Happy Tuesday!

We rarely do this, but... we recorded not one but two exclusive Nook conversations last week (by request, of course - Relax, we aren't Narcs 😎😆).

In the LEFT corner, enjoy our amazing conversation with C. David Moody Jr. as we discuss Building Atlanta, turning down Michael Jordan as an investor, & his book Fighting Through the Fear - (Audio Only)

And in the Right corner, check out our insightful talk with Author Dr. Eric Fitzmedrud on A Guide to Consent, Healthy Relationships, and Better Sex. He is the author of The Better Man - (Audio Only)

The Tale of the Table:

• 📚 Author Nikki Payne Bookum Club Takeover

•  📺 The "No One Buys Books" Article

• 📖 New Book: Keke Palmer

This Week On Bookum:

The Bookum Club book of May is HERE!

We will read Pride and Protest by the OH so talented Nikki Payne, and even more exciting, Ms. Payne will join us throughout the month of May on the Bookum App to discuss the book, give insights, and more!

"Nikki Payne describes herself as Jane Austen's sassy black friend. Nikki Payne is an anthropologist who cannot turn it off.

"She loves to force her characters into new environments, new cultures, and in finding love that changes the way they see the world."

We are excited to announce the World Distribution of the Bookum Club will have a guest Host, Riley Clemmings! Riley is the founder behind The Novelty House.

The Novelty House was established in 2022 and is a black female-owned business based in Ottawa, Canada. Each item at The Novelty House is inspired by their favorite books & fandoms!

Their hope is to create pieces you can wear every day; a subtle expression of your fandom love.

Make sure you grab some awesome book gear from @thenoveltyhouse and join the Bookum Club starting May 1st!

This Week in The Book World:

So, I went down a rabbit hole this weekend…

The normal, wake-up-slow, coffee, newspaper [phone 📲] type of morning. Until. I was stopped by an article.

Social media has a knack for hitting you with shock-factor titles, but even this one was a reach.

"No one buys books."

Can't be. But wait. The writer takes it a step further:

“Everything we learned about the publishing industry from Penguin vs. DOJ.”

Now I cave. I read this article like it was the holy grail of book information.

Line after line after line of compelling narrative/headers:

Big advances (only) go to celebrities.

Publishing houses want a built-in audience.

Publishing houses pay for Amazon placement.

But even celebrity books don’t sell…

Books don’t make money.

All About the Backlist.

Amazon is the biggest threat to the industry.

A “Netflix of Books” would put publishing houses out of business (Personal Note…So a Library🤔😂).

Only to get to the last sentence.

"Personally, I could not be more grateful to skip the publishing houses altogether and write directly for my readers here."

Here? Ahh. I get it. This isn't an article about "No one buying books" (A $140 Billion Dollar value industry).

It's about agenda.

So I did what all great internet scrollers do…

I went to find a secondary source. Then a tertiary one. Then counterpoints.

And from there, I got a unique & unexpected crash course in publishing before lunch.

I will drop all of the breadcrumbs below:

No One Buys Books - https://www.elysian.press/p/no-one-buys-books

Yes, People Do Buy Books - https://countercraft.substack.com/p/yes-people-do-buy-books

Please Stop Bashing Book Publishing - https://kathleenschmidt.substack.com/p/please-stop-bashing-book-publishing?utm_medium=reader2

A Q&A with Authors Equity CEO Madeline McIntosh - https://todayinbooks.substack.com/p/a-q-and-a-with-authors-equity-ceo

Our Take:

The publishing space is ripe for innovation. At the helm will be creating better relationships and fairer deals for the creators, aka the authors.

Having authors a part of all aspects of the deal, not just the book itself. Creator-centric + community touchpoints for deeper reader engagement to the stories themselves.

Independent publishers are leading a lot of this innovation with their hybrid publishing styles.

This Week in Publishing:

Per usual, only 30 seconds before the bell rings here.

TV personality and Superstar Keke Palmer announced her New Book "Master of Me" Set For November 12 Release.

Summary:

In her own raw and intimate words, Keke talks about everything including her struggles with boundaries, unconditional love, forgiveness, and worthiness.

She walks us through how enduring the challenges that come our way lead to true performance, power, and purpose.

Add the book to your TBR on Bookum!

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Happy Reading!

Download Bookum on Apple or Android Here!

See you next week!

Footnotes (Aka other articles we are reading and Bookum content):

What I Would Do If I Were Starting Book Riot Today- https://bookriot.com/starting-book-riot-today/

Jonathan Karp on 100 years of Simon & Schuster - https://m.youtube.com/watch?v=Ux5PI4UkrM8

The Trial: The DOJ's Suit to Block Penguin Random House's Acquisition of Simon & Schuster - https://link.bookumapp.com/Ai4vSbOQcJb