You can hear change too. After twenty years of giving voice to great characters, Audio Renaissance is now Macmillan Audio. We’re celebrating our platinum anniversary with a new name and a celebration of the art of storytelling.

On November 6, St. Martin’s Press will be publishing the hardcover of the long-awaited novel, RHETT BUTLER’S PEOPLE. Authorized by the Margaret Mitchell estate, this novel by award-winning author Donald McCaig parallels the Great American Novel, Gone With the Wind. Macmillan Audio has created and is publishing an unabridged audio edition of the novel as well.

But who do you hire to give voice to such an iconic character as Rhett Butler? The casting process is one of the most interesting and crucial parts of audiobook publishing. Certainly the casting discussions are the most spirited segment of our staff meetings. For every book the debate will rage: single voice or multi-cast? Male or female? Young or old? Gritty or smooth? And what about accents?

But back to Rhett. We needed an actor who could use his voice to create the atmosphere of the American South before, during and just after the Civil war; could portray the many characters who shaped the personality of Rhett – from his unyielding father to the overseer’s daughter Belle Watling to the former slave and Rhett’s best friend Tunis Bonneau to, of course, the headstrong and vivacious Scarlett O’Hara; all the while revealing that dashing scoundrel, Rhett Butler. Our producer Laura knew she wanted an actor with a “leading man” voice. So she turned to stage, film, and television actor John Bedford Lloyd, whom AudioFile Magazine has described as “a commanding reader with a voice that grabs the listener by the throat.”

We think he’s done a great job giving voice to this epic character. Click here, sit back, and close your eyes. I think you’ll be transported to a world of plantations, duels, blockade runners, and legendary love stories.

Mary Beth Roche is the Publisher of Macmillan Audio

So it’s my turn now. As you may know the Mac Blog is dedicated to talking about Macmillan and the changing business of publishing as we see it. We’ll have contributors from a variety of areas including our publishers to talk about what’s new and interesting.

What’s new and interesting this week, is that I’m blogging. I’ve been with the company 10 years, and it feels like during that time we have been in a constant state of evolution. And now blogging is another new direction. What has taken us so long to join in all the fun? Traditionally, we’ve kept a low profile. But now things are different. The media world is different. The publishing world is different.

We’re different, too. We recently conducted the ultimate makeover and changed our name to Macmillan. While it may not rock the world, it is an acknowledgement that we are not who we were. Or maybe we are who we were, only better. But it feels right at this point in our corporate lives to put on our “going to a party” clothes, get up on the table and dance a little bit.

Anyone who has worked for an organization knows each has its own personality. This blog, therefore, is going to be reflective of our overall personality; in a sense, it will be our digital fingerprint. I like the idea of giving voice to a company that goes beyond press releases and corporate communications.

What would our fingerprint whorls say about us? Since we’re made up of a group of independent publishers who actually do publish independently but share centralized functions like sales, operations and finance we are an eclectic bunch for sure. When you’re part of the centralized side of things as I am, this makes things lively, and sometimes challenging. It can create an atmosphere of diversity and like-mindedness; extremes of opinion and cooperation. These dichotomies do not seem like they should be part of the same gene pool, but is very much a part of what makes us publishers and part of our particular personality as a company. It is what makes our fingerprint unique.

All in all, this is a great time to be in the publishing business but not if you’re sticking with the status quo. We are on the move as an industry and as a company. In a St. Martin’s Press book we published last year by Harvard Business School Professor John Kotter, entitled Our Iceberg is Melting, Kotter outlines the eight-step process to implement successful change. Step Number 8, his final one, is to “create a new culture.” This blog is part of ours.

‘Til next time.

Alison

Alison Lazarus is the President of Sales for Macmillan

There, we’ve done it. We’ve gone and changed the name of Holtzbrinck. Just like that, we’re Macmillan. Actually, we’ve been talking inside about the name change for so long — over a year now — that it’s somehow shocking to see it finally happen. Of course, this is much more than just a name change. (Although, I confess that it will be nice that my English mother will finally know who I work for.)

In Macmillan, we in the US are adopting a name that Holtzbrinck has been known by internationally for years. But it’s not only our business cards and boxes that are changing. That’s the easy stuff. Underneath, we are shifting the way we think about how we do what we do.

And what do we do? We publish.

Yes, we publish books, magazines, and textbooks. But our role as publishers is not really to turn paper into books. It is to help creators find and connect with their audiences wherever they are. It is to publish information, entertainment, education, and ideas in whatever media and formats are appropriate. And through all the channels – digital and traditional – where our audience can be found.

And that is the new Macmillan. Whether we are publishing a bestseller, a website, a podcast, a magazine, or a blog like this, we will be focusing on the ideas. And like ideas, we have the capability to change, move, and grow.

This new website will be the place where you can check in on our progress. This is where we’ll talk about hot new projects and preview upcoming ideas. And this is where it’s starting. We’re hoping you will be part of our journey.

Macmillan. We publish. Watch us.

Brian Napack is the President of Macmillan.