Early this month, “Black Wednesday” descended upon two major New York publishing houses. On December 3rd, both Random House and Simon & Schuster announced plans to lay off hundreds of employees. People with famous names and pedigrees in this business will soon lose their jobs. What’s going on?

Sales are dismal. But that’s been the case for the past 16 consecutive years. Why now? Publishing is a broken business model and is in need of an overhaul. When I hear about the problems of the automakers, I can’t help but think how publishing is also in dire need of a major transformation. The marketplace is demanding change.

A good friend of mine who lives in New York recently returned from maternity leave at a major publisher. She told me that her boss sat her down and explained: "publishing is not the same as it was twelve weeks ago when you left, and it will never be the way it was before. Everything you thought you ever knew about publishing is different. We’re all going to have to learn a new way to conduct business." I felt that this advice was important to pass on to you.

Behind the scenes, people are worried. Many have worked years with the same house and are scared.

Is there a silver lining? There might be. Ask yourself this important question:
Are you ready to be a part of the revolution that will change publishing?