Amazon Publishing
| Company type | Division of a company |
|---|---|
| Industry | Book publishing |
| Founded | 2009 |
| Founder | Amazon.com |
| Headquarters | Seattle , United States |
Area served | Worldwide |
Key people | Mikyla Bruder (publisher), David Blum (publisher and editor-in-chief for Little A and Two Lions) |
| Products | Books, digital books, literary magazines |
| Parent | Amazon.com |
| Website | www |
Amazon Publishing (APub), established in 2009, serves as Amazon's dedicated book publishing arm, with its main office located in Seattle, Washington. The division encompasses 15 distinct imprints such as AmazonEncore, AmazonCrossing, Montlake Romance, Thomas & Mercer, 47North, and Topple Books, each catering to various genres and audience segments. Additionally, Amazon distributes digital books via its Kindle Direct Publishing service.
History
AmazonEncore debuted in May 2009 as the leading general imprint, focusing on revitalizing out-of-print and self-published works that show commercial promise. A year later, in May 2010, AmazonCrossing was introduced to specialize in translating international literature into English. By 2011, Montlake Romance and Thomas & Mercer were launched to serve the expanding romance and mystery reader markets respectively.
The Powered by Amazon initiative allowed authors to publish under personalized imprint labels; among its notable endeavors was Seth Godin’s The Domino Project. That same year also saw the creation of 47North, an imprint dedicated to science fiction, fantasy, and horror genres. In December 2011, Amazon entered the children’s book sector by acquiring over 450 titles from Marshall Cavendish US Children’s Books.
To strengthen editorial leadership and grow its adult imprints, Amazon established its East Coast Group in New York in 2012, led by Larry Kirshbaum, former CEO of Time Warner Book Group. Kirshbaum also managed Amazon Children’s Publishing. To gain access to traditional bookstores like Barnes & Noble, Amazon employed a covert imprint named New Harvest; however, major retailers eventually declined to carry Amazon imprints altogether.
In June 2012, Amazon expanded its catalog by acquiring Avalon Books—a specialty publisher with a backlist of roughly 3,000 romance and mystery titles—integrating these under its Seattle-based imprints. Later that year, plans were announced to broaden European publishing efforts targeting English-speaking markets including the UK, Germany, France, Italy, and Spain.
Early 2013 witnessed the launch of new imprints such as Two Lions for children’s literature and Skyscape for young adult fiction. Little A was unveiled as a literary fiction imprint headquartered in New York. During the summer of that year, Jet City Comics was introduced to transform books into graphic novels available on Kindle and print formats.
October 2013 marked the arrival of Day One, a weekly digital literary magazine offering short fiction and poetry accessible through Kindle devices. This initiative embodied Amazon CEO Jeff Bezos’ "Day One" ethos centered on continuous innovation and responsiveness.
In 2014, Amazon inaugurated a German-language publishing division in Munich aimed at acquiring and producing German fiction for both Kindle and print distribution across European platforms.
November 2017 saw the launch of Amazon Original Stories—an imprint devoted to short-form fiction and nonfiction designed for reading in a single sitting with works ranging from 5,000 to 20,000 words. The following year introduced Topple Books, an imprint dedicated to promoting groundbreaking feminist voices with Emmy Award winner Jill Soloway serving as Editor-at-Large.
These deliberate expansions illustrate Amazon Publishing’s strategic approach: cultivating a diverse array of genre-specific imprints, pursuing international market growth, acquiring established catalogs to increase market presence, and embracing innovative formats tailored to shifting reader demands.
Weathervane
During the 1999 holiday season, Amazon acquired the rights to a defunct imprint named Weathervane, marking its initial foray into publishing. The catalog primarily consisted of Christmas-themed recipe books, which attracted only modest consumer interest, leading to the imprint's swift disappearance. Representatives from Amazon later stated they had no awareness of Weathervane.
Publishers
Larry Kirshbaum, based in New York City, served as the inaugural publisher for Amazon Publishing when it was established in 2009. He resigned in January 2014 after difficulties in producing significant bestsellers and amid a sexual assault lawsuit filed in 2013.
Following Kirshbaum, longtime Amazon executive Daphne Durham, located in Seattle, assumed the publisher role but left after one year citing a desire for a break. Mikyla Bruder succeeded her in January 2015, overseeing most imprints from Seattle. Meanwhile, David Blum took charge as publisher and editor-in-chief for the Little A and Two Lions imprints, operating out of New York City.
Kindle Worlds
Launched on May 22, 2013, Kindle Worlds was an Amazon Publishing initiative designed to monetize fan fiction based on licensed entertainment properties. This platform was discontinued in August 2018.
Criticism
A 2014 article in The New Yorker by George Packer underscored Amazon Publishing's underwhelming performance, highlighting costly acquisitions such as Timothy Ferriss' The 4-Hour Chef (bought for $1 million) and Penny Marshall's memoir My Mother Was Nuts (acquired for $800,000), both of which failed to meet sales expectations. Additionally, novelist James Franco's Actors Anonymous experienced similarly low sales. Packer pointed out Amazon Publishing's retreat from auction prominence and the departure of key editorial figures like Larry Kirshbaum in 2014. He attributed these shortcomings to bookstores' reluctance to stock Amazon titles, lack of publishing expertise, and a corporate culture prioritizing algorithms over traditional publishing relationships.
List of imprints
| Imprint | Launch date | Description | Remarks | ||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| AmazonEncore |
|
Reissues of out-of-print or self-published works | |||
| AmazonCrossing |
|
Books translated from other languages | |||
| Montlake Romance |
|
Focused on romance novels | |||
| Thomas & Mercer |
|
Mystery and thriller genres | |||
| 47North |
|
Science fiction, fantasy, and horror titles | |||
| The Domino Project |
|
Brief works by thought leaders; founded by Seth Godin | Discontinued November 2011; labeled "Powered by Amazon" imprint | ||
| New Harvest |
|
General adult fiction and nonfiction | Managed by East Coast Group under Larry Kirshbaum; distributed through Houghton Mifflin Harcourt | ||
| Amazon Publishing | Nonfiction, memoirs, and general fiction titles | | ||||
| Grand Harbor Press |
|
Spirituality and personal growth literature | A division of Brilliance Audio, owned by Amazon | ||
| Amazon Children's Publishing |
|
Books for children and young adults including picture books; encompasses Two Lions and Skyscape imprints | |||
| Little A |
|
Literary fiction offerings | |||
| Jet City Comics |
|
Comic books and graphic novels | |||
| 'Day One' | 'October 2013' | 'Digital weekly literary magazine' | |||
| Lake Union Publishing | 'Contemporary and historical fiction, memoirs, popular nonfiction' | ||||
| StoryFront | 'Short fiction collections' | ||||
| Waterfall Press | 'Christian-themed nonfiction and fiction' | ||||
| Kindle Press | 'Digital publications across popular genres' | ||||
| Amazon Original Stories | 'November 2017' | 'Short-form fiction and nonfiction designed for quick reading' | |||
| Westland Publishing India | '2016' | 'Nonfiction titles' | 'Acquired from Tata Group in 2016; ceased publishing operations January 2022' | ||
| Topple Books | '2018' | 'Narratives by nonbinary and queer authors' | 'Curated by Joey Soloway' |
External links
- "Insights into Amazon Publishing", Laura Hazard Owen, PaidContent.org, November 2, 2011.
- "Exploring Amazon Publishing", David Streitfeld, New York Times, November 4, 2011.