Editing Paperback (section)

===The 1950s—The paperback original (fiction) revolution===
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At first, paperbacks consisted entirely of reprints, but in 1950, [[Fawcett Publications]]' [[Gold Medal Books]] began publishing original fiction in mass–market paperback. The term '''paperback original''' applies to paperback original publications of fiction. It is not usually applied to original non–fiction publications, although paperback publishers also began issuing original non–fiction titles.

Fawcett, an independent [[newsstand]] distributor, in 1945, negotiated a contract with [[New American Library]] to distribute its Mentor and Signet titles. That contract prohibited Fawcett from becoming a competitor by publishing its own paperback reprints. Roscoe Kent Fawcett wanted to establish a line of Fawcett paperbacks, and he felt original works would not be a violation of the contract. To challenge the contract, Fawcett published two anthologies—''The Best of [[True (magazine)|True Magazine]]'' and ''What Today's Woman Should Know About Marriage and Sex''—reprinting material from Fawcett magazines not previously published in books.

After these books were successfully published, Fawcett announced in December 1949 that in February 1950 it would publish "original fiction including westerns and mysteries at 25 cents in a pocket-sized format" in a series called Gold Medal Books. ''[[Publishers Weekly]]'' reported in May 1950 that Fawcett books were "similar in appearance and cover allure to many of the paperback reprints, but the story material [was] original and not reprinted from regular editions." It also said the authors would be paid a $2,000 advance with a guaranteed first printing of 200,000 copies.<ref name=":1">[http://www.allanguthrie.co.uk/pages/noir_zine/articles/paperback_originals.php "Paperback Originals"]. ''The Mystery Readers Newsletter''. 1971.Crider, Bill. {{webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20100703014426/http://www.allanguthrie.co.uk/pages/noir_zine/articles/paperback_originals.php |date=3 July 2010 }}</ref>

That same month Fawcett released the first four Gold Medal books, original novels by [[W. R. Burnett]], [[Sax Rohmer]], Richard Himmel, and John Flagg - one western and three mysteries/adventure novels.

Fawcett's action led to immediate controversy, with an executive Vice president of Pocket Books attacking the whole idea, a literary agent reporting that one hardcover publisher threatened to boycott his agency if he dealt with mass market publishers, and [[Doubleday (publisher)|Doubleday]]'s LeBaron R. Barker claiming that paperback originals could "undermine the whole structure of publishing."<ref name=":1" />

Sales soared, prompting Gold Medal editorial director Ralph Daigh to comment later, "In the past six months we have produced 9,020,645 books, and people seem to like them very well." In 1950 Gold Medal published 35 titles, in 1952, 66 titles.<ref name="pb" />

Other paperback publishers saw Gold Medal's success and began to emulate it. ''Publishers Weekly'' reported in May 1952 that Avon had included three originals in its April releases and was seeking more. It added that Dell was {{"'}}thinking about' some systematic programs of original publishing," Lion Books had "a definite original publishing program in the works", and that Graphic had begun publishing originals about a year earlier. Bantam, Pocket Books, and New American Library said they were not going to publish originals.<ref name=":1"/>

Also in 1952, Ace began publishing Ace Double Novel Books, two books printed in one volume for 35 cents, one a reprint and one original, with two covers and two title pages.<ref name=":1"/>

In 1952, husband and wife publishers [[Ian Ballantine|Ian]] and [[Betty Ballantine]] left Bantam Books and founded their own publishing house, [[Ballantine Books]], to publish paperbacks simultaneously with their publication in hardcover by traditional publishers. Their first book, [[Cameron Hawley]]'s ''Executive Suite'', published January 1, 1952 at 35 cents in the 7" height simultaneously with [[Houghton Mifflin]]'s $3.00 hardcover edition, was a success for both publishers.<ref name=pb>{{cite web |url=http://www.miskatonic.org/rara-avis/archives/200208/0062.html |title=Crider, Bill. "Paperback Originals," ''Paperback Forum'' #1 |publisher=Miskatonic.org |access-date=2013-02-27 |archive-date=2012-02-27 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20120227055916/http://www.miskatonic.org/rara-avis/archives/200208/0062.html |url-status=live }}</ref> Of their next nine novels, two were published simultaneously by Houghton Mifflin and one by [[Farrar, Straus & Young]], and six were stand-alone originals.

In 1953, Dell announced its line of originals, Dell First Editions, and published its first novels by Walt Grove, [[Fredric Brown|Frederic Brown]], and [[Charles Einstein]].<ref name=":1"/>

Genre categories began to emerge, and mass-market book covers reflected those categories. Mass-market paperbacks influenced slick and [[pulp magazines]]. The market for cheap magazines diminished when buyers began to buy cheap books instead. Authors also found themselves abandoning magazines and writing for the paperback market. The leading paperback publishers often hired experienced pulp magazine cover artists, including [[Rudolph Belarski]] and [[Earle K. Bergey]], who helped create the look and feel of paperbacks and set an appealing visual standard that continues to this day. Scores of well-known authors were published in paperback, including [[Arthur Miller]] and [[John Steinbeck]].

[[McClelland and Stewart]] entered the Canadian mass-market book trade in the early 1960s, with its "Canadian best seller library" series, at a time when Canadian literary culture was beginning to be popularized, and a call for a Canadian author identity was discussed by the Canadian people.