Posted by: Cassandra Sadek - Marketing Manager, Digital Specialist

Writers can be mysterious creatures. Some of them go into hiding with their typewriter and bag of cheezies. Others wax poetic from their favourite local café while sipping a venti non-fat latte.

We wanted to know more about the secret lives and habits of our fiction authors, so we’ve started playing a game of 20 questions with them. 20 Writerly Questions, that is.

- Which author wants Robert Pattinson to star in a movie version of her book?
- How long did it really take Justin Cronin to write The Passage?
- Does Yann Martel have a guilty pleasure read?

Jump into our 20 Writerly Questions, to find out! And hey, you can even submit your own questions. We’ll change ‘em up now and then, and just might include yours.

Posted by: Frances Bedford - Publicity Manager

For the first time in its 104-year book-publishing history, McClelland & Stewart will debut a book in serialized podcast format.

Free audio episodes from The High Road by Terry Fallis will be posted weekly starting June 1, 2010, with the finale airing October 12, 2010. A print and e-book edition will be available for sale beginning September 7, 2010.

The High Road is the highly anticipated sequel to Terry Fallis’s award-winning novel, The Best Laid Plans. The High Road podcast will be read by the author and available, chapter by chapter, in its entirety, in audio download format from www.terryfallis.com and iTunes, among other podcast directories.

This unconventional publishing strategy has already proven successful for Mr. Fallis. His first novel, The Best Laid Plans, began as a podcast, then was self-published, won the Stephen Leacock Award for Humour, and was re-published in print and e-book format to great reviews by McClelland & Stewart. The Best Laid Plans podcast has drawn 3500 subscribers from all over the world.

In a statement posted to his website, Mr. Fallis says:
“I’ve always been a firm believer in the power of podcasting to build an audience, even for literature. I also believe that if listeners like what they hear, even if it’s free, a good portion of them will go out and buy the book. …This decision reflects enlightened thinking by a traditional publisher and a willingness to test the social media waters and explore how it can help drive interest in, and sales of, a book. In this case, my book. Think of it as new media supporting old media.”

Doug Pepper, President and Publisher of McClelland & Stewart Ltd. says:
“For 104 years M&S has been staying on top of new trends and looking ahead for new ways to market books. We are excited about this opportunity to partner with a savvy author and be adventurous with a bold new idea to build an audience for our books. We expect that, as with the success of The Best Laid Plans, the free podcast will encourage pre-publication word of mouth and ultimately drive sales of the print and e-book editions that follow.”

The High Road by Terry Fallis (Emblem Editions, $19.99, original trade paperback) will be published in print and e-book format on September 7, 2010. This deeply funny satire continues the story of Angus McLintock, an amateur politician who dares to do the unthinkable: tell the truth.

Click here to listen now to the first chapter of The High Road by Terry Fallis.

Posted by: Julie Forrest - Marketing Coordinator, Digital Specialist

I belong to a wonderful book club made up of twelve smart and savvy people who love to read. We all adore books, and we’re very social, but we’re also just a little bit geeky (and I mean that in the nicest possible way). I knew we all had embraced the digital world, but I was still rather amazed when it dawned on me that between us we were reading on every major device available in Canada. We have an iPad, a Sony Reader, a Kindle, a Kobo and a few iPhones and Blackberrys.

So I asked everyone to bring their favourite e-reader to our last meeting for a little show and tell. I also asked folks to champion their preferred device. Here’s what they had to say:

Sandra received a Kobo for Mother’s Day…

I like the Kobo e-reader because of its price point. At $149, it’s a much easier decision to make to take the plunge to an e-reader. It isn’t too “precious” - I’d be worried about running around with an iPad or something more expensive or fragile. And the e-book purchases are through Indigo, a Canadian company. The stylish aqua leather case isn’t too bad either! -Sandra

Lisa is the proud new owner of an iPad…

I had never considered an e-reader until my husband purchased an iPad. I really did not expect to like it as much as I do. It’s small enough to hold and read in bed, more compact than my laptop and the colour and images are gorgeous. I think I prefer to read printed books but I plan to load up some ebooks to our iPad for an upcoming family vacation. If there’s enough memory and a camera in the next generation iPad, it will probably become my computer. The keyboard is not great so I would need an auxiliary keyboard and obviously still need a phone (I love my Blackberry for email and phone). So the iPad and Blackberry are the perfect combination for me. I can see the appeal of dedicated e-readers, but given the prices I can’t see myself buying one. -Lisa

