Finally, some news from the publishing world's revolving door: Macmillan announced this Tuesday that Stephen Rubin, former publisher at Doubleday, will be appointed as president and publisher of Henry Holt, the imprint that published recent Booker Prize winner Wolf Hall, and the original publisher of Robert Frost.
Rubin, who went from music journalism to becoming publisher at Bantam, has been in the industry for 25 years and was at the helm of Doubleday when many successful authors were published including John Grisham, Dan Brown, Pat Conroy, Ian McEwan, Tina Brown, Bill Moyers, and Bill O'Reilly. He headed Doubleday also when editor Jason Kaufman's acquisition, The Da Vinci Code, was published by the imprint. Dan Farley, the previous president of Holt, will turn his focus to the Macmillan Children's Publishing Group, where he has been president and publisher since last year. Rubin will report to John Sargent, Macmillan CEO, who calls Rubin a "rare publishing talent."
Says Sargent:
With Holt's long and prestigious history and Steve's remarkable taste and track record of success in both the literary and commercial sides of the business, I look forward to a prosperous future for Holt. We are very enthusiastic about the future of the trade book business, and the addition of Steve Rubin will allow us to significantly expand the Macmillan portfolio.
Here is Rubin's statement:
I am so excited by the opportunity to work at Holt, one of the venerable companies in publishing. Throughout my career, I have always strived to publish those exceptional books that bridge the gap between commerce and literature. I believe that Holt is the perfect place to do this, given that its sister companies are the distinguished Farrar Straus and the powerhouse St. Martin's Press, I can't wait to work more directly with books and authors in developing a tight, powerful, focused list. I am also eager to partner with some of the most talented people in the industry, many of whom are dear friends.
Holt has a checkered history of publishers who over-spent and underperformed -- this is a moment many will be watching.