British Book awards balance art and selling power to decide best writer in 30 years

Novelists rub shoulders with presidents, chefs, comedians and thriller megastars on longlist to define the title with the biggest impact on the book worldIt could be almost the setup for a joke, but a former president, a Booker winner and an erotic fiction superstar have walked on to the British Book awards’ longlist, and one of them could be crowned the best writer of the past three decades.Barack Obama, Hilary Mantel and EL James are three of the bestselling writers on an eclectic list drawn up to celebrate the awards’ 30th anniversary.A Year in Provence, Peter Mayle (Penguin) | 1990Delia Smith’s Christmas (BBC Books) | 1991Wild Swans, Jung Chang (William Collins) | 1992The Art Book (Phaidon) | 1995Longitude, Dava Sobel (Fourth Estate) | 1997Northern Lights, Philip Pullman (Scholastic) | 1997Harry Potter and the Philosopher’s Stone, JK Rowling (Bloomsbury) | 1998Bridget Jones’s Diary, Helen Fielding (Picador) | 1998Captain Corelli’s Mandolin, Louis de Bernières (Vintage) | 1998The Illustrated Mum, Jacqueline Wilson and Nick Sharratt (Doubleday) | 2000White Teeth, Zadie Smith (Penguin) | 2001Sahara, Michael Palin (Weidenfeld Nicholson) | 2003Brick Lane, Monica Ali (Transworld) | 2004The Curious Incident of the Dog in the Night Time, Mark Haddon (David Fickling) | 2004The Lovely Bones, Alice Sebold (Picador) | 2004The Da Vinci Code, Dan Brown (Transworld) | 2005The Gruffalo’s Child, Julia Donaldson and Axel Scheffler (Macmillan) | 2005The Sound of Laughter, Peter Kay... Continue reading at 'The Guardian'

[ The Guardian | 2020-02-14 06:01:23 UTC ]
News tagged with: #biggest impact #booker winner #barack obama #hilary mantel #el james #30th anniversary #jacqueline wilson #julia donaldson #stephenie meyer #dragon tattoo #completely fine #jackie morris #british book #novelists

Other Publishing stories related to: 'British Book awards balance art and selling power to decide best writer in 30 years'


'Shelf-help' books set to fill publishers' coffers in 2014

New 'intellectually credible' self-improvement books set to outsell celebrity biographies in 2014Sir Alex Ferguson may have the coveted Christmas number one spot with the record-breaking sales of his memoir, My Autobiography. But not even celebrity memoirs are likely to match the publishing... Continue reading at The Guardian

[ The Guardian | 2013-12-29 00:00:00 UTC ]
More news stories like this | News stories tagged with: #ve made


Bestselling books 2013: The case of the disappearing women

The shock of the new has given way to the comfort of the old in this year's bestseller list, with plenty of football and blokey chefsSee the chart in fullTwo female newcomers dominated the all‑year bestsellers list at this point last year. EL James (Fifty Shades of Grey) and Suzanne Collins (The... Continue reading at The Guardian

[ The Guardian | 2013-12-27 00:00:00 UTC ]
More news stories like this | News stories tagged with: #sleeper hit


Reuters dodges questions about death of 17-year-old photographer in Syria

Molhem Barakat, a freelance photographer reputed to be just 17 years old, has been killed while covering the conflict in Syria.He died on Friday (20 December) in Aleppo during a battle at Kindi hospital between rebel groups and forces loyal to the president, Bashar al-Assad.Dozens of Barakat's... Continue reading at The Guardian

[ The Guardian | 2013-12-24 00:00:00 UTC ]
More news stories like this | News stories tagged with: #deeply saddened


‘Twas the Night before Christmas’ at the Book Publisher

Clement Clarke Moore's famous holiday poem re-imagined by a book publisher on a bit of a bender. Continue reading at Publishing Perspectives

[ Publishing Perspectives | 2013-12-24 00:00:00 UTC ]
More news stories like this | News stories tagged with: #book publisher


