Publishing News, October 2021
HarperCollins has announced reorganization plans for the recently acquired Houghton Mifflin Harcourt. They will have four imprints, which will see ‘‘see increased focus and investment, with the majority of acquiring editors remaining in place.’’ Mariner will publish most of the adult books, and will absorb Custom House. The Clarion and Versify imprints will retain their names as part of the new Clarion Group. Graphic novels from the Etch imprint will now be published as Clarion/Harper Alley. The fourth imprint is a new ‘‘lifestyle’’ brand. There are layoffs, with HarperCollins CEO Brian Murray saying, ‘‘Some employees will be departing HarperCollins as a result of the changes, but the majority of HMH Books & Media employees were retained.’’ The Houghton Mifflin Harcourt ‘‘sales structure and process will remain in place for customers through the end of the calendar year,’’ and then be integrated into the HarperCollins system, while ‘‘operations, and other support departments will be integrated into the existing HarperCollins teams in order to best support authors and titles with the broadest possible resources.’’
Penguin Random House is requiring employees to wear masks ‘‘at all times and in all areas, including inside offices’’ following the reopening of offices on September 13, 2021. Employees who want to return must also be vaccinated. The company said, ‘‘The safety of all of you remains our top priority and for now, being masked indoors is the accepted standard in areas of substantial or high transmission. We will, as always, continue to monitor and assess the situation.’’
Macmillan has postponed plans to reopen its offices in New York to ‘‘no earlier than’’ January 10, 2022. They had originally planned to reopen on October 18, 2021. Some vaccinated and masked employees will be permitted to return in October: ‘‘A soft reopening gives employees the option to return to the office if they feel comfortable, and also permits employees to delay their planned return if that is their preference. Simply put, if an employee had originally planned to come into the office and is not ready to return in October, they can continue working remotely.’’ No visitors will be permitted during the ‘‘soft reopening.’’ Business travel is also on hold through the end of this year.
From the October 2021 issue of Locus.
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