Philip Turner Book Productions is an editorial consultancy joined to a literary agency. Our company is comprised of my son Ewan Turner, Executive Editor, who came on-board in 2020, and me, Philip Turner, a publishing veteran with more than four decades of experience in all parts of the book business.
Ewan is heading up New Stories, a part of our business devoted to cultivating new work, including in fiction and memoirs, and new areas we want to work in, including licensing and adaptations. Ewan is a fiction writer himself, and a 2019 BFA graduate in Performing Arts from The New School. He was the summer 2018 editor of KGB Bar Lit Mag for which he often led readings and open mic nights. In 2017 he published Sotapanna, a poetry chapbook that was featured at KGB poetry night and at PhotoBookWorks Gallery, Beacon, New York. He’s worked as an editorial assistant for such writers as playwright Mart Crowley (“The Boys in the Band”); photojournalist Ruth Gruber (Exodus 1947); and Hilary Knight, illustrator of the Eloise series.
Ewan is developing his own list, and is eager to hear from and consult with prospective clients. You may reach him at ewanmturner[@]gmail[.]com. Ewan’s creative writing, published under his pen name M. G. Turner——including his short stories The Shakespeare Authorship Conundrum Society and Poe’s Farmhouse, and a prose poem titled Sitting in a Grove Reading Shelley—can be read via this link.
As for me, I began working in the book business in my twenties when in 1978 with my siblings and our parents we co-founded Undercover Books, an independent bookstore chain in Cleveland, Ohio. Our stores became well known to publishers for being able to break out new authors whose books they were aiming to make into bestsellers, as with novelists we hosted for signings like Rona Jaffe, Mark Helprin, and Richard North Patterson. After seven years in bookselling, I moved to New York City, and began working for publishing houses. From 1986-2009, I served as an acquiring editor and publishing executive for Charles Scribner’s Sons; Walker & Co., Macmillan Publishers; Prentice Hall Press at Simon & Schuster; Kodansha America; Times Books and Crown Publishers at Random House; Carroll & Graf Publishers at Avalon Publishing Group; and Union Square Press at Sterling Publishing. I’ve published and represented a number of bestsellers and award-winning books, including the first paperback edition of Dreams from My Father: A Story of Race and Inheritance by President Barack Obama; The Politics of Truth–A Diplomat’s Memoir: Inside the Lies that Led to War and Betrayed My Wife’s CIA Identity by Ambassador Joseph Wilson; Shakes Hands with the Devil: The Failure of Humanity in Rwanda by Romeo Daillaire; Covert: My Years Infiltrating the Mob by longtime NBA referee Bob Delaney writing with Dave Scheiber; and The Barrens: A Novel of Love and Death in the Canadian Arctic by Kurt Johnson and Ellie Johnson (Minnesota Book Award, 2022).
In 2023 I contributed a personal essay titled “The Education of a Bookselling Editor” to the new book on the publishing industry, Among Friends: An Illustrated Oral History of American Book Publishing in the 20th Century. I invite you to read about this illustrated anthology with essays by more than 100 publishing veterans; my essay can be read via this link. I’ve also contributed personal essays to the BN Review (My Encounter with William Styron) and the Cleveland Anthology from Belt Publishing (Remembering Mr. Stress, Live at the Euclid Tavern). I am currently serving as a juror (2024) for the Lukas Prize awarded by the Columbia University Graduate School of Journalism. Our shortlists were announced on Feb 28.
I have worked independently of corporate publishing since establishing Philip Turner Book Productions in 2009. With Ewan as my partner, we offer an array of editorial, publishing, and consulting services to authors, agents, publishers, and media companies. We work on retainer for a number of authors and regularly do video conferences with clients. Full manuscript and book proposal editing fees are quoted after we receive draft material and make a preliminary assessment of the project. I work on a lot of first person material, and enjoy working with memoirists and muckraking journalists. I am best contacted via email: ptbookproductions[@]gmail[.]com.
Philip Turner Book Productions is a joint editorial consultancy and literary agency. Agency representation is undertaken on a selective basis. Some clients of our company consult us for editing alone, others for agenting alone, and others for both. There is no obligation for agency clients to use our editorial services. Please contact us at ptbookproductions[@]gmail[.]com if you’d like to learn more about these arrangements. Phone consultations and video conferences with clients are undertaken regularly. Please contact us via email with a query or overview of your book idea. All material should be submitted in Microsoft Word. See other submission guidelines below.
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Here’s a post from March 2024 about three recent sales.