Elle is the proud owner of a Kindle…

I got my Kindle six months ago, for Christmas, and I can say honestly it has been the best Christmas present ever. When I travel, my husband has always joked about needing an extra suitcase to pack my books. Now I can just load up the Kindle and I only need to take one. While I know the device isn’t perfect (no ability to lock documents, not a terribly efficient “filing” system and a completely inexplicable “page numbering” system) many of these problems are the result of being a first generation product. The Kindle does do other things very well: you can bookmark documents, “highlight” passages and take notes - all valuable features when you spend time reviewing books. Also, as a person who is notorious for flipping to the end to find out how a book ends (yes, I cheat) it forces you to read in the moment. Lastly, I love that the screen is NOT backlit - it really does replicate the book-reading experience remarkably well. The Kindle will never replace physical books. I love the shape and feel and smell of real books, and there is something to be said for the ability to flip back easily to a prior page to remind yourself of something you read previously, but for those books you may never read again, or for space saving, you can’t lose with the Kindle.

I have a Sony Reader. While I’m lusting after the iPad, it won’t replace my Sony Reader for books. No backlighting and no wireless are features, not drawbacks for me. I like to read for hours at a time, and e-ink is easy on the eyes. Plus, I have a little case of ADD, and not being able to check Twitter for a few hours is a good thing for me.

Though most of us are e-reading at least some of the time, we still have a couple if devotees of the printed book. Alice is a Librarian and she’s not buying a smart phone or an e-reader anytime soon…

I read blogs and news online, but when it comes to novels, I want to curl up with a book. Partly because they are easier on the eyes, partly simply the tactile pleasure and book design, a “device” is just not the same as a book. I am, frankly, not even tempted. (Plus, spilling tea on a book is not nearly as disastrous!) -Alice

Posted by: Pamela Murray - Sr. Editor & Manager, Co-Publications, KRC Group

The end to the sweet torment was a date on the calendar: March 12, 2010. This was the day of Canada Reads reckoning, when the country would find out whose book emerged the winner.

When I learned that Nicolas Dickner’s Nikolski was in the running, I was thrilled but terrified at all the big guns it was up against. So many huge books, and great ones. Good to a Fault a Giller nominee. Fall On Your Knees, a beloved classic. Generation X the acorn that became the mighty oak of Douglas Coupland’s phenomenal publishing career. The Jade Peony ensconced on school curricula! Nikolski was no stranger to recognition in its French version, winning awards, acclaim and readers in Quebec, where it was first published. But how thrilling that this competition would have so many more people reading this special book by this uniquely gifted young writer.

When we first decided to publish the book at Knopf Canada, I told my colleagues that the book would be a fantastic Canada Reads selection - for one thing, the book actually covers so much of Canada, from West to East. But also because it’s so much fun, and fun to talk about. All that was needed was a champion, somewhere, to get the same idea.

Fast forward two and a half years or so. I met Michel Vézina for the first time on the day the contenders were announced. Much has been made of this author and publisher’s past as a fire-breather, but personally I prefer to imagine him as a wish-granting genie. I liked his attitude right away - how, when Jian Ghomeshi asked him what his strategy for the defending the book would be, he said, it will be easy, my book is the best! (Exquisitely concise literary criticism.) Of course, all the other champions projected confidence, too…

Twitter had an ineluctable hold on me for the months (months!) leading up to the debates. At first it seemed that people reading all five books were starting with other titles, and there wasn’t a lot about Nikolski. But before long reactions started to trickle in and they were great. Could I dare to dream that the book about fish, pirates, garbology and a gnarled family tree might actually win?

Debates week. Office door closed, radio on, edge of seat steadily wearing away. The first two books to go were Generation X and Fall On Your Knees. As the week went on I railed against the slings and arrows aimed at “my” book, and cheered every bit of praise (Rollie said it was a “bouncy adventure”)!

On the last day, Good to a Fault was eliminated, leaving Nikolski and The Jade Peony to duke it out. The final vote: Samantha Nutt voted for Nikolskito leave, as did Perdita Felicien. Michel and Simi Sara voted for The Jade Peony to go. It was down to the vote of Roland Pemberton a.k.a. Cadence Weapon a.k.a Another Wish-granting Genie because, with his vote, Nikolski emerged triumphant!

So now, the whole nation will be reading this hugely entertaining book and discovering its many charms. And if anyone wants to discuss the Three-Headed Book or the Lost Saga of the Garifunas or the mysterious contents of Montreal dumpsters, just be in touch. I’ll be here - beaming, and definitely believing in magic. (Not to mention editing Lazer Lederhendler’s translation of Nicolas’s next novel, Apocalypse for Beginners - watch this space…)

Posted by: Brad Martin - President and CEO, Random House of Canada

McNally Robinson is one of Canada’s finest independent bookstores and all of us at Random House are saddened to hear of their difficulties. McNally Robinson is well known for its extensive events program and has always been a great supporter of Canadian authors. We are confident their two stores will remain cornerstones of their communities and we hope for the chain’s swift recovery.

