With Hugh Howey‘s launch of AuthorEarnings.com and the loud bang that followed, I failed to notice this bit of news: James Patterson and Clive Cussler have formed some kind of merger. The deal will include all rights–film, electronic, and audio. Publishing circles were apparently abuzz with the news (and again, I can’t believe I missed this).

Predictably, someone blamed Amazon for this merger:

The two Guild representatives did find one point of agreement. “If you want to know who gets the blame,” said one, “you don’t have to look any further than Amazon.”

Yeah, I don’t know what to say. Of course, it’s silly to blame Amazon, but then, not blaming Amazon will entail looking at your own actions, or lack thereof (looking at the Guild et al, here), but that’s just my humble and not-so-perfect opinion. As for the merger, I’m speechless. Not because the merger is bad or good. Just unexpected. I’ll have to wait for more details before offering an opinion. I suppose I could blame Amazon in the interim…

via Merger stuns world of popular fiction | Lawrence Block.