Publishers Weekly Unveils $149 “Service” for Self-Published Authors

Publishers Weekly unveiled  PW Select on Monday, “a quarterly supplement announcing self-published titles and reviewing those we believe are most deserving of a critical assessment.”

In the announcement, PW President George W. Slowik Jr wrote: “Each quarterly will include a complete announcement issue of all self-published books submitted during that period. The listings will include author, title, subtitle, price, pagination and format, ISBN, a brief description, and ordering information provided by the authors, who will be required to pay a processing fee for their listing. At least 25 of the submitted titles will be selected for a published review. There will also be an overview of the publishing trends that can be identified from among the titles from that reading period. We will also focus on the opportunities that the self-pub world offers. A resource directory will accompany the section offering names of companies providing services in the DIY space.”

PW says all submissions will be listed, though which books will be reviewed is up to the editors.

So far, response has not been positive.  One blogger on Mediabistro wrote: “the last bastion of the publishing industry’s respectability sells its soul…’”, and a response on PW’s own site reads “I’m sorry to see PW joining the ranks of the many businesses out to fleece self publishers.”