Posted by: Michael Schellenberg - Associate Publisher, Knopf Canada

It isn’t everyday that we crack the champagne before noon, but this morning, the Knopf Random Canada (KRC) group had two wonderful reasons to celebrate. Two books had made the Scotiabank Giller Prize shortlist - that’s the Holy Grail of Canadian publishing - and both were edited by Anne Collins, doyenne of Random House Canada. So, KRC’s executive publisher Louise Dennys gave a heartfelt toast for Annabel Lyon’s wonderful novel The Golden Mean - check out that cover, kids - and the brilliant The Bishop’s Man by Linden MacIntyre.

It all started in a room at the glamourous Four Seasons, where the assembled group of nervous editors and publishers quaffed orange juice squeezed from real oranges and fair-trade coffee. Then, Jack Rabinovich took the podium to introduce the jurors.

This very generous man sponsors the award in memory of his late wife Doris. This year, the jury was comprised of the elegant Victoria Glendinning from England,

the handsome Russell Banks from the US, and Alistair Macleod, who couldn’t be there. And then Victoria started to read the nominees - this is always an interesting exercise, because the names are read alphabetically, and everybody in the room began to clock which books had been left off as the list was announced. When Kim Echlin’s wonderful novel The Disappeared (published by Penguin Books) was announced as the first nominee, people were shocked to realize that Margaret Atwood’s splendid The Year of the Flood hadn’t made the shortlist… As well as Annabel and Linden and Echlin’s books, also shortlisted were Colin McAdam’s Fall and Anne Michael’s The Winter Vault.

Well, back to work - hoping to find the Giller nominees of years to come - and then to turn our attention to the announcement of the Man Booker Prize this evening in London. KRC has two books on the shortlist….

Posted by: Matthew Sibiga, Imprint Sales Director, Random House of Canada -

I have recently returned from a Bertelsmann’s “Be Green” meeting where representatives from the many green committees throughout the Bertelsmann world got together to discuss ways to de-carbonize our business practices as a corporate response to the very real climate crisis our planet is facing. One of the initiatives that I presented was the great news that Random House of Canada has agreed to purchase “green” electricity for our Mississauga and Toronto St locations from Bullfrog Power and I would like to officially inform you all this is the direction we are taking.

Random House of Canada has become Canada’s first major trade publisher to sign on with Bullfrog Power, a leading Canadian provider of 100 per cent green electricity. We have agreed to purchase almost 1,300 MWh of green electricity annually for our operations in Toronto and Mississauga, Ontario, joining the growing number of Canadian homes, businesses and organizations that support locally produced, clean, renewable power from Bullfrog.

In case you are wondering what “green” electricity is, it is produced from windmills and small scale hydroelectric dams. This power produces no greenhouse gases and it is a concrete commitment from our company in fighting climate change and this purchase is something of which we should all be very proud. “Random House of Canada takes our environmental responsibility seriously,” said Brad Martin, President and CEO, Random House of Canada. “We have been impressed by the positive impact Bullfrog is having and are pleased to be working with them as one of our environmentally conscious initiatives.”

Random House of Canada has committed, as part of Random House, Inc., to instituting environmentally sustainable measures in its business operations. The organization is targeting the use of 30 per cent recycled fibers in uncoated papers and 10 per cent in coated papers for its books by 2010. Already a year ahead of schedule, Random House estimates that 300,000 trees were saved in 2007 due to these initiatives.

Random House of Canada has a strong program of publishing books on environmental topics. Recent titles include The Upside of Down by Thomas Homer-Dixon, Heat by George Monbiot, The Geography of Hope by Chris Turner, and Ecoholic by Adria Vasil. In addition, Random House of Canada has purchased 65 digital readers for staff, significantly reducing the number of manuscripts printed in-house. It has also established a green committee, which has eliminated water bottles and plastic dishes at most company meetings and implemented the use of environmentally benign cleaning products.

“We are very happy to welcome Random House of Canada as to the community of bullfrogpowered organizations,” said Tom Heintzman, President, Bullfrog Power. “Random House of Canada has already taken important steps to reduce its environmental impact and Bullfrog is proud to be a part of its ongoing sustainability plan.”

