Jeffrey Trachtenberg

New York

Book Publishing Reporter at The Wall Street Journal

Book publishing reporter at the Wall Street Journal. [email protected] #IStandWithEvan

Articles

Crime Writers Live in Fear of a Fatal Error. These Cops Are Here to Help.

1 week ago | wsj.com | Jeffrey Trachtenberg

Mystery writers have questions. These former crime fighters have answers. A Facebook group started by a retired Milwaukee police sergeant has become a valued resource for scribes hoping to avoid amateurish mistakes, from referencing blood splatter (it’s spatter) to featuring oversize whiteboards with Venn diagrams of the bad guys.
Book Publishers, With Ties to Europe and Asia, Assess Tariff Impact

2 weeks ago | wsj.com | Jeffrey Trachtenberg

Book publishers are trying to read into what the tariffs mean for them, but say it is too early to fully gauge the potential impact. Publishing has long been global. Many of the book printing presses in the U.S. were made overseas and are dependent on imported parts to keep them humming, said Brian O’Leary, executive director of the Book Industry Study Group, a trade organization that includes some of the country’s largest publishers. Illustrated books are often printed in Asia and Europe.
The Self-Help Guru Rivaling Joe Rogan’s Podcast Reign

3 weeks ago | wsj.com | Jeffrey Trachtenberg |Isabella Simonetti

She peppers “The Mel Robbins Podcast” with chummy expressions such as “your friend Mel.” She helps people talk about their feelings and encourages her audience to change themselves for the better, even when it isn’t easy. In a recent episode about how childhood trauma ripples across a lifetime, she asked listeners to reflect on their own pasts.
She Promised Not to Speak Ill of Meta. Then Wrote a Tell-All. Now, She Can’t Talk About It.

1 month ago | wsj.com | Jeffrey Trachtenberg |Meghan Bobrowsky

Meta’s META -4.08%decrease; red down pointing triangle former public policy chief signed a nondisparagement agreement when she left the social-media company in 2017. Now, the company is using that agreement to prevent her from promoting her tell-all book. The book, “Careless People: A Cautionary Tale of Power, Greed, and Lost Idealism,” by Sarah Wynn-Williams, details CEO Mark Zuckerberg’s efforts to make inroads in China and levies harassment allegations against former and current executives.
Waiting for the Paperback? Good Luck.

1 month ago | wsj.com | Jeffrey Trachtenberg

Readers who don’t want to spend $30 for a new hardcover nonfiction book can no longer count on the release of a lower-cost paperback edition. Traditionally, the paperback would hit the shelves about a year after the hardcover. Today, book publishers are printing fewer of them, closing a second-chance window for writers counting on a new cover or marketing campaign to spark sales.
Waiting for the Paperback? Good Luck.

1 month ago | wsj.com | Jeffrey Trachtenberg

Readers who don’t want to spend $30 for a new hardcover nonfiction book can no longer count on the release of a lower-cost paperback edition. Traditionally, the paperback would hit the shelves about a year after the hardcover. Today, book publishers are printing fewer of them, closing a second-chance window for writers counting on a new cover or marketing campaign to spark sales.
News Corp Earnings Rise, Buoyed by Dow Jones and Digital Real Estate Segments

2 months ago | wsj.com | Jeffrey Trachtenberg

News Corp’s revenue and profit increased in its fiscal second quarter, reflecting gains at its Dow Jones, digital real estate services and book publishing segments. Quarterly revenue at the company, whose properties include The Wall Street Journal and HarperCollins Publishers, increased 4.8% to $2.24 billion. Analysts had expected revenue of $2.18 billion. News Corp earned $215 million, or 38 cents per share, in the quarter. Analysts had expected earnings of 30 cents per share.
The War Over What Makes for ‘Harmful’ Reading Material Is Heating Up

2 months ago | wsj.com | Melissa Korn |Jeffrey Trachtenberg

Updated Feb. 4, 2025 12:39 pm ETLibraries in Idaho began clearing their shelves last year of stories that included kissing scenes, picture books featuring gay parents and guides for tweens on what to expect during puberty. At least one closed its doors to most young readers after a new law went into effect in July inviting the public to file challenges and requests for review if they felt the libraries had put inappropriate sexual content within reach of minors.
本を聴くのは読書？文芸好きが激論

Jan 7, 2025 | jp.wsj.com | Jeffrey Trachtenberg

Brittany Lowry has devoured more than 80 books this year. The twist? The social-media creator in Alberta, Canada, hasn’t read a word. “I count them as books I’ve read,” Lowry, 34, said of her audiobook consumption. “Who doesn’t want to slay a dragon while washing the dishes?”Publishers are grappling with challenges ranging from artificial intelligence to book banning. But in some corners, the biggest literary issue is more personal: Do audiobook fans get to call themselves readers?
Taylor Swift’s Concert Book Proves a Chart-Topper

Dec 4, 2024 | wsj.com | Jeffrey Trachtenberg

Taylor Swift’s fans turned out in droves to buy her self-published “The Eras Tour Book,” making it into one of the bestselling nonfiction book debuts on record. Target, which is the title’s exclusive retailer, put the work on sale in stores on Black Friday and on its website beginning Saturday. Circana BookScan said the book sold 814,000 print copies in the week that ended Saturday, Nov. 30.