Planet Money - "Inside a BOOK Auction"

NPR | March 21, 2026
Host: Alexi Horowitz-Ghazi

Overview of the Episode

Inside a BOOK Auction dives into the hidden, high-stakes world of the modern publishing industry by tracing the journey of the upcoming Planet Money book from idea to a fiercely competitive multi-million dollar auction. Using Planet Money’s own story as both case study and adventure, the episode explores how books are pitched, sold, and turned into real-world products—spotlighting the mixture of business, art, strategy, and risk that shapes which books make it into readers’ hands.

Key Discussion Points & Insights

1. The Origin Story: Why a Planet Money Book?

• Episode opens (03:15) as Alexi takes on the challenge to uncover how the Planet Money book was made.
• Alex Goldmark (Planet Money’s executive producer) reveals that publishing a book wasn’t the team’s original idea—it began with two literary agents (Laura Nolan and Jane Von Mehren) approaching NPR, seeing opportunity in Planet Money’s brand and fanbase (04:19).

2. What Do Literary Agents Do?

• Agents’ Role Unpacked (05:29):
  • Jane and Laura explain their job: “We are always thinking, is this idea a book?... Everything is processed through this lens.” – Jane (06:02)
  • Their business model: Spot promising projects, make the sale, take ~15% commission.
  • Prior NPR experiences (e.g. music, Wait Wait Don’t Tell Me’s crossword) built their interest.

3. Turning an Idea into a Marketable Product

• Framing the Book (08:14):
  • Alex initially pitches quirky, narrow concepts. Agents redirect him to a broader angle—“a field guide to the global economy” that mirrors the podcast’s accessible, story-driven approach (09:01).
  • Key: “The key to selling a big book these days...is figuring out a broad frame that would appeal to as many people as possible.” – Alexi

4. The Proposal Process

• Co-writing the Draft (10:10):
  • Alex Maiasi joins as writer, and the team drafts the book proposal—a critical document that serves as both artistic pitch and business case to publishers.

5. The Publishing Landscape: Consolidation & the Big Five

• Industry Structure (12:19):
  • Jane: “Once upon a time, these were all independent publishers...now we are down to what they call the Big Five…” (12:19)
  • The few remaining “whales” dominate, but indies and “dolphins” (like W.W. Norton) survive.
  • Importance of platform and audience: “Publishing has leaned more and more on putting their money behind authors with platforms and built-in audiences.”

6. Inside the Publisher’s Mindset

• Tom Mayer (W.W. Norton) discusses editor’s role as portfolio manager (15:36), balancing risk with the hope of landing “the next big thing.”
  • Quote: “Publishing is a power law business. 20% of the books make 80% of the money.” (15:36)
  • Editors see ~500 proposals/year, buy 10–12 (~2% acceptance rate). (17:29)

7. Courtship & Competitive Bidding

• Wooing Publishers:
  • Agents seed buzz through meetings and lunches, building competition.
  • 23 publishers reach out for meetings, leading to a “speed-dating” gauntlet of Zoom pitches (22:06).
  • The goal: spark enough interest to stage an actual auction.

8. Book Auctions—How They Work

• Auction Formats Explained (25:38):
  • Round robin: Successive open bidding (rational but slow).
  • Best bid, one shot: Single, secret bid—high risk, potentially irrational outcomes.
  • Two-round best bid (“wedding cake auction”): Top-ranked bidders advance in tiers, final round is a “beauty contest.”
  • “The beauty contest is what happens at the very end...Did the author like you? Is your plan better?” – Tom (36:38)

9. Strategy & Stress: The Emotional Side of Bidding

• Winner’s Curse:
  • “Oh, my God, did I pay too much?” – Tom, reflecting on outbidding others (34:28)
  • Stakes for editors are part financial, part personal—winning means years of collaboration, losing is emotional (35:22).
• Anecdotes: Editors have lasting regrets over lost books—sometimes dodged bullets, other times missed golden tickets.

10. The Planet Money Book Auction Unfolds

• Bidding Day (30:55–33:24):
  • 16 bids received in round one (rarely so high).
  • 10 advance to round two, based on both financial offers and contract terms (foreign rights, etc.).
  • Tom at Norton learns his bid was highest—both thrilling and nerve-wracking.
• The Beauty Contest (36:37):
  • Finalists: Norton (“the dolphin”) vs. a Big Five Whale.
  • The Whale: more money, two-color print, proven distribution muscle.
  • Norton: slightly less cash, but a full-color book and unique educational textbook integration—a gamble on long-term reach.

11. Choosing a Winner

• The Decision (38:19–39:10):
  • Alex Goldmark weighs mission alignment, educational reach vs. upfront money.
  • Ultimately, Planet Money says “yes” to Norton: “We have an educational mission...doing it directly like that was really appealing…” – Alex (38:19)
  • “Once Alex signed on the dotted line, Planet Money’s agents Jane and Laura got the first installment of their commission, and it was time for them to hand off the baton…” (41:33)

12. After the Sale

• Next Steps (42:01):
  • Agents’ active role ends, editor’s work begins: “Afterwards, it is the editor who becomes the leader.” – Laura Nolan
  • “Suddenly you have to do the whole thing.” – Tom Mayer (42:39)
  • “Now for the hard part…how do you actually make a book?” – Alexi (43:05)

Notable Quotes & Memorable Moments

• On the art vs. business of publishing:
  • “If I think too strategically or too programmatically about my investment choices, I will not make good art.” – Tom Mayer (16:29)
• About the high school-like networks of publishing:
  • “[It’s like] a high school dance for the long haul… you need to maintain your reputation…” – Alexi (33:28)
• On the emotional rollercoaster of an auction:
  • “If you win...the bottom falls out of your stomach. What have I done?...Devastating.” – Tom Mayer (35:22–35:54)
• On the auction’s stakes:
  • “Winner’s curse. The idea is that the winner of an auction will often overpay...” – Alexi (34:35)
• On industry secrecy:
  • “I'm not gonna talk about numbers. It's like a corporate secret.” – Tom Mayer (39:45)
  • “Agents don’t really kiss and tell when it comes to how they do these things.” – Jane (40:46)
  • Confirmed: the advance was “seven figures...more than a million dollars, but less than two.” – Alex Goldmark (41:11)

Timestamps for Key Segments

• Introduction & mission: 00:23–03:15
• Begin book origin story: 03:15
• Literary agents explained: 05:29–07:03
• Framing the book for the market: 08:14–09:01
• Proposal process and writer selection: 10:10–11:07
• How publishing works (Big Five): 12:19–13:19
• Pitching & courting publishers: 14:12–17:29
• Auction mechanics: 25:38–27:46
• Bidding strategy & winner's curse: 34:28–35:54
• Final round & choice: 36:37–39:32
• Advance/financial details discussion: 39:33–41:27
• Hand-off to editor, “now for the hard part”: 42:01–43:05

Tone & Style

Engaging, conversational, and lightly irreverent—true to Planet Money’s signature blend of economic insight and pop-culture savvy. Participants are open about the awkwardness, excitement, and personal stakes involved, yielding both transparency and humor.

Summary Takeaway

This episode peels back the velvet curtain of the book world, revealing a competitive, personality-driven, and highly strategic marketplace. From literary agents hustling at power lunches, to publishers strategizing like Wall Street traders, to the suspenseful “wedding cake auction,” the path from podcast to printed page is both stranger and more familiar than most readers ever realize. And as Planet Money’s team learns, the real work—the transformation of a concept into a finished book—has yet to truly begin.