From Shelf Awareness we learn that Jan Nathan, executive director of The Independent Book Publishers Association (or PMA) since its beginning in 1983, died on June 17 after a year-long battle with cancer. She was 68. “Jan Nathan gave independent publishers a voice and support in an industry dominated by large publishers,” Howard W. Fisher, president of PMA from 1989 to 1990, stated. “She was the right person for the time in creating a national vision. The beginnings of this group coincided with the first desktop publishing computers that created an explosion of publishers, all who needed help growing every aspect of their business.”
Nathan’s family is holding a private memorial service on June 28. Details about a public celebration, under the auspices of PMA, will be announced soon.