As a recipient of the Arts Connects Us Grant I travelled to Ghana and Sierra Leone to meet with writers and publishing professionals working in the field of books for young readers to foster creative and collaborative exchanges between those contacts and publishing professionals and readers in the UK. This blog post is by necessity a focus on very specific meetings and conversations and is only a fraction of the encounters and connections I made. I planned my visit to Ghana to coincide with the PaGya! Festival which is organised by Writers Project Ghana and the Goethe Institute. Over the course of three days writers and publishers gathered to talk about everything from poetry to narrative non-fiction, memoir to books for younger readers. There was a packed programme from morning until night with simultaneous events happening making the festival a positive and vibrant event. Speakers came from all over the world and their backgrounds, interests and perspectives ensured a well rounded and broad look at the world of writing with roots in West Africa. Prior to the festival I had arranged several days of meetings with people involved in the world of children’s literature to talk about their work as writers and publishers and also to get to grips with the market in Ghana. It soon became very clear that not only is there a thriving publishing scene in Ghana it is one that is self-sufficient both in terms of talent and audience. I was told often that what readers in Ghana need... Continue reading at 'British Council global'
[ British Council global | 2019-03-19 11:10:28 UTC ]
In popular genres such as sci-fi and fantasy, fan fiction based on the Wattpad model could easily disrupt the publishing industryFor a few years in the mid 2000s, I was the young librarian who got sent to schools to convince kids they really did want to read books. The truth of my experience was... Continue reading at The Guardian
[ The Guardian | 2015-02-13 00:00:00 UTC ]
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Library campaigners in Cardiff believe they "sent a strong message" to the city council with a National Libraries Day protest against planned cuts to the service. More than 200 people gathered outside the city's Central Library on Saturday (7th February) to hold a mass "read-in", with people... Continue reading at The Bookseller
[ The Bookseller | 2015-02-10 00:00:00 UTC ]
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Catherine Aird has been awarded the Crime Writer’s Association Diamond Dagger award. The Diamond Dagger winner is chosen by the CWA committee from a shortlist of writers judged worthy by their peers. Shortlisted authors must have sustained excellence in their careers and made a significant... Continue reading at The Bookseller
[ The Bookseller | 2015-02-07 00:00:00 UTC ]
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Granta Books editor Anne Meadows has acquired a “darkly funny, whip-smart” novel and a collection of short stories from Catherine Lacey, whose debut novel Nobody is Ever Missing will be published - also by Granta - this week. Meadows acquired UK and Commonwealth rights, including Australia New... Continue reading at The Bookseller
[ The Bookseller | 2015-02-03 00:00:00 UTC ]
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By Denis Wilson Yes, data has become a buzzword and anyone with a little extra hot air will be eager to tell you it's the cure to what ails your business. The collection of articles in this issue of Publishing... Continue reading at Publishing Executive
[ Publishing Executive | 2015-02-02 00:00:00 UTC ]
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Pan Macmillan is to publish a collection of short stories by television and radio presenter Sir Terry Wogan. Editorial director Trisha Jackson acquired UK & Commonwealth Rights from Luigi Bonomi at LBA. Jackson said: “I’ve been a huge fan of Terry’s for many years and these incredibly... Continue reading at The Bookseller
[ The Bookseller | 2015-01-31 00:00:00 UTC ]
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Drawing on her panoramic reading and her experiences of the authorly life cycle, Atwood surveys her trade with a mix of seriousness and gentle fun“You may find the subject a little peculiar,” warns Margaret Atwood, before she discusses the writer’s relationship with mortality. “It is a little... Continue reading at The Guardian
[ The Guardian | 2015-01-30 00:00:00 UTC ]
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The novelist Robert Harris was right to call the BBC’s lack of a books show a ‘disgrace’. There’s plenty the corporation could do to make a popular literary programme on TVWith injury, there is always a little insult. When a BBC spokesperson, responding to Robert Harris’s complaints at the Costa... Continue reading at The Guardian
[ The Guardian | 2015-01-29 00:00:00 UTC ]
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James Patterson, already among the world's best-selling authors, plans to shake up the publishing industry with the launch of his new novel, Private Vegas, which will self-destruct within 24 hours. Continue reading at Stuff
[ Stuff | 2015-01-21 00:00:00 UTC ]
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Writers believe that the publishing industry still views them largely through a prism of ethnicity, but industry insiders say that there is no pigeonholing based on race. Authors told The Bookseller they are still defined by their racial identity for marketing purposes and receive more success... Continue reading at The Bookseller
[ The Bookseller | 2015-01-20 00:00:00 UTC ]
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Kampmann & Company has acquired Spencer Hill Press. Located in New Hampshire, Spencer Hill was founded in 2010 as a publisher of fiction for young adults and has since added titles in the adult, new adult and middle grade fiction categories. Continue reading at Publishers Weekly
[ Publishers Weekly | 2015-01-07 00:00:00 UTC ]
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Google removed its news aggregation service from Spain a few days ago, but the Spanish Newspaper Publishers’ Association (AEDE) is already asking the government to bring it back. AEDE claims the removal of Google News will be bad business for the publishing industry overall and will have more of... Continue reading at Betanews
[ Betanews | 2014-12-16 00:00:00 UTC ]
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Booktrust and the BBC have launched a short story competition for teenagers. The ‘BBC Young Writers’ Award with Booktrust’ is for teen writers (aged 14-18) of short stories, on any topic, of up to a 1,000 words. Continue reading at The Bookseller
[ The Bookseller | 2014-12-10 00:00:00 UTC ]
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By Marcelle Soviero The publishing industry is busting out of business models as quickly as we can devise new ones. I think in 2015 we will see more product differentiation and more product offerings. These... Continue reading at Publishing Executive
[ Publishing Executive | 2014-12-02 00:00:00 UTC ]
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If squabbles over format, pricing and Amazon have led the US publishing industry to neglect an ever more diverse audience, we have forgotten why people read books in the first placeThe true price of publishingAt the recent National Book Awards ceremony in New York City, presenter and bestselling... Continue reading at The Guardian
[ The Guardian | 2014-12-02 00:00:00 UTC ]
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By Robert M. Sacks Do you ever wonder if the publishing industry has learned enough in the last five years to be more effective and more profitable in the next five years? Of course, effective is a relative term... Continue reading at Publishing Executive
[ Publishing Executive | 2014-12-02 00:00:00 UTC ]
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Irish author Colin Barrett wins the Guardian First Book Award for his debut collection of short stories, Young Skins. Continue reading at BBC News
[ BBC News | 2014-11-27 00:00:00 UTC ]
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Young adults dominate the Arabic book market, but publishers are acutely sensitive to the slightest challenge to conservative etiquetteThe boom in young adult fiction has left the Arab publishing world playing catch-up, as authors try to compete with Twilight and The Hunger Games without... Continue reading at The Guardian
[ The Guardian | 2014-11-21 00:00:00 UTC ]
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Short story collection about soldiers struggling in cope with chaos of Iraq war takes top US literary prize, with Ursula K Le Guin honored for lifetime contribution• Redeployment by Phil Klay review – incendiary stories of warA US marines veteran, Phil Klay, has taken home America’s most... Continue reading at The Guardian
[ The Guardian | 2014-11-20 00:00:00 UTC ]
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Backlist is more important than ever for the publishing industry and the opportunity to use backlist titles to drive the sale of frontlist titles is, according to publishers, “one of the true excitements” of the new era of digital publishing. Continue reading at The Bookseller
[ The Bookseller | 2014-11-18 00:00:00 UTC ]
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