The Wall Street Journal has signed a publishing deal with Crown Publishing. The three-year pact will likely bring between four and eight books per year, drawing on reprinted stories as well as new titles from staff reporters. The Journal has also named Ken Wells, a longtime editor and reporter at the paper who has been editing and writing some of its books, to head the book publishing program. The deal with the Journal was signed after the newspaper's agreement with the Free Press was not renewed.
One of the biggest challenges for a newspaper imprint is persuading its reporters to sign with it. So will there be incentives or policy instruments to keep reporters at home? "It will be all carrots and no sticks," said Journal deputy managing editor Stephen Adler, who oversees the imprint and to whom Wells will report. He said the newspaper will continue a policy that encourages reporters to keep their books in-house by retaining them as salaried staff members in lieu of advances. Adler noted that the approach isn't right for all reporters, but many took advantage at the Free Press. Reporters who stay with WSJ Books will also be guaranteed house ads, he said.
The first title from the Crown partnership is a collection of original pieces in the vein of Weekend and Personal Journal scheduled for next spring. Crown publisher Steve Ross said he sees books being published that could fit in across the Random division, at Crown Business and the conservative Crown Forum as well as the general line. Adler said he decided to sign with Crown because he was impressed with the publisher's ability to do both business and nonbusiness books, as well as with Random House's special-sales force.
In addition to reporters, book ideas will come from editors at the Journal as well as Crown. "The advantage of this relationship is that you can have a lot of story meetings like you do at a newspaper," Adler said. "It's not a proposal that comes in full-blown and then becomes a book. It's a lot more informal."