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Recommendations of Ewan Turner and Philip Turner Book Productions:
“Ewan Turner, Executive Editor of Philip Turner Book Productions, is an excellent editor and gifted creative writer who knows what great writing is supposed to be. He also has a wide breadth of knowledge of literature, especially in the realm of classics. Aspiring and published writers would be smart to work with him on their projects.”
—Mildred Marmur, President of Mildred Marmur Associates, Ltd, was the first woman president of Charles Scribner’s Sons, 1985-1987. She holds a Master of Arts Degree in French Literature and is the translator of Madame Bovary (Doubleday and Signet) and Henri Troyat’s Tender and Violent Elizabeth (Simon & Schuster and Pocket Books).
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“It says a lot about Philip Turner that my previous agent—unable to find a publisher for my Pot Thief murder mystery series—turned to Philip for assistance. He placed the series with my current publisher, under which it has prospered, with one of the titles, The Pot Thief Who Studied Edward Abbey, receiving a starred review from Publishers Weekly and, other Pot Thief titles winning awards. When I decided to branch out and write a non-fiction book—The Ten Commandments: Updated. Condensed, and Improved—he placed that one as well. My wife and I were living in New York City shortly after Philip became my agent, and we had the pleasure of meeting him and his son Ewan who now works with his father, thus making Philip Turner Book Productions even more formidable. Philip has negotiated three contracts on my behalf and managed to get everything I hoped for in each one. I highly recommend him.”
—J. Michael Orenduff, author of the ten-volume Pot Thief mystery series, including the forthcoming The Pot Thief Who Studied Calvin and his nonfiction book The Ten Commandments: Updated. Condensed, and Improved (both to be published in 2024 by Open Road Media)
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“For a first-time author, to have Philip Turner as the editor of your book as well as your agent is to be more than simply twice blessed. It is to be infinitely blessed, and I don’t say this casually because without Philip Turner’s experience in all facets of the publishing industry, I don’t think the memoir I wrote would have been able to emerge in the current market. My enthusiastic appreciation of his abilities owes something to the existence of editors in my family and the fact that I’ve worked professionally with writers in the theater. However I knew this wouldn’t necessarily be useful when I found myself on the other side of the creative equation. And so in the course of reviewing Philip Turner’s 3,000 marginal notes in my original manuscript, I could only admire what good sense they made and how succinctly and considerately they were expressed. I became alert to his knowledge of how editors at publishing houses are likely to react and happily moved past some of my own prejudices and quirks, which improved the storytelling. Finally, his expert knowledge of the cultural market for my book was absolutely essential to finding a publisher for it.”
—Gail Merrifield Papp, author of Public/Private: My Life with Joe Papp at The Public Theater (Applause Theater and Cinema Book, October 2023)
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“I reached out to Philip in the fall of 2020 with a query letter and draft of my literary fiction novel, The Barrens. Philip enthusiastically took on both the editing and agenting of the novel. On the editing side, he was able to take a manuscript that was good and make it great. On the agenting side, he went above and beyond to find an equally enthusiastic publisher. By the summer of 2021 Philip had the book sold to Arcade Publishing, and it was published in 2022. It’s since been selected as one of the top books for book clubs and reading groups in the 2022 Great Group Reads of the Women’s National Book Association; it’s also one of four finalists for the Minnesota Book Award in fiction. All this could not have been accomplished without Philip’s close editing and tenacious agenting. At this time I am working on my second novel and we hope to have that published soon, too. I know he’s also able to turn to his adult son and business partner Ewan for good counsel, a writer and editor himself. I highly recommend their services.”
—Kurt Johnson, co-author with Ellie Johnson of The Barrens: A Novel of Love and Death in the Canadian Arctic(Arcade Publishing, May 2022)
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“After spending years in academia where I wrote articles, policy papers, reports, and edited a book for educators, I embarked upon the writing of my first “real” book. The story resonated intensely with me, and I believed it needed to be told, but my passion was mixed with a good deal of naiveté about what I really meant to do in writing the book. I realized very soon that I needed professional assistance. Fortunately, I found my way to Philip Turner who offered me absolutely the best four-year writing seminar imaginable, in less than half that span. From the beginning, he showed me the utmost respect as a writer, even in my amateur state, and I grew to respect, trust and rely on his meticulous eye for detail to, yes, grammar and punctuation, but also to style, story structure, and emotionality. He encouraged and guided me every step of the way, and when he pronounced the manuscript ready to submit to publishers, his approbation was one of my life’s greatest rewards. He also became my agent and with the same expertise guided me to an ideal publisher.”
