyn Dlouhy Books. Publication dates for the titles have not been announced. Edna O’Brien has won the PEN/Nabokov lifetime achievement award. The prize will be given to O’Brien at
Megan Greenwell Megan Greenwell has been hired as the editor in chief of Deadspin, Gizmodo Media Group’s sports website. Greenwell, the first woman to take on the role, is replacing Tim Marchman, who now leads the company’s Special Projects desk. Tyra Banks and her mother Carolyn London are writing a book together that will “get raw, real and cray-in-a-good-way.” Perfect is Boring will be published in April. International Business Times senior writer David Sirota has resigned from the company after the firing of top IBT and Newsweek staff. Tronc is likely selling the Los Angeles Times. Tavis McGinn talks
Emily Chang Newsweek editor in chief Bob Roe, executive editor Ken Li, reporters Celeste Katz and Josh Saul, and International Business Times editor Josh O’Keefe were all fired yesterday, the Daily Beast reports. Anonymous employees noted that four of the fired staff had recently written about the company’s legal troubles. In response, Newsweek senior writer Matthew Cooper has resigned. “This coup d’grace comes at the end of a string of scandals and missteps during your tenure,” Cooper wrote in a letter addressed to CEO Dev Pragad. “Leaving aside the police raid and harassment scandal—a dependent clause I never thought
Joseph Cassara. Photo: Amanda Kallis The Freedom of the Press Foundation has partnered with Archive-It to collect the work of Gawker and LA Weekly, as well as other news outlets and websites that may be threatened by purchase “by a hostile party.” Former Time executive editor Siobhan O’Connor is joining Medium as the company’s vice president of editorial. At the Columbia Journalism Review, Howard R. Gold looks at the history of the magazine and explains how it became “a victim of its own prosperity, which fostered a culture that discouraged risk-taking and punished failure.” The Millions talks to Joseph
Barbara Kingsolver. Photo: Annie Griffiths The National Book Awards is adding a new prize for translated books. Beginning this year, the new category “will honor a work of fiction or nonfiction that has been translated into English and published in the U.S.” National Book Foundation director Lisa Lucas talked to the New York Times about the decision. “This is an opportunity for us to influence how visible books in translation are,” she explained. “The less we know about the rest of the world, the worse off we are.” Barbara Kingsolver is working on a new novel. Taking place in
Chimamanda Ngozi Adichie Willie Nelson is being inducted into the Texas Institute of Letters. Nelson is the first songwriter to be honored by the group, and joins screenwriter Richard Linklater, novelist Bret Anthony Johnston, and playwright Kirk Lynn among others to be inducted this year. “He’s Willie,” the institute explained in a statement. “Do we need to say anything else?” Late author Helen Dunmore has won the Costa prize for her final book, Inside the Wave. Atria publisher and president Judith Curr is leaving the company after nineteen years. Curr founded Atria books and later took over the expanded
Danez Smith. Photo: Hieu Minh Nguyen The New York Times has hired Amal El-Mohtar as the Book Review’s science fiction and fantasy columnist. El-Mohtar is replacing N. K. Jemisin, who has been writing the Otherworldly column for the last two years. The Observer reports on editorial shake-ups at two Tronc papers. Former New York Daily News editor in chief Jim Rich will return to the same role at the paper, while the Daily News’s current interim editor Jim Kirk has been hired as the editor in chief of the Los Angeles Times. Current LA Times editor Lewis D’Vorkin will
Mohsin Hamid Mohsin Hamid, the author of the novels The Reluctant Fundamentalist and Exit West, writes about the disturbing trends of “purity” and nationalism in Pakistan, England, and beyond. “In these pure times, you believe more impurity is desperately needed. Only impurity can save us now,” he writes. “But, fortunately, there are reasons for hope. Our species was built on impurity, and impurity will probably come to our rescue once again, if we let it.” Shomari Wills talks about the genesis of his book Black Fortunes, a study of African-American millionaires, and about the surprises he encountered while researching
Naima Coster. Photo: Jonathan Jiménez Pérez Slate editor in chief Julia Turner explains the decision to close the DoubleX vertical just as the #MeToo movement took off. “Ever since I’ve taken over as editor, it’s felt very strange for me to be the first female editor in chief of Slate, and one of the few female editors in chief of general interest magazines, and have women’s pages still. Like reproductive rights—that goes in the women’s section. News about campus sexual assault policy—that goes in the women’s section,” she said. “Those stories are part of why we want to do
Deb Olin Unferth Editorial staff at Slate has voted to unionize with the Writers Guild of America–East. “This process . . . has given us a greater sense of appreciation for each other and our work,” union organizers wrote in a statement. “We feel confident that we can create a contract with input from all our colleagues that will improve standards, offer necessary protections within our volatile industry, and preserve the aspects of the workplace we love.” James Harding, former head of BBC News, is starting his own media company. Tortoise will focus on “slow news,” which Harding defines
Ursula K. Le Guin Novelist Ursula K. Le Guin has died at the age of 88. Over the course of her career, Le Guin wrote over twenty novels, as well as numerous collections of poetry, short stories, and essays. Houghton Mifflin Harcourt has announced the editors of the 2018 Best American Series. Roxane Gay will work on the short story edition, Cheryl Strayed will take on travel writing, and Hilton Als will edit the essays. Ruth Reichl will oversee the series’s inaugural collection of food writing. A collection of Sylvia Plath’s belongings, including a typewritten copy of The Bell
Carmen Maria Machado. Photo: Tom Storm Former Washington Post journalist and current Fox News host Howard Kurtz is working on a book about the Trump administration. Media Madness: Donald Trump, the Press, and the War Over the Truth will be published by Regnery at the end of January. The Post’s Aaron Blake writes that Kurtz’s book could be “even more damning” than Fire and Fury. Excerpts from the book describe “a president who is acting haphazardly and without the guidance of his aides, making major allegations and policy decisions on whims,” Blake writes. “And the fact that it’s how
Leni Zumas. Photo: Sophia Shalmiyev Elena Ferrante has signed on to write a weekly column for The Guardian’s magazine. Ferrante’s column, translated by Ann Goldstein, “will share her thoughts on a wide range of topics, including childhood, ageing, gender and, in her debut article, first love.” The first installment will appear this weekend in the redesigned magazine. At Literary Hub, Maddie Crum talks to Red Clocks author Leni Zumas about what happens “when your feminist dystopia becomes a work of realism.” Former President Jimmy Carter is working on a book about “faith, its far-reaching effect on our lives, and