The brand doctor
- Publication: The Bookseller
- Date: 2010-08-20
- Author: Katie Allen
- Page: 16
- Language: English
Katie Allen talks tie-ins, daleks and the Beeb with Albert DePetrillo
Random House HQ. Summer hours. A silent office. And behind the door there is a Dalek.
When I jump, Albert DePetrillo laughs. "We used to have a John Simm [aka Doctor Who's nemesis, the Master]. But that was too distracting."
Fittingly, we are here to talk about BBC Books' Dr Who list, known for its tie-in novels and The Tardis Handbook, which is expanding with three "returnable strands of publishing" this autumn. There is the first graphic novel, The Only Good Dalek by Justin Richards and Mike Collins; a companion title The Brilliant Book of Doctor Who; and "our Doctor Who special", a standalone novel by sci-fi giant Michael Moorcock, The Coming of the Terraphiles.
The editorial director is excited: "In the long term I do see the list growing further. I've been thinking a lot lately about the longevity of Doctor Who and the idea that everyone seems to have 'their' Doctor. That's very unique and an idea that can inform our publishing."
He continues: "We are publishing for the 14+ family market but I think that this is also for the older fans who still have that kind of childish enthusiasm about the show. There's something in here for everybody. We're basically emulating the success we had with 'Top Gear'."
Tie-ins that bind
The North Dakota native, whose career includes a stint at US tie-in publisher TV Books, is adamant that "brands are so important. There's no denying it … it's the way of the world. But they are not everything, we're always looking for those really strong one-off projects as well." He adds, "there's almost a brand mentality that goes into the one-off books sometimes [too], as part of that discussion: 'how do you make this product stand out in a crowded market'?" He cites the tie-in to next year's "Faulks on Fiction" series, Sebastian Faulks' examination of "heroes, lovers, villains and snobs" for BBC2.
BBC Books has not cut its lists in response to the downturn, helped "enormously" by this reliance on brands. But DePetrillo stresses, "at the same time I'm just as keen to diversify into on-illustrated books too. We do a lot of textled titles such as Faulks or the Fred Dibnah repackaging." The imprint also links up with the BBC's magazines, such as the forthcoming 100 Places that Made Britain, in which the editor of BBC History will interview experts about crucial historical sites around the UK--also documented in a column for the magazine.
BBC Books' link with the broadcasting giant is all in the name, but Random House, although a majority owner in the partnership with BBC Worldwide, is not guaranteed tie-in titles, although it does get first option for in-house productions. "We actually invest in the production directly to secure those publishing rights," explains DePetrillo, an amount which "varies" case by case. "And then separately we'll do the actual deal with the author or presenter or the producer to put the book together."
DePetrillo describes tie-in publishing as very different to normal commissioning: "It's no longer a conversation about: 'is it the right topic, is it the right author'. That is part of it, but now we're talking--'is it the right channel, is it the right number of episodes, the right potential time and date'." He mentions "scheduling", the tie-in publisher's bugbear: "You always have to be prepared to turn things around quite quickly … Transmissions change all the time. You have to keep limber I guess!"
DePetrillo agrees that his heart belongs to pop culture (confessing to a love of "Buffy"). "My publishing has got tradier and tradier as I've gone along and a little more pop culture. At the same time I love doing the history and politics stuff too … The TV platform is fantastic, but at the end of day you need it to be a strong book in its own right."
CV
1970: Born in Bismarck, North Dakota
1992: BA in Literature from Bennington College, Vermont
1993-1995: studied Comparative Literature at The Graduate Center, City University of New York
1995-1997: Addison Wesley Longman, editorial assistant
1997-1999: Overlook Press, assistant editor
1999-2000: TV Books, editor
2000-2003: lived in Ireland and then London, working for Irish internet company
2003-2005: Sanctuary Publishing, commissioning editor
2005-2007: Piatkus Books, commissioning editor
2007-present: BBC Books, editorial director
Disclaimer: These citations are created on-the-fly using primitive parsing techniques. You should double-check all citations. Send feedback to whovian@cuttingsarchive.org
- APA 6th ed.: Allen, Katie (2010-08-20). The brand doctor. The Bookseller p. 16.
- MLA 7th ed.: Allen, Katie. "The brand doctor." The Bookseller [add city] 2010-08-20, 16. Print.
- Chicago 15th ed.: Allen, Katie. "The brand doctor." The Bookseller, edition, sec., 2010-08-20
- Turabian: Allen, Katie. "The brand doctor." The Bookseller, 2010-08-20, section, 16 edition.
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- Wikipedia (this page): <ref>{{cite web | title=The brand doctor | url=http://cuttingsarchive.org/index.php/The_brand_doctor | work=Doctor Who Cuttings Archive | accessdate=2 April 2025}}</ref>
