• publishing

    A dark winter for publishing

    2024-12-12 /

    It’s been a rough week for publishing.

    Although sometimes it feels like everyone and their brother is in publishing, the truth is that it’s a small community. Most everyone knows most everyone else. Every loss is felt keenly.

    Lou Harper of Cover Affairs was a cover designer whose work appeared on thousands of novels. She was recently diagnosed with pancreatic cancer; after a short time in hospice, she passed away.

    An associate of Lou’s made a statement on Facebook.

    The news took a while to reach me, so this update is late, but I am sad to report Lou passed away early in the morning on November 19th after being in Hospice for only a few days. The cancer that started in her pancreas had effectively taken over her liver as well, and by the time she was diagnosed and met with an oncologist, the only thing they could really offer was to help manage her comfort. There was lots of love and support in the days leading up to Lou’s passing, and the doctors did a reasonable job managing comfort. She did not suffer long, and that is a blessing.She worked with a lot of my friends, who praised her professionalism, kindness, and consistency. What a huge loss.

    ~

    We also lost MJ Rose, one of the founders of 1001 Dark Nights.

    From her Publisher’s Weekly obituary:

    Melisse Shapiro, also known as M.J. Rose, an early self-publishing advocate as well as bestselling author, died unexpectedly on December 10 while in Florida visiting her father. She was 71.

    […] Liz Berry remembered Rose best for being “innovative, and brave, and fierce, and an icon. She will be sorely missed.” Jillian Stein also said her partner will be missed. “M.J. was a force of nature both in the industry and out,” Stein said. “She was both bold and tender hearted and she was always happy to share her experiences and use what she’s learned in her long career to help anyone who asked. The amount of people she’s touched over the years is incredible.”

    ~

    Author Jana DeLeon also tragically, unexpectedly lost her husband this week.

    As posted publicly to her Facebook profile:

    Last month, my husband, Rene’, got an infection which turned into septic shock, and he had to spend 3.5 weeks in the hospital. They controlled the infection and stabilized everything that was off kilter due to it, and he was discharged to rehab on Saturday, which he was thrilled about. A couple of his good friends and I were with him while he ate dinner and joked and talked about cars. After that, we got him settled to rest then his friends left. He was exhausted from all the day’s activities, so I told him to take a nap while I ran home to feed our dogs and grab a few things for him then I’d be back. I’d barely gotten home, about twenty minutes later, and rehab called. I can’t believe I’m having to say this, but Rene’ passed away. The paramedics tried to revive him for about 20 minutes but couldn’t get a response. I have no idea what happened but I’m having a private autopsy to find out. I can’t begin to describe the devastation I feel. For 30 years, he was my best friend, partner, and biggest fan. We had big plans for another 30 more. Please pray for our families as we navigate an impossible time. JanaThere’s no real comfort to offer when such tragedy strikes, but I know that so many of us are thinking of her family.

    Again, publishing is such a small community. Losses like these hit so hard.

    Please keep everyone in your thoughts through these difficult times.

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