QUILLBLOG

Blog post about sexual harrassment in publishing resonates with industry

An anonymous book and culture blogger has responded to the sexual harassment controversy involving former Penguin Canada President David Davidar with a posting called What it Feels Like for a Girl, about her own experiences at an unnamed Canadian publishing company.  She argues that industry culture often prevents women from speaking out when situations occur.

I need to write this post, because it turns out a lot of women are silenced in publishing, by the small nature of the industry, and by the fact that most of the execs are men. I’m not in the industry any more, and I’m not going to name names.

The blog has been making the re-tweet rounds in publishing circles. One reader linked to it saying, “I really feel like any woman who works in publishing should read this and share this.” In a follow-up post, the anonymous blogger says she has been humbled by the response – over 500 hits in one day – many originating from the desks of multinational publishers worldwide. The blogger told Q&Q some of the hits came from Random House New York, HarperCollins New York, Simon & Shuster U.S., and the CBC.

Comments are closed.