Journalist Elizabeth Harris reports on books and the publishing industry for The New York Times. She shares her 16-year career journey from clerk to staff writer, her thoughts on the book industry, and the process of writing her first novel, How to Sleep at Night.

Andy Hunter is one of the most interesting players in the discovery and commerce of books. Andy’s career took him from mainstream cultural behemoth Disney to beloved counterculture publisher Soft Skull Press, before founding online literary communities Electric Literature and LitHub. From there, he launched the indie e-commerce platform Bookshop.org in 2020 and stewarded its exceptional growth. Andy discusses the critical value of independent publishing and independent bookstores to culture, the wiring together of community and business model, and the power in a changing technology landscape.

Madeline McIntosh is a trailblazing publisher whose career spans leading roles at storied companies like Norton, Bantam Doubleday Dell, Amazon, and Penguin Random House. Madeline talks about her newest venture, Authors Equity, which just celebrated its first anniversary. Authors Equity uses a new kind of business model where publisher and author collaborate to drive a book’s success.

HarperCollins is a storied worldwide publisher with roots that go back more than 200 years, possessing a catalog of 200,000 titles from authors like Mark Twain, the Brontë sisters, J.R.R. Tolkien, C.S. Lewis, and Barbara Kingsolver. Brian Murray talks about the company’s legacy of navigating changes in culture, technology and law, becoming a truly global publisher, and navigating evolving AI technology while protecting intellectual property.

From India to America, self-described “accidental” entrepreneur Amandeep Kochar’s fascinating career spans LiveNation, McGraw Hill, and Baker & Taylor—the nearly 200-year-old business serving libraries with both physical books and digital services.

Jon Yaged, the CEO of Macmillan, shares his journey from grandchild of a jazz musician to publishing blockbuster books by Kristen Hannah, Matthew Perry and Rick Riordan.

The President of Princeton University Press, Christie Henry, pulls back the curtain on university press publishing. We discuss her extraordinary career, why universities have presses, and the unique role they play in the world.

David Shelley, the CEO of Hachette Book Group UK and US, talks about growing up over a bookshop, differences between publishing in the UK and US, organizational approaches, and exciting upcoming titles from James Patterson and Rebecca Yarros.

Simon Lipskar is a leading agent for bestselling authors and runs one of the most important literary agencies in the publishing business. He talks about his journey at Writers House, the rise of Amazon, the role of the internet in the success of books, and the potential impact of AI on publishing.

Otto Penzler, founder of The Mysterious Bookshop and Mysterious Press, is widely considered to be the father of crime fiction in the US, bringing critical and popular appreciation of the genre to the forefront.