Posted by: Richard J. Gwyn - Author of John A

Winning a prize of the calibre of the Charles Taylor Prize for Literary Non-Fiction, the premiere prize in its category, is like having an epiphany. You’ve spent weeks, months, scribbling and writing and re-writing, and staring out of the window and stabbing at the Delete button and then, suddenly, you’re told that you’ve actually done it—written a book that has something to say and says it pretty well, and that perhaps even says it better than have all other Canadian non-fiction writers through the past year.

There’s of course the 15 minutes of fame in the form of media interviews and the flashes of the cameras. And there’s the cash, that so far, has served to cover the cost of a splendid, if extravagant, dinner.

Neither will last, though I’ll always remember the congratulations, quick and generous, of the other four finalists.

What will last, for at least a decent length of time, is the knowledge that my peers—the jurors—judged that John A: The Man Who Made Us had actually done what I hoped it would do—to tell Canadians about our most interesting and important Prime Minister, and so to tell Canadians about themselves.

If the result will be to turn on more Canadians to their own history, and most especially so younger ones who are now taught so little about how our past remains part of our present and future, and also encourages more writers to set out to bring that past alive for today’s readers, then I just won’t be a happy guy today but a contented one for quite a while. Or at least I’ll stay that way until my research on Volume Two, which will go up to Macdonald’s death in 1891, is completed and I’ll go back to again staring out of the window and fingering the Delete button.

Posted by: Jane Leaver - Sales Representative

Last night, I had the privilege of attending the Amazon.ca/Books in Canada 2006 First Novel Award. Of the 6 finalists, we had one contender from McClelland & Stewart, the lovely Madeleine Thien, who was one of the guests at the table I was seated at. After a dinner of butternut squash ravioli covered with warm, melted heaps of delectable cheese the editor of Books in Canada introduced the judges and talked about the finalists. They each gave a reading followed by a dessert of a warm apple tart with caramel and maple ice cream for dessert, and then came the moment we had all been waiting for—the announcement of the winner. I am happy to report that Madeleine was the very deserving recipient of the $7,500.00 prize for her novel Certainty! Her acceptance speech was gracious and eloquent just like Madeleine herself. And to think, minutes before she was telling us how excited she was to be able to buy books with the $750.00 gift card all the finalists received.

Madeleine Thien surprised by the announcement.

Thien during her acceptance speech.

Posted by: Anne Collins - VP, Publisher, Random House Canada

I don’t know quite how to argue for fiction in the face of the images from Burma that have been on the news and the web this week, images delivered to us at such cost. The broken boy being carried away in the arms of his friends; the flip-flops abandoned in the street as protestors run from the riot police; saffron-clad monks being clubbed; a Japanese photographer dying of a bullet wound, holding his camera aloft for one last shot; Aung San Suu Kyi peering out the gate of the crumbling villa in which she’s been held on house arrest for eleven of the past eighteen years. There are no images of this woman, as important to the world as Gandhi or Nelson Mandela, being hauled off to prison, though this is what is rumoured to have happened: the junta has shut down the Internet, the cell-phone networks, the media. But with luck this time and some real will on our part to help, we won’t turn our backs as we did in 1988, when hundreds of thousands of Burmese took to the streets demanding freedom, and thousands of them were killed with impunity by the horrible old men who have had the country in their grip for decades now.

How do we find that real will? Now that I’ve worked up to it, I will argue that one way is to read The Lizard Cage by Karen Connelly, a novel by a young Canadian writer who spent nine years of her life imagining the world inside the solitary confinement cell of a singer named Teza, whose songs became the rallying cries of the 1988 student protests. I’ve never been to Burma, but thanks to Karen, I feel as though I have. Her book is great fiction, as the Orange New Writer judges understood earlier this year when they awarded her the prize, and it is also an emancipatory gift of understanding, a brick she has tossed through our indifference, a plea that no one should have to live under the thumbs of evil old men, who have managed to imprison a whole country on our watch.

Posted by: Cassandra Sadek - Online Marketing Manager

Everyone who knows me knows that I am Dean Koontz’s #1 fan. Jennifer Herman, my dear co-worker across the cubicle would fight me on this, but don’t listen to her. She’s really only his #2 fan. I’ve been devouring his suspense novels for about fifteen years—long before I even thought about working in publishing.

This week I was so sad to find out that Dean’s beloved dog Trixie had been recently put to sleep because she was suffering from an incurable cancer. I actually cried when I read the message from Dean on his website.

She was a talented girl, and her monthly columns with her sweet truncated dog-speak cracked me up. You can’t help but smile when she opens with, “Cookies to you!” and closes with “Bliss to you!” Is that only funny to me because I have a very spoiled dog at home who loves cookies and is the pure essence of happiness?