—John Webb, author of Molyvos: A Greek Village’s Response to the Global Refugee Crisis (Potomac Books, October 2023)
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“I first worked with Philip Turner when he edited the manuscript of my biography of Emily Mann—theater director, playwright and long-time artistic director of the McCarter Theatre in Princeton, New Jersey. Philip’s editing of my manuscript was both smart and sensitive, and it encouraged me to feel that I had written an enjoyable and enlightening book. I sent my edited manuscript to the university press with which I had a contract, but that publisher was proving to be a challenge. Among other things, their PR budget was miniscule. I conveyed this to Philip, and he suggested finding a new publisher—a trade press. Sure enough, he was able to interest a well-established trade press in my biography of Emily Mann. Since then, Philip has continued to support my writing projects and demonstrate that he has excellent contacts throughout this rough-and-tumble business! I heartily recommend Philip for any author of nonfiction who needs a fine editor and a dedicated agent. He does an excellent job in both areas.”
—Alexis Greene, author of Emily Mann: Rebel Artist of the American Theater (Applause Theater and Cinema Books, 2021)
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“Let me tell you about my experience with Philip Turner as a literary agent. I’ve been in and around the book business for many years, I had two literary agents before I met Philip, so I’m experienced and thought I knew my way around mainstream publishing. But Philip knew far, far more than I, and during our relationship as agent and author, at every strange turn events have taken, Philip has led the way through, showing me through his expertise things about the business I never suspected and was never told by others. In addition to this depth, Philip has breadth, a network of connections across publishing and a deep well of goodwill that never fails to impress. Whether you’re a beginning author or an old hand, Philip has what you need.”
—Lawrence Ellsworth, author of Cinema of Swords (Applause Theater and Cinema Books, June 2023); creator of a series of modern translations of Alexandre Dumas’ Musketeers Cycle novels, including; and editor of The Big Book of Swashbuckling Adventure (Pegasus Books).
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“Although I had a track record of publishing books before, I did not know just how helpful an agent could be until I connected with Philip Turner. He proved to be invaluable in shepherding my book Richard Tregaskis: Reporting under Fire from Guadalcanal to Vietnam from its early beginnings all the way to its publication by the University of New Mexico Press. Philip provided thoughtful editorial guidance about the manuscript before its submission to the publisher and continued to offer support and hand-holding all the way to its publication and after. He continued to be a great sounding board as I tackled my next book project, focusing on Vietnam War correspondent Malcolm W. Browne. My work with him has been a true collaboration. Any author would be lucky to have him by his or her side as they tackle the sometimes rocky road to publication. He is thoughtful in his counsel and meticulous as well in the financial side of the business. A true professional.”
—Ray E. Boomhower, author of more than ten books, including The Ultimate Protest: Malcolm W. Browne, Vietnam, and the Photo That Stunned the World and Richard Tregaskis: Reporting under Fire from Guadalcanal to Vietnam (University of New Mexico Press, May 2024 and 2021)
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“My relationship with Philip Turner goes back a long time—to when he was an editor for my book How the Cold War Began, 2006, about the Soviet defector Igor Gouzenko. After that, he became my literary agent, successfully helped me get a trade publisher for my book Orders to Kill: the Putin Regime and Political Murder (St Martin’s, 2017). In 2021, Philip negotiated my latest book contract with Cornell University Press for The Kremlin’s Noose: Vladimir Putin’s Blood Feud With the Oligarch Who Made Him Ruler of Russia, about Vladimir Putin and the Russian oligarch Boris Berezovsky, which will appear in the spring of 2024. Philip combines editing skills with a deep knowledge of book publishing. He has been indispensable for my success as an author and is a pleasure to work with.”
—Amy Knight, author of many books, including The Kremlin’s Noose: Vladimir Putin’s Blood Feud With the Oligarch Who Made Him Ruler of Russia (Northern Illinois/Cornell University Press, May 2024) and Orders to Kill: the Putin Regime and Political Murder (St Martin’s, 2017.
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“My experience working with Philip Tuner Book Productions has been great! I first met Philip via his Publishers Marketplace listing, and have always found his interactions to be professional, and his advice, recommendations, and edits to be sound. Through our work together, Philip has edited and represented my debut manuscript through a successful sale to Blackstone Publishing, and a successful launch, onto the bestseller lists. I would recommend Philip to anyone looking for help taking their book to the next stage.”
