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Sara Nelson is an American publishing industry figure who is an editor and book reviewer and consultant[1] and columnist,[2] and is the editorial director at Amazon.com.[3] Nelson was previously editor in chief at Publishers Weekly from 2005–2009 during a time of restructuring and industry downsizing. After that, she was book editor at Oprah's O Magazine. Her book So Many Books, So Little Time was published in 2003.[4]
Sara Nelson | |
|---|---|
| Nationality | American |
| Education | Andover |
| Alma mater | Yale University |
| Occupation(s) | Editor, book reviewer consultant, author |
| Years active | 1980–present |
| Employer | Amazon.com |
| Notable work | Book So Many Books, So Little Time (2003) |
Nelson graduated from Yale in 1978 and Phillips Academy in Andover in 1974.[5] She wrote about books and publishing at the New York Post, the New York Observer, Glamour magazine, and held editorial positions at Self, Inside.com, and Book Publishing Report.[2] Nelson married and had a child and is an advocate for respect for working mothers.[6]
Nelson embarked on a project to read one book each week and write about it, and the effort morphed into a book entitled So Many Books, So Little Time: A Year of Passionate Reading which was published by Putnam in 2003.[7] While her initial book–a–week plan fell apart almost immediately, according to New York Times book reviewer Ihsan Taylor, the effort was fruitful since the book was seen as a commentary on the "nature of reading itself."[8] Nelson's future employer, Publishers Weekly, reported that her book revealed her "infectious enthusiasm for literature in general."[9] Writer Augusten Burroughs said Nelson's book was a "smart, witty, utterly original memoir about how every book becomes a part of us."[10]
Nelson became editor–in–chief of the trade magazine Publishers Weekly in January 2005.[11] New York Times reporter Edward Wyatt suggested that the top job at Publishers Weekly in 2005 involved facing "many challenges".[11] In her new position, Nelson added a new assessment for books called a "signature review".[12] Paid circulation dropped by 3,000 to 25,000 in the mid-2000s.[11] Nelson pushed for significant changes towards modernization, greater use of the Web, and more focus on analytical reporting.[11]
In 2008, Nelson commented on the intersection of political candidates, books, and television celebrities such as Oprah Winfrey and Obama.[13] Nelson was interviewed on National Public Radio on Winfrey's influence,[14] similar to that of radio personality Imus,[15] in the publishing arena.[16]
Nelson wrote about Twitter writers signing book deals,[17] Jonathan Littell's controversial 1,000 page Holocaust novel,[18] and realignments of publishing firms.[19] She commented on trends in changing technology, such as the coming of digital books such as Amazon's Kindle.[1]
In 2009, Nelson was dismissed from Publishers Weekly.[2] The action was widely covered in newspapers.[20]
In September 2009, Nelson was appointed book editor at Oprah's O Magazine.[21] She continued to comment in the media about new forces in publishing such as the new quarterly literary magazine called Electric Literature.[22] Nelson appeared with Harry Smith of CBS News on The Early Show.[23] She's also served as moderator for events sponsored by the LA Times Festival of Books.[24]
- So Many Books, So Little Time: A Year of Passionate Reading, Putnam, 2003.[7]
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