The Houghton Mifflin trade and reference division has emerged from the turmoil that surrounded the sale of its parent company to Vivendi, and the subsequent sale of Houghton to an investment group in December 2002, a bit different, but also a stronger publisher.
Over the last two years the division has seen the appointment of "lifer" Teri Kelly as senior v-p of the unit; acquired the children's nonfiction publisher Kingfisher; created Graphia, a teen imprint; and enjoyed a tremendous sales ride of J.R.R. Tolkien—related titles. Although the division's sales were down a bit in the first quarter, Kelly told PW, "We're actually ahead of our budget. We've had Oprah [The Heart Is a Lonely Hunterwas an April book club pick]. Returns are lower, and we're anticipating a really strong fall."
Houghton's new look extends to its management team, with some veterans in new places as well as some new hires. With last month's appointment of Mia Camacho as v-p, director of financial planning and operations, and Gary Gentel as v-p, director of sales, last fall, the trade and references management team is now complete. It includes a balance of long-term staffers like Kelly and Janet Silver, v-p, publisher of adult books, who has been with the company for 20 years. The other members of the team include Bridget Marmion, v-p, director of marketing; Andrea Davis Pinkney, v-p, publisher of children's; and Marge Berube, v-p, publisher of dictionaries.
Backlist gems that are receiving fresh media attention propel the division, including both adult trade and four children's imprints—Houghton Mifflin Books for Children, Walter Lorraine Books, Clarion Books and Kingfisher. Hunter, for example, which Houghton first published in 1940, went from sales of 10,000 copies a year to 760,000 copies in the first half of 2004 thanks to Oprah. In children's, Chris Van Allsburg's 20-year-old classic, The Polar Express, is the basis for a November release of the same name from Warner Bros. Pictures and will star Tom Hanks. Seven Express movie tie-ins are slated for October release along with a reissue of the original book with reshot art and a gift set, which includes a book, a cassette, a CD and a keepsake bell. Houghton is also gearing up for the fall 2005 Universal release of an animated version of Curious Georgewith Will Ferrell as the voice of the Man in the Yellow Hat, and there is talk of a possible television series.
As for Tolkien,"we've had a fabulous time," said Kelly. "Our goal the last few years was to find new readers and expand their libraries and bring sales to a higher 'normal' level." The company now has 85 separate Tolkien-related ISBNs, including this fall's single-volume, $100 collector's edition of the trilogy to celebrate the 50th anniversary of the publication of book one, The Fellowship of the Ring.
But it's not just selected backlist titles that buoy the bottom line. Reference, according to Kelly, continues to bring in "consistent sales," accounting for about 20% of revenue. The division, which publishes close to 500 new titles a year, is aggressively promoting frontlist titles like The Gourmet Cookbook, edited by Ruth
Reichl, which will launch in September with a 250,000-copy first printing. Reichl received a $1-million advance for North American rights to the book, a "best of" the past 60 years of Gourmetmagazine, which she also edits. Houghton has committed another million dollars to market the $40 hardcover with full-page ads in Gourmet and store displays built to look like baker's racks. "It's huge for us," said Silver.
On the fiction side this fall, Silver points to other books with strong sales potential, like Philip Roth's The Plot Against Americaand Cynthia Ozick's first novel for Houghton, Heir to the Glittering World. Publicity plans for Worldalso mark another first for 76-year-old Ozick, her first author tour. Silver plans to bring out Ozick's first novel, Trust,simultaneously with the new hardcover. In addition, Houghton is looking to extend its Best American branding effort this fall with the addition of The Best American Spiritual Writing 2004,edited by Philip Zaleski.
Houghton is also strengthening its New York presence. About one fourth of the staff, including all of Clarion Books, works out of New York. "We are taking additional space," said Kelly, who is negotiating another 10-year lease for the building at Union Square. "Currently, we have 15,000 square feet; we are planning on taking 28,000. Some of it is because we're cramped, and we will use a good portion now. We'll also have some available for future use."
