Why is the book cover different in different countries?
Essentially the reason for different covers is because there are usually multiple international publishers for any major author’s titles, and we (PRH U.S.) do not always have rights in every country to every title, or we license to a company that is not part of PRH. So, for example, John Grisham is published in the UK by Hachette UK, George R.R. Martin is published by HarperCollins UK, etc. They will design cover treatment and print quotes which are relevant to their marketplace. Same for any given non-English speaking market. (Cyrus Kheradi, International Sales)
Why is [book title] not available to purchase in my country? The Penguin Random House international sales team works with distributors, wholesalers, and retail booksellers all over the world to reach readers in over 240 countries and territories. While we have robust international sales and marketing reach, our distribution is formally limited to a list of territories the publisher negotiates with an author’s agent when purchasing book rights. Rights to the UK and British Commonwealth are often sold separately and exclusively to a British publisher. Territories outside the exclusive domains of the US and UK—the “open market”—are generally shared between the two publishers on a non-exclusive basis, but may vary at the country or regional level. Every book is different, and one of the exciting challenges we face in international sales is keeping them all straight and getting copies into readers’ hands everywhere we have the rights. (Kelly Roberts, International Marketing Manager) What are the other jobs associated with publication? (Sales, Marketing, Publicity, Subrights, Special Markets) In addition to editorial, there are a wealth of other departments in a publishing house that help bring the books to life and to the marketplace. Our managing editorial, production, and art teams usher books through the process that creates the physical objects. Our publicity teams bring them to the attention of the media, while our marketing teams bring them to the attention of consumers. Our subrights team coordinate getting our books published internationally, and also get excerpts from our books placed in magazines and newspapers. Our sales and special markets teams bring our books to retailers and the marketplace so that consumers can buy them. And this is only the tip of the iceberg! (Casey Blue James, Manager, Business Development Penguin Publishing Group) A Huge thank you to all of our employees who took the time to be interviewed. We hope their answers have helped you better understand the publishing process! Check back soon for another installment of The Book Lover’s Guide to Publishing.