—Alex Messenger, author of The Twenty-Ninth Day: Surviving a Grizzly Attack in the Canadian Tundra (Blackstone Publishing, 2019)
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Services offered by Philip Turner Book Productions:
1) We help authors conceive and develop their nonfiction book proposals, often before they’ve embarked on a new project, and prior to submission to publishers, helping them craft their work before it’s submitted to publishers;
2) We line-edit nonfiction (trade and academic-oriented titles) and fiction manuscripts and book proposals for authors, literary agents, and publishers;
3) As a bonafide literary agency, we work to license the books of a select list of author clients. Many projects we’ve sold are named in the Recommendations above. For a complete list of projects licensed by Philip Turner Book Productions, please click on this link to view them on our member page at the widely used book industry database Publishersmarketplace[.]com;
4) For an initial consulting fee, we read from 5,000 words-7,500 words of fiction manuscripts, then discuss with the writer how they may best approach or re-approach their work. In this context, we do a written assessment and some preliminary editing to help the writer identify themes in their work as they continue developing or revising it;
5) We help published authors evaluate their new book ideas and consider what they might choose to work on next. These conversations can be especially useful when the author is weighing several choices amid a number of possible book idea options;
6) We read entire manuscripts for authors—these are usually novels—who may not want a line-by-line edit of the work, but prefer a full reading of their work in which we offer a candid assessment of the premise, pacing, plot points, characters, dialogue, and setting, and a written memo;
7) Over the years, I’ve developed a specialty in working with authors of great longevity, including editing and publishing six books by the humanitarian and photojournalist Ruth Gruber, who died in 2016 at age 105; Edward Robb Ellis (1911-98), who kept a diary for more years than anyone in the history of American letters, which I helped him distill into his 1995 book A Diary of the Century: Tales from America’s Greatest Diarist; and sports cartoonist Murray Olderman (1922-2020), who published his fourteenth book, The Draw of Sports, at age 93. I welcome queries from senior authors;
8) We both blog and write personal essays about books, publishing, live music, media, current events, and city life at The Great Gray Bridge and Honourary Canadian, and often write about the books of our clients on the two websites and in our social networks.
9) We’ve worked with businesspeople and academic professionals who want their website copy or résumés, cover letters, and job search materials to be revised so that they exhibit a fresh and dynamic approach;
10) We have a penchant for developing books for offer to publishers that feature unique insiders—truthtellers, whistleblowers, muckrakers and revisionist historians, authors who we define as “the only person that would could write the book in question”;
11) We consult with authors who are self-publishing their work, working with them to maximize the discoverability of their book;
12) We’ve published independently under the Philip Turner Books imprint when dynamic opportunities arise;
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Summaries of our years in business for:
Looking Back on 2021, Our Year in Editing and Agenting; Looking back on 2022, Another Good Year in Agenting and Editing ; and A Dispatch From the End of January (2023).
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Guidelines for submitting to Philip Turner Book Productions:
• For our preliminary consideration, please draft a professional query describing your work.
• If sample reading material is then requested by us please submit it as an attached double-spaced Word file, in Times New Roman font, minimum 12 pt type.
• When submitting material by attached file, please send your material in a single file, not one file per chapter.
• Please minimize illustrations and photos to limit the demands on the storage capacity of our inboxes.
• Please paginate your work.
• If sending a brief sample, under ten pages, please cut and paste into the body of an email (not an attachment)
• In your query and pitch, please focus on illustrating the content of your work, rather than only citing superlatives.
• Your may send your manuscript to either Philip (ptbookproductions[@]gmail[.]com, or Ewan (ewanmturner[@]gmail[.]com. We’re interested in narrative non-fiction, practical non-fiction, adventure and wilderness narratives, biography, history, politics, travelogues, popular culture, theater, film, music, memoir. In fiction, we’re interested in debuts, literary excellence, and some genre work.
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More on my background:
My formative experience in the book business was running the chain of independent bookstores, Undercover Books, which I founded with my siblings and our parents in Cleveland, Ohio. During my seven years with the stores I served as a personal bookseller to thousands of readers and customers. Following bookselling, I’ve worked in publishing almost forty years. Through it all, I remain a bookselling editor, passionately devoted to helping authors connect with readers.
I am an editorial advocate for writer and reader. I edit with the author perched on one shoulder, the reader on the other, fostering a virtual dialogue between the two and creating mutual benefit for each. I am devoted to helping writers navigate a path through the lurching transition that the book industry is experiencing as we morph from a print world to a new world that combines digital and print modes for avid readers. I am a hands-on line editor, of both brief and lengthy texts, with a generous feel for what a writer is trying to convey, and an intuitive sense of how to help them communicate their ideas as efficiently and memorably as possible. I welcome queries from new and experienced authors, predominantly in nonfiction, and some fiction, with fees quoted upon receipt and consideration of material.
For more information on my four decades in the book business please see PT-Professional and PT-Personal, both on this website; my LinkedIn profile; and our member page at publishersmarketplace.com, which lists many of the titles I’ve worked on during my career. I can be reached at ptbookproductions[@]gmail[.]com. For a review of our company’s activities in recent years, please see the summaries for 2022 and 2021.