Yet more on the CPSIA and childrens' books

Publishers Weekly's latest article about the CPSIA might be the best treatment relative to books that I've seen. The key points are:

• For any "ordinary" book intended primarily for children printed after 1985, the Consumer Products Safety Commission (CPSC) has issued an exemption.
• Legislation has been introduced to extend the exemption to all ink-on-paper and ink-on-board books.
• The publishing industry has been given an extension until February 10, 2010 to have its testing program in place.
• Testing already exists for many books. Although the vast majority of books test negative for banned substances, a few have tested positive. "Green" materials with recycled paper are more likely to test positive than books that don't use recycled paper.
• Although many titles are being tested already, the CPSC is still trying to determine the testing protocols. PW indicates that although the rules require testing all component parts, it's unclear whether the assembled book will also need to be tested.

One author who testified in front of Congress said she thought, based on conversations with members of Congress and the CPSC that they don't want to allow changes to the rules.

We'll still have to wait and see.

CPSIA Update: Legislation Introduced to Exempt "Ordinary" Books

Not really a lot to add to this posting from Publisher's Weekly, except a vague feeling that knee-jerk rule-making is bad and it seems silly this has been drawn out so much. If you're a childrens' author, here's hoping this isn't screwing you up.

Publishing News -- 1/10/2009

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CPSIA: Major issue for Childrens' Publishing
Before a week ago, I'd never heard of the Consumer Product Safety Improvement Act (CPSIA). This week, its presence has become big news. Although doomsaying usually occurs before new regulations take effect, this time the hand-wringing could be valid. The CPSIA includes provisions aimed at protecting children from lead paint in toys, a laudatory goal. But the CPSIA required testing for each unit produced of any item that might be aimed at children, even if all the components were certified as lead-free. The penalties are stiff, a $100,000 for each individual item put on shelves, and five years in prison. Also, the law is retroactive. At the very least, this act will drive the price of childrens' books up and reduce reading by those who need to do it most.

Here are some relevant links:

Save the Children's Books: The CPSIA is a Road to Hell, Paved with Good Intentions --Publishers and authors are being wrongly targetted by this law which requires each print run to be tested.

Industry Scrambling to Comply with Child Safety Act -- The CPSIA is intended to protect children from lead in toys. But its application to books could be misguided and publishers promise it will be devastating.

Book burning on Feb. 10 Because of CPSIA? -- The new rules require testing on each unit, even when all the component products are certified as lead-free. The penalty? Up to $100,000 per item and five years in prison.

Marketing Your Work
How to Get Involved in Online Book Promotion -- Finding blogs that apply to your work is a magnificent first step.

Ghost Queries: Friend or Foe -- Nathan Bransford, an agent at Curtis Brown, isn't heavily against them, but says the query should capture the author's voice.

#88 (Another query letter critique) -- Critique from blog that takes and critiques query letters.

Publishing and the Economy
B&N Reports Decline in Holiday Sales -- Megabookstore reports 5.2% drop from last year. More troubling, website sales dropped 11%.

Pantheon Book Publisher Released -- Janice Goldklang, publisher at Pantheon was laid off in Random House restructuring after 25 years at the company.

AJC Drops Books from Arts Section Title -- The paper promises no significant content changes, but readers aren't so sure.

Self-Publishing
Author Solutions Acquires Xlibris -- Union of self-publishers accounted for 19,000 titles in 2008.

Digital Publishing
Digital Download Skyrocket at Libraries -- Online book source reports 76% increase in traffic over last year.