Twelve Publishing Myths

1. If we routinely publish dreck we can still somehow maintain a quality publishing program which depends on our good judgment and informed taste.

2. If we're focused on meeting our quarterly sales targets we can still publish into and nurture a meaningful and profitable backlist.

3. Though we make no mention of the books we're publishing in more than half the meetings we attend, we can still be considered a full-time publisher.

4. All the investment that's been made in supply-chain improvements and 'just-in-time' inventory management will increase sales.

5. The eighty/twenty rule is inviolable and explains everything, including employee productivity.

6. Success in the marketplace is due to a superior nose and a lot of hard work. Luck plays no part.

7. The returns problem is too difficult for mere mortals to solve. So are most of the other problems the industry is facing.

8. What we're doing today is real on-line marketing.

9. If Barnes & Noble, BGI and Amazon don't support a title you might as well cancel it.

10. After this 'recession' is over, the industry will return to normal, though somewhat smaller and a little more nimble.

11. In twenty years, everything will have changed. No one will read printed books and the industry will have resettled to Palo Alto and Seattle.

12. If your boss calls you upstairs unexpectedly, you're about to get promoted.