Self-publishing has promised a lucrative future for book publishing, even as it seemed like the last resort for authors who have not been able to go through the traditional book publishing industry.

But Simon & Schuster (who Rupert Murdoch is rumored to have his eye on) looks like they have found a way to skirt the self-publishing stigma by teaming up with an existing self-publishing company, Indiana-based Author Solutions Inc.  Author Solutions has already partnered with smaller, more specialized companies like the bodice-ripping romance publisher Harlequin and Christian book publisher Thomas Nelson.

S&S and Authors Solutions will publish fiction, non-fiction, business and children's books under a new,  separate imprint called Archway Publishing.

But self-publishing will not come cheaply. For anywhere from $1,599 (for the cheapest children's book package) to $24,999 (for the most pricey business book package), authors will editorial, design and distribution help. as well as access to some S&S perks.

We suppose it was only a matter of time before big publishers realized that there was money to be made off of the hopes and dreams of aspiring writers everywhere.

The prospect of a merger between Simon & Schuster and HarperCollins doesn't come as a surprise to publishing insiders.

Although the talks are still just preliminary and no deal is imminent, rumors about a merger between the two publishing houses have been swirling ever since Rupert Murdoch expressed interest in acquiring Penguin. That interest was quashed when Random House and Penguin announced plans to merge at the end of October.

The real question, and the most fun part of any merger speculation, is what the combined HarperCollins and Simon & Schuster publishing company will be called.

When Penguin and Random House were still in merger talks, there was debate about whether it should be called "Random Penguin" or "Penguin House." They decided to go with the less fun, and more official, Penguin Random House.

We look forward to more details, as well as some fun naming combinations.

(Image from webpronews.com)

Cover your ears, MFA rejects, conceptual poets and other miserable literary types. Yesterday, Publishers Marketplace (subscription required) yielded two new blog-to-book deals. Three if we count Hairpin domestic goddess Jolie Kerr's My Boyfriend Barfed in My Handbag.

Meet the newest bloggers-turned-authors:

Colin Hagendorf is the author of Slice Harvester, a blog that reviews the cheese slice at every pizzeria in Manhattan but is really about punk rock, the patriarchy, being broke, etc. (Occasionally he prints, binds and sells the posts as a zine.) This week, Mr. Hagendorf sold a memoir about "eating a cheese slice from every pizzeria in Manhattan while falling in love, getting sober, and becoming an internet phenomenon" in an exclusive submission to Sarah Knight at Simon & Schuster. He is represented by Julia Masnik at Watkins Loomis. If you're not jealous of his book deal you will be of his physiology: dude does not appear to have gained a pound from his caloric canvassing.

Mac Lethal is a Kansas City Rapper behind the fake iPhone screenshot Tumblr Texts from Bennett. (Tumblr, you should really start your own imprint.) He's sold a "modern epistolary novelization" of the blog, "about a hard-working rapper whose colorful nephew comes to live with him," to Adam Wilson at Gallery Books, also Simon & Schuster. He is represented by Britton Schey at William Morris Endeavor. Mr. Lethal's editors might be happy to know that he has demonstrated in rap his understanding of the difference between "your" and "you're."

We hear a handful of Thought Cataloguers have also sold books recently but, for now, we'll spare those graduating with expensive literary arts degrees this week the psychic trauma of hearing all about it.

Not just a pretty torso.

Rob Lowe earned accolades upon the publication of his memoir Stories I Only Tell My Friends when it turned out he was literate, or as The New York Times put it, "He’s Handsome — You Noticed? — but Not Just." That Mr. Lowe was both a celebrity and had apparently read Elements of Style put him on the bestseller list. Now he's back for another round!

His second memoir will be about “sex, marriage, money, work, fatherhood and sports, drawing upon Mr. Lowe’s own experiences and observations," reports the Times. It's called Love Life and will be published by Simon & Schuster, whose publisher Jonathan Karp signed up Rob Lowe's first memoir while still publisher of Twelve in 2008. After signing a reported $1 million advance, Mr. Lowe bailed on that deal, moving the book to Henry Holt after Mr. Karp left Twelve. Now Mr. Karp will have his Rob Lowe memoir after all.

