HarperCollins

Former secretary of state Colin Powell (pictured, via) has inked a deal at HarperCollins for a new book entitled It Worked For Me: Lessons in Leadership and Life. The nonfiction title is slated for publication in May 2012.

Powell will be collaborating with writer Tony Koltz on this project. Publisher Jonathan Burnham negotiated the deal with Josephson International LLC’s Marvin Josephson. Executive editor Tim Duggan will edit the book.

Here’s more from the release: “[This book] is a collection of lessons and personal anecdotes that have driven the four star-general and former Secretary of State’s legendary career in public service. Leading off with Powell’s ’13 Rules,’ culled together from scraps of paper that he accumulated at his desk and are now used in leadership presentations throughout the world, the book sheds light on the making and success of one of our most revered statesmen. Powell’s short-but-sweet rules—like ‘Get mad, then get over it’ and ‘Share credit’—set the tone for the rest of his book, in which he tells revealing personal stories to expand on his principles for effective leadership: conviction, hard work, and above all, respect for others.”

Celebrity chef Anthony Bourdain will acquire three to five books every year for a new line at HarperCollins’ Ecco imprint.

Publisher Daniel Halpern negotiated the deal with Inkwell Management literary agent Kim Witherspoon. The New York Times likened Bourdain’s new editorial role to the venture established by comedienne Chelsea Handler at Hachette Book Group’s Grand Central Publishing imprint.

Bourdain had this statement in the release: “I’m doing this because … I can …We’re presently looking at an initial list composed of chefs, enthusiasts, fighters, musicians and dead essayists. And we’re looking to publish them in a way that’s both accessible and respectful of the power of the written word – and appropriately fetishistic about the tactile joys of the printed page.”

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eBooks and children’s books helped HarperCollins have a profitable fiscal 2011 year. The News Corps-owned publisher recorded a profitable quarter and exceeded its plan for the year.

Publishers Marketplace has more: “They say the children’s division enjoyed ‘its second best ever’ year. eBook sales were ‘approximately 12 percent of sales in the US’ for the full fiscal year. Last quarter, for that period alone, Harper said ebooks comprised 19 percent of US sales and 11 percent of worldwide sales.”

NewsCorps released its fiscal 2011 numbers late yesterday afternoon. Historically they have broken out HarperCollins’ numbers, but this year the company did not break out income for book publishing specifically, instead reporting on its entire publishing business, which includes newspapers. This publishing division had a full year segment operating income of $864 million, a huge growth compared to the $467 million reported a year ago.

Cal Morgan has been named senior vice president and publisher of HarperCollins’ It Books imprint.

Morgan will also oversee the Harper Design imprint team and continue to serve as editorial director of the Harper Perennial original paperback program. He will report to Michael Morrison.

You can follow Morgan on Twitter. He began his career at Macmillan’s St. Martin’s Press. After joining HarperCollins in 1999, he worked at several imprints including ReganBooks, Harper and William Morrow. He has worked with Neil Strauss, Lauren Redniss, Jerry Lee Lewis, Kelly Oxford, Stanley Crouch, Arianna Huffington, Michael Moore and Ralph Nader.

Harper Perennial and Harper paperbacks publisher Carrie Kania will depart, heading to London to serve as an agent at Conville & Walsh. Her departure also sparked a reorganization at the publisher.

HarperCollins has restructured the Harper Perennial and Harper paperbacks imprints, bringing them under the umbrella of the Harper and William Morrow divisions. Harper Division publisher Jonathan Burnham now oversees Harper Perennial. William Morrow, Avon, and HarperVoyager publisher Liate Stehlik will take control of Harper paperbacks.

Here’s more about the restructure, from the internal memo: “Cal Morgan will continue in the role of Editorial Director of the Harper Perennial paperback originals, reporting to Jonathan. Additionally, Amy Baker, Senior Director of Marketing, and Erica Barmash, Marketing Manager, will remain with the Harper Perennial imprint, reporting to Jonathan. Gregory Henry, Senior Publicity Manager, Anne Tate, Senior Publicist, Peter Henningsen, Assistant Publicist, will move over to Tina Andreadis, VP/Director Publicity. Michael Signorelli, Editor, will join the Harper editorial team.”

Pulitzer prize-winning writer Ron Suskind will be publishing his latest financial tome Confidence Men: Wall Street, Washington, and the Education of a President with HarperCollins.

The book is slated for release on September 20th. According to the press release, Suskind (pictured, via) conducted hundreds of hours of interviews with politicians, financial titans, reformers, and lobbyists.

Executive editor Tim Duggan had this statement: “This is a book that shows how the financial collapse did virtually nothing to change the culture of Wall Street. What it did manage to do, though, was to test the mettle of Barack Obama in a way that he’s never been tested before, and the picture that emerges from Suskind’s reporting is eye-opening, to say the least.”

Opera singer Deborah Voigt has inked a deal with HarperCollins for her memoir; the current working title for the book is True Confessions of a Down to Earth Diva.

The autobiography is slated for a 2013 release. Publisher Jonathan Burnham negotiated the deal with Inkwell Management literary agent Kim Witherspoon.

Here’s more from the release: “Voigt is on the roll of her life after finally conquering her inner demons, the least of which perhaps was her very obvious addiction to food and emotional eating. Seven years ago, Voigt was infamously catapulted into a state of shame by the mainstream media when it was revealed that she had been fired by the Royal Opera House in London for literally being too fat to fit into a little black dress that she was expected to wear as part of her starring role as Ariadne at Covent Garden.”

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Cosmopolitan magazine editor-in-chief Kate White (pictured, via) has signed with Harper Business for her new nonfiction title called Sweet Success: How to Get It, Run with It, Savor It. The book will be released in fall 2012.

Associate publisher Kathy Schneider negotiated the deal with Sandra Dijkstra Literary Agency president Sandra Dijkstra. Associate editor Colleen Lawrie will edit the title.

Here’s more from the release: “A new business book for women, Sweet Success: How to Get It, Run with It, Savor It will focus on women who are beginning their careers, and women in the middle stages of their professional paths. With Kate’s trademark savvy and wit, Sweet Success will expand on the strategies she set forth in her groundbreaking bestselling book, Why Good Girls Don’t Get Ahead But Gusty Girls Do (Grand Central 1996).”

HarperCollins will posthumously publish Micro by Michael Crichton in November. Prior to his passing in 2008, Crichton (pictured, via) had written about one-third of the book.

According to USA Today, nonfiction writer Richard Preston finished remaining two-thirds of the manuscript. Preston consulted Crichton’s outline, reference materials, and notes to complete the novel.

Preston explained: “For me, it was an irresistible challenge to finish the novel, and I was driven by a desire to honor the work and imagination of one of our time’s most visionary and creative authors.” (via Publishers Weekly)

Several authors, including some currently signed with HarperCollins, have joined a petition launched by librarian Andy Woodruff protesting the publisher’s decision to limit library eBooks to 26 check-outs.

Change.org reports that HarperCollins author Marilyn Johnson wrote about her disdain in a blog post: “HarperCollins says it is working to protect its authors, but I wasn’t consulted and I had to read about this on Library Journal and on the blogs and tweets of my librarian sources. This isn’t what I want, e-books with evaporating powers! Are you kidding? No author wants to write a book with the power to disappear.”

According to the article, Cory Doctorow, Judith McQuown, and Orel Protopopescu have signed the petition. So far, Woodruff’s petition has drawn more than 65,700 signatures.

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