A glimmer?

Interesting article by Sara Nelson in Publishers Weekly:

http://www.publishersweekly.com/article/CA6570313.html

HT Michael Merschel at Texas Pages.

Here's a sample:

“'In every crisis lies an opportunity,' goes the old saying—and nowhere could that be more true than in publishing today. It's that kind of thinking that has led Bob Miller, say, out of traditional publishing and into creating his new venture, Harper Studio, which has reportedly already closed several deals. It's that kind of thinking that has led S&S—clearly just as worried as the next house about all the “challenges” to reading in the age of the Internet—into the digital age; just look at some of the house's new, nontraditional, take-charge new-media hires. "

and


"What I think this means: some of the quaint, arcane practices we cherish—returns, say—are going to have to go. Likewise, astronomical advances, the kind that don't make money even if the books land on the lists. And what about backlist? Is somebody ever going to figure out how to mine this most potentially profitable publishing vein?"


How many of you writers out there cherish returns?

I'll remain hopeful, but I'm certainly not optimistic.