Redmon.

The other day we noticed that Simon & Schuster imprint Free Press had advertised an opening for a senior editor on Publishers Marketplace -- did this mean an expansion? Well, maybe not: today Ecco books, the imprint founded by Dan Halpern and owned by HarperCollins, announced the hire of Free Press senior editor Hilary Redmon. Ms. Redmon will serve as executive editor at Ecco with a focus on acquiring non-fiction titles.

Ms. Redmon's bestsellers at Free Press include The Magic of Reality and The Greatest Show on Earth by Richard Dawkins; The Moral Landscape by Sam Harris and Tattoos on the Heart by Greg Boyle. Her hire at Ecco follows the departure of Matt Weiland, who left to take a position at W.W. Norton in October.

"We couldn’t be happier and more excited to have her as a colleague," wrote publisher Dan Halpern in a statement.

Locke.

John "NOT the father of liberalism" Locke, a self-published author of a series of thriller novels starring an ex-CIA assassin named Donovan Creed, has signed a sales and distribution agreement with Simon & Schuster. The agreement is unique in that Mr. Locke is still a self-published author, technically publishing under John Locke Books, but now his printed books will be available at brick and mortar outlets through Simon & Schuster. Mr. Locke's sales have mostly been in electronic format and he was the first self-published author to sell one million e-books on the Kindle. "I applaud Simon & Schuster’s incredible vision, and their willingness to provide a vehicle that allows all readers traditional access to my books," said Mr. Locke in a statement.

Its high ranking should come as no surprise, not only because Mr. Beck has penned many bestsellers himself, but also because the book, Michael Vey: The Prisoner of Cell 25, is by Richard Paul Evans, the originally self-published author of the gooey feel-good story The Christmas Box, which sold many, many thousands of copies. So Michael Vey is a paranormal young adult novel that presumably has a Christian stamp of approval, or as Mr. Beck calls it, " an entertaining and uplifting thrill ride that combines good values with good storytelling."

The plot:

Michael has special powers. Electric powers. Michael thinks he's unique until he discovers that a cheerleader named Taylor also has special powers. With the help of Michael’s friend, Ostin, the three of them set out to discover how Michael and Taylor ended up this way, but their investigation brings them to the attention of a powerful group who wants to control the electric children – and through them the world. Michael will have to rely on his wits, powers, and friends if he’s to survive.

Who says kids don't read?

To eliminate any such waste, a social-media company called Broadcastr (drop the 'e' and trademark!), when downloaded, will send little alerts to your phone when you come within feet of the Brooklyn Bridge, which has now been barricaded by futuristic laser electronic radar beams called "geo-fencing." Breach the formidable laser nets and you will be informed that instead of merely walking across the bridge you can walk across the bridge while simultaneously listening to David McCullough's account of Boss Tweed.

"This new technology makes it even easier for app users to discover captivating stories about their location," says the press release. We look forward to a future where every inch of New York City will be accompanied by literary narration, where we don't walk down Wall Street without listening to Melville, or Orange Street unaccompanied by Paul Auster.

GRRM: laughing all the way to the bank.

Simon & Schuster and Random House appear to have emerged unscathed from the boycott threatened by Facebook vigilantes who demanded statements from both publishers that they do not have any plans to publish a Casey Anthony book (both publishers put up Facebook posts saying they had no such intentions whatsoever).

George R.R. Martin's Dance With Dragons, published by Bantam, a division of Random House Book Group, broke this year's record for highest single-day and first-day sales for fiction, selling 300,000 copies across audio, electronic and print on Tuesday.

Simon & Schuster also had a stellar Tuesday: Jaycee Dugard's memoir of her time as a kidnapping victim, A Stolen Life, sold 175,000 copies across all book platforms.