Trixie was definitely a huge influence in her dad’s life, and in his writing as well. I’m looking forward to his next book, The Darkest Evening of the Year, because it features a dog rescuer and a very special golden retriever that she saves (all the while dodging murderous adversaries of course!). I’m expecting an advance reading copy to land on my desk any day now. I’ll be sure to let you know how it is! From the description, it seems that Trixie is at the heart of this book, as I’m sure she will continue to be for a long time to come in future adventures.

Posted by: James Young - Imprint Sales Director

I was excited and surprised yesterday by the news that Oprah has selected Cormac McCarthy’s The Road as her next book club pick. Cormac McCarthy just might be the greatest living American author, in my opinion, and now his genius is about to reach over a million new readers. I’ve been a devoted follower since discovering his masterpiece, Blood Meridian almost 20 years ago. That novel is the ONLY book I’ve ever read five times and I can count on one hand the novels I’ve read even twice.

The Road finds McCarthy as a master of his craft. Not only is it a dark and terrifying story of a father and son surviving in a post-apocalyptic America, its also rich with emotion and awe. No one writes such beautiful prose about a stark landscape as McCarthy. I suppose my one regret is that for all these years I felt like I belonged to the exclusive club of his dedicated and worshipful readers, but now his greatness is about to revealed to the rest of you.

Posted by: Doug Pepper - President & Publisher, McClelland & Stewart

It is hard to imagine that a man with so much on his plate - indeed his very fate - had the time and focus to write a seminal and comprehensive biography - and of Richard Nixon, no small subject. But Conrad Black did just that. The Invincible Quest is one of the best political biographies I’ve read in recent memory. Written in Conrad’s usual lively fashion, the book debunks several myths associated with Nixon and is greatly helped by the author’s personal relationship with many of the players, including Nixon, Kissinger, Haig, as well as the unique access he had to the Nixon archives.

Previous books on Nixon have either been fairly dull or written through the lens of Watergate and Vietnam. But in the last decade, as the smoke from the past clears and we can be more objective about the man and his times, Nixon’s legacy is changing. (Note Margaret MacMillan’s excellent new book.) We are starting to better understand the politician as a person and not simply as a caricature, a president whose policies are more relevant today than ever (think China, the Mid East, the EPA, etc.). Conrad’s book does this - we now have a more accurate picture of Nixon than we ever had before, and any serious (or not so serious) student of American politics needs to read it. Do not be daunted by its size - Conrad’s style, the eras in which the book deals, and the revelations are all worth the time and effort.

As we all know, people have differing opinions of Conrad but the book should solidify his reputation as one of the best political biographers we have. It will be interesting to see what he tackles next.

Posted by: Brad Martin - President and COO, Random House of Canada

On Monday, I had the great pleasure of attending a lunch at the Windsor Arms Hotel, where The Charles Taylor Prize for Literary Non-Fiction was awarded to our own Rudy Wiebe. Rudy’s win for his memoir, Of This Earth: A Mennonite Boyhood in the Boreal Forest, was a recognition of the importance of stories to illuminate Canada’s cultural heritage. As someone from a Mennonite background, Rudy’s speaking the German of his mother’s tongue took me back to my own childhood, because my parents spoke the same language in our home.

Congratulations to Rudy on his well-deserved win, and to his co-nominees, John English for Citizen of the World: The Life of Pierre Elliot Trudeau, Volume One 1919-1968 and Ross King for The Judgment of Paris: The Revolutionary Decade That Gave the World Impressionism.

Posted by: Marion Garner - Publisher, Vintage Canada

One of the many reasons I love my job is the element of the unexpected. Not long after returning to work - after some extended Christmas holidays - I received some fantastic news to kick off the year. My colleagues in the U.S. informed me that Oprah is devoting a full hour to Daniel Gilbert’s already bestselling Stumbling on Happiness. Rather than wait to put the book in paperback in May 2007, which is when it had been scheduled, the decision was made to fast-track the book in order to capitalize on this amazing opportunity.

Two days of my first week back to work were almost entirely devoted to facilitating this move - almost everyone in the company had to work together to make it happen. Our production department needed to be on side and confirm if moving it was even possible, we needed the same from the shipping and operations department, and the sales department needed all the information in order to let their customers know.

Having dealt with the film and television world on numerous occasions, I was fully prepared for the entire Oprah opportunity - or “Oprahtunity” as we’ve taken to calling these gifts - to just disappear. Stumbling into happiness indeed - the show will be taped in February. The new on-sale date for the paperback is March 20, 2007 rather than May 8, 2007. Happy New Year indeed!