For almost 16 years, online literary magazine the Millions served as an independent resource for book lovers everywhere. But today it announced that while the magazine’s coverage of books, arts, and culture would continue, it will now be as a property of PWxyz, the parent company of Publishers Weekly. With other literary sites like Bookslut and the Toast closing up shop in recent years, the Millions was one of the last bastions of a once-thriving ecosystem of indie book blogging. (LitHub.com is doing well, but is essentially run by book publishers.) Max Magee, who founded the Millions in 2003 and handed the editorial reins over to Lydia Kiesling in 2016, will no longer be involved with the site. “The Millions has grown over time into a vibrant and necessary project,†Magee said in a statement, “and in recent years I have spent a lot of time trying to figure out how the project might live beyond my stewardship. In Publishers Weekly, the Millions will gain a partner that is devoted to the site’s mission and we hope will make the site a lasting institution.â€
The website’s editorial and writing staffs are reportedly expected to remain the same, while Kiesling will depart as editor but stay on in some capacity. PWxyz has promoted longtime Publishers Weekly editor Adam Boretz as the Millions’ new editor. Kiesling, whose first novel, The Golden State, was well-received last year, praised the sale on Twitter (and said she’s grateful to have more time to work on her next book). “This move is great news for the site,†Kiesling wrote, “which, like all sites of its kind, needs resources, not just the money kind (although definitely, extremely, also that kind) but infrastructure & people power.â€