Our publishing industry seems to champion just one or two black and Asian authors at a time. Lack of diversity is a real problemMonths back I was trudging through the streets of Dalston when I spotted a copy of Simi Bedford's Yoruba Girl Dancing in a charity shop window. It evoked the same emotion that stumbling into an old school friend might – part nostalgia and part wonder at the old magic. I found myself inside the store reaching for it, just as I had done years ago as a teenager. The book is a hilarious, touching read about a Nigerian girl sent to boarding school in England. Back then, it resonated with me deeply. I too had been a young Nigerian girl sent to England at the age of eight to attend boarding school in Norfolk. Its recounting of otherness in an unfamiliar land made me laugh and recall my own experiences. There was something about that dancing silhouette on the cover that seemed hopeful, unburdened somehow, and, though I'd been enamoured of the talents of Roald Dahl and Harper Lee, it was refreshing to see an author who looked like me.As I left the shop, it made me wonder: whatever happened to Simi Bedford? I know she wrote another novel, Not With Silver, but whatever happened not just to her, but to the career trajectories of other black and Asian female British authors?I admire the tenacity of writers such as Andrea Levy, who deserved to garner more attention earlier in their careers. Andrea eventually went on to have great success, but there was little... Continue reading at 'The Guardian'
[ The Guardian | 2014-03-23 00:00:00 UTC ]
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The Association of Writers and Writing Programs annual conference in Washington D.C. continued in a highly politicized vein through its second day, with a march and rally at the Capitol building, in addition to a packed event featuring Chimamanda Ngozie Adichie and Ta-Nehisi Coates. Continue reading at Publishers Weekly
[ Publishers Weekly | 2017-02-10 00:00:00 UTC ]
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Publishers will have to be "broad, open and diverse in their interests and in the voices they find" in response to the turbulent political climate caused by President Trump's election, Faber c.e.o. Stephen Page has said. Continue reading at The Bookseller
[ The Bookseller | 2017-02-08 00:00:00 UTC ]
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Romance writer Mandy Baggot has signed a two-book deal with Ebury. Baggot is “thrilled” to be joining the publisher, which has acquired world all languages rights from her agent Kate Nash. Single for the Summer, publishing on 27th July, features sun, sea and romance against the backdrop of... Continue reading at The Bookseller
[ The Bookseller | 2017-02-07 00:00:00 UTC ]
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Children’s authors have hit out at the slew of celebrity book deals struck in recent months, warning that full-time fiction writers are struggling while famous people attract big advances and sizeable marketing budgets. Continue reading at The Bookseller
[ The Bookseller | 2017-02-06 00:00:00 UTC ]
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Cornerstone has acquired a new book by Michael Palin documenting the maritime adventures of the HMS Erebus, part of a doomed 19th-century British expedition in northern Canada. Continue reading at The Bookseller
[ The Bookseller | 2017-02-04 00:00:00 UTC ]
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Edinburgh-based independent Black & White Publishing is naming its new YA imprint ‘Ink Road’. Continue reading at The Bookseller
[ The Bookseller | 2017-02-03 00:00:00 UTC ]
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A number of American literary agents have put out a collective open call for submissions by Muslim writers following President Trump’s “travel ban”. Continue reading at The Bookseller
[ The Bookseller | 2017-02-03 00:00:00 UTC ]
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Waterstones has reported a profit for the first time under the ownership of Russian businessman Alexander Mamut and direction of its m.d. James Daunt. Boosted by “better standards of bookselling”, the 270-store chain saw sales rise by 4% to £409.1m in the year to 30th April 2016, helping it... Continue reading at The Bookseller
[ The Bookseller | 2017-02-02 00:00:00 UTC ]
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Following President Trump's executive order suspending refugee admission to the U.S. and restricting immigration from seven Muslim countries, some agents have announced a collective open call for submissions by Muslim writers. Continue reading at Publishers Weekly
[ Publishers Weekly | 2017-01-31 00:00:00 UTC ]
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Sales of spoof humour books helped W H Smith to achieve a “strong” performance over its Christmas trading period, with the company’s chief executive Stephen Clarke saying that group profit growth for the year is now “slightly ahead of plan”. Continue reading at The Bookseller
[ The Bookseller | 2017-01-26 00:00:00 UTC ]
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In 18 months, the Instagram star’s three titles have sold more books than any other UK weight-loss title since records beganInstagrammer turned publishing sensation Joe Wicks is now the author of the UK’s biggest-selling diet books since records began.The Body Coach’s three Lean in 15 books have... Continue reading at The Guardian
[ The Guardian | 2017-01-18 00:00:00 UTC ]
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More than 2,000 artists, writers, and readers gathered at the steps of the New York Public Library on January 15. Continue reading at Publishers Weekly
[ Publishers Weekly | 2017-01-17 00:00:00 UTC ]
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Authors including Jilly Cooper, David Nicholls, Robert Harris and Rosamund Lupton turned out at a party to celebrate the success of the Richard and Judy Book Club with W H Smith. Continue reading at The Bookseller
[ The Bookseller | 2017-01-13 00:00:00 UTC ]
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Mulholland has acquired Green Sun, a new novel from American crime writer Kent Anderson and the first in almost 20 years. Continue reading at The Bookseller
[ The Bookseller | 2017-01-12 00:00:00 UTC ]
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Authors Donna Leon, Laura Kasischke and Simon Beckett ponder the happy mysteries of scoring hits with foreign-language readersFor the American writer Laura Kasischke, the first inkling of her second life in France came when a former student wrote to say her portrait was on the cover of Le Monde.... Continue reading at The Guardian
[ The Guardian | 2017-01-11 00:00:00 UTC ]
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HarperCollins has cancelled sales of What the (Bleep) Just Happened by the incoming senior White House staffer, following accusations of extensive copying A book by a close ally of incoming US president Donald Trump has been withdrawn by publisher HarperCollins after accusations of... Continue reading at The Guardian
[ The Guardian | 2017-01-11 00:00:00 UTC ]
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Receiver JuJu Smith-Schuster will forgo his senior season at USC to declare for the NFL Draft, Smith-Schuster announced on Twitter on Saturday evening, becoming the Trojans’ second early departure following its Rose Bowl victory this week. Guard Damien Mama announced Friday he would enter the... Continue reading at Los Angeles Times
[ Los Angeles Times | 2017-01-08 00:00:00 UTC ]
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W H Smith will invest £48m in stores this year as the business marks its 225th anniversary, its c.e.o. Steve Clarke has said. Continue reading at The Bookseller
[ The Bookseller | 2017-01-06 00:00:00 UTC ]
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Virago has acquired one of the first titles publishing under Oprah Winfrey’s new book imprint at Flatiron Books in the US: The Black Angels: The Untold Story of the Nurses Who Helped Cure Tuberculosis by New Yorker Maria Smilios. Continue reading at The Bookseller
[ The Bookseller | 2017-01-06 00:00:00 UTC ]
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Broadcaster Jonathan Fryer and columnist and human rights campaigner Joan Smith have been re-elected to the board of the Authors’ Licensing and Collections Society (ALCS). Continue reading at The Bookseller
[ The Bookseller | 2017-01-05 00:00:00 UTC ]
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