The Whale; The Ladybird Books Story – TV review

A sinking ship of a drama that managed to be neither monstrous nor deep"Thar she blows!" said one of the crew as a whale came to the surface. The cetacean wasn't the only thing blowing heavily in The Whale (BBC1), a 90-minute dramatisation of the sinking of the Essex, a Nantucket whaler, by a... Continue reading at The Guardian

[ The Guardian | 2013-12-23 00:00:00 UTC ]
More news stories like this | News stories tagged with: #falklands war


Lion Stone: Artisanal Books in a Digital Age

A publisher continues to hand-bind and hand-sew books that also function as works of art. Continue reading at Publishers Weekly

[ Publishers Weekly | 2013-12-23 00:00:00 UTC ]
More news stories like this | News stories tagged with: #digital age


Bob Kohn Appeals Penguin, Macmillan E-Book Settlements

The fight goes on: RoyaltyShare founder Bob Kohn has appealed final approval of the Macmillan and Penguin ebook settlements to the Second Circuit Court of Appeals. Continue reading at Publishers Weekly

[ Publishers Weekly | 2013-12-23 00:00:00 UTC ]
More news stories like this | News stories tagged with: #circuit court


The 10 Best Design Books Of 2013

Infographics both retro and modern, futuristic transportation, and cartoons of Professor Lucifer Gorgonzola Butts are all featured inside these 10 gems of design books.No matter how convenient Kindles are, they will never do justice to beautifully printed, full-color art and design books. (And... Continue reading at Fast Company

[ Fast Company | 2013-12-23 00:00:00 UTC ]
More news stories like this |


The publishers' year: hits and misses of 2013

Publishers choose their books of the year, and the ones that got awayRobin Robertson Deputy publishing director, Jonathan CapeThe book that made my year: Many years ago, I was sitting in Blake's bar in Enniskillen with John McGahern and he recommended an American novel from the 60s, written by... Continue reading at The Guardian

[ The Guardian | 2013-12-20 00:00:00 UTC ]
More news stories like this | News stories tagged with: #annie proulx #eimear mcbride


Press regulation: appointments commissioner needs new legal powers

The man responsible for initiating the government's favoured form of press regulation has revealed that he is still awaiting the official green light to kick start the process.Sir David Normington, the commissioner for public appointments (CPA), has also cast light on the part politicians will... Continue reading at The Guardian

[ The Guardian | 2013-12-20 00:00:00 UTC ]
More news stories like this | News stories tagged with: #sign contracts #national union #leveson report


#EtherIssue: Counting Ebooks in a Writer Wonderland

Publishing Perspectives' #EtherIssue debate on the allegedly slowing ebook market reveals apparent contradictions in self-publishing interests. Continue reading at Publishing Perspectives

[ Publishing Perspectives | 2013-12-20 00:00:00 UTC ]
More news stories like this | News stories tagged with: ##etherissue ##etherissue debate


The "Netflix For Books" Business Model, And How It'll Change The Way You Read

Mark Coker of Smashwords, which recently inked a major content deal with Scribd, weighs in on how the all-you-can-read model changes the way we read, how authors make creative choices, and how everyone gets paid.Is a "Netflix for ebooks" nearing viability? Yesterday, Smashwords, the largest... Continue reading at Fast Company

[ Fast Company | 2013-12-20 00:00:00 UTC ]
More news stories like this | News stories tagged with: #self-published ebooks #business model #ll change #mark coker #largest distributor #e-reading service


ABFFE Defends Right to Sell 'Anarchist,' 'Happy'

Late Thursday afternoon, the American Booksellers Foundation for Free Expression issued a statement defending the right of booksellers to sell The Anarchist Cookbook and Happy Happy Happy. Continue reading at Publishers Weekly

[ Publishers Weekly | 2013-12-20 00:00:00 UTC ]
More news stories like this | News stories tagged with: #anarchist cookbook