Social media expert and former Apple evangelist Guy Kawasaki's latest book is APE: Author, Publisher, Entrepreneur, a guide to self-publishing. 

In the brave new landscape of Kindles, iPads and eBooks, a new initiative from a decades-old ad agency is trying to shake up the publishing world. Nick Barham and Jake Dockter are the brains behind Sharp Stuff, a storytelling initiative from the ad agency Wieden + Kennedy. Their first publication is called "American Dreamers," a collection of essays that look ahead. 

Michael Shatzkin, publishing futurist, tells us the story of Pottermore, J.K. Rowling's one-woman attempt to challenge the mighty Amazon.

Harry and The Potters - This Book is So Awesome

As a newly minted editorial assistant at Norton, writer Tom Bissell was able to resuscitate an out-of-print novel called Desperate Characters by Paula Fox. In Bissell's new book, Magic Hours, he wrote about how, paradoxically, that experience shook his faith in publishing. Brooke talks Bissell about whether we as readers will miss the publishing industry, imperfect as it is, if it disappears.

Julian Smith - I'm Reading A Book

Most big publishers fear running afoul of Amazon, but one very small publisher has proven to be fearless. Bob talks to Randall White, who pulled all of his company's books from Amazon's web site.

Quartetto d’Archi Dell’Orchestra Sinfonica di Milano Giuseppe Verdi - Paperback Writer

Without the ability to work together, industry watchers say the 'Big 6' publishers won’t be able to stop Amazon from pricing books as the company sees fit. Brooke speaks with Barry C. Lynn, a senior fellow at the New America Foundation, who believes that the DOJ decision opens the door to an Amazonian monopoly in the book industry.

Publishers are trying to adapt as the book industry changes dramatically, and they're doing so in the face of rapidly changing reading habits among consumers. Brooke talks to journalist David Streitfeld and publishing industry analyst Mike Shatzkin about the changing reading landscape and the ongoing war for readers’ attention.

Bob Garfield, co-host of On the Media and author of The Chaos Scenario, and Stephen Shepard, founding dean of the CUNY Graduate School of Journalism, discuss the demise of the print edition of Newsweek and what it means for journalism.

Alongside his meteoric rise as a publisher, Bennett Cerf pursued his natural talent for writing humor. 

In our lifetime, we’re exposed to thousands of images of women in the media. More often than not, these images are tweaked, trimmed, smoothed over, and made to look, well, not quite like women actually look. This week, Seventeen magazine released their “Body Peace Treaty” which promises to “celebrate every kind of beauty” and “never alter the shape of a girl’s face or body.”

Amy Einhorn, Publisher and Vice President of Amy Einhorn Books/Putnam, and Ben Schrank, President and Publisher of Razorbill, an imprint of Penguin Young Readers Group, talk about the changing business of book publishing and how, as editors, they try to predict which books will be bestsellers.

In a new semi-staged production called “No Place to Go” at Joe’s Pub, musician and playwright Ethan Lipton explores the experience of losing his office job in publishing – and does so with ample humor and thought-provoking insight. Ethan Lipton and His Orchestra join us to perform some of it live.

As the longtime president of Leiber and Stoller Music Publishing, Randy Poe has represented songs like "Stand By Me," "Hound Dog," and "Love Potion #9." In 2006, his boss (songwriter and producer Jerry Leiber) sent him on a personal mission to pitch a song to Willie Nelson - resulting in an epic journey that still hasn't quite ended. The tale is recounted in the new book "Stalking the Red Headed Stranger, or How to Get Your Songs into the Hands of the Artists Who Really Matter." Randy Poe joins us to share the story - and the history of "song-plugging."

While e-books are extremely convenient for readers, their proliferation is causing more financial problems for the already beleaguered publishing industry. A growing number of people with e-readers want to borrow e-books from their local libraries. But publishers, selling the electronic manuscripts at record highs, are wary of letting libraries loan them out. 

Brad Stone, Bloomberg Businessweek senior technology writer, talks about how the publisher of Amazon's imprint is shaking up the book industry.

Conrad Black was once one of the most powerful men in the publishing business. He bought London’s Daily Telegraph newspaper in 1985 and eventually owned hundreds of newspapers throughout the U.S. and Canada. But all that changed in 2007, when a U.S. Circuit Court convicted Black of fraud and obstruction of justice. He was released from prison last year, midway through his six-and-a-half year sentence, after an appellate court dropped two charges against him. Then in June of this year, a Chicago court upheld two other charges of defrauding investors against Black, ordering him to return to prison for a 13-month sentence, which he began yesterday.

“Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows: Part 2” raked in $158.4 million domestically over the weekend, breaking records which "The Dark Knight" had held, according to Warner Bros. The film's world premiere marks the end (for now) to the adventures of Harry Potter. WNYC reached out to book publishers, teen lit reviewers and librarians to find out what new titles have the potential to fill the gap.

Workshops about sex throughout history. Lessons about 19th century undergarments. Research presentations on body language during the act of flirtation. The Romance Writers of America conference is currently underway at the Marriott Marquis in Times Square.