A post today for Huffpo’s Books section is worthy of a share here on Good e-Reader: Howard Polskin, CEO and Editor in Chief, Thin Reads, listed his picks for some of the most powerful names in digital publishing, at least where the increasingly popular ebook singles are concerned, and we couldn’t agree more. In his post, “The 8 Most Influential People in E-Book Single Publishing,” Polskin lists the accomplishments and contributions to ebooks provided by a very short list of names.
Polskin’s list includes David Blum, editor in chief, Kindle Singles; Donna Carpenter, chairman and CEO, New Word City; Matt Cavnar, Vice President, Business Development, Vook; Mink Choi, book producer, Thought Catalog Books; Maris Kreizman, editorial director, Digital Content, NOOK Media; Laura Owen, staff reporter, Gigaom; Evan Ratliff, co-founder, CEO, editor, Atavist; and John Tayman, founder and CEO, Byliner.
One noted and overlooked name that we feel belongs on this list is Mark Coker, CEO and founder of Smashwords. While the ebook distribution site is admittedly not aimed specifically at the ebook singles market, Smashwords contains a wealth of titles that fall within the word count range for what is considered an e-short. The availability of this content on the Smashwords platform has arguably contributed to the rise in popularity of grabbing a quick read and enjoying the full story within the confines of a limited word count.
Mercy Pilkington is a Senior Editor for Good e-Reader. She is also the CEO and founder of a hybrid publishing and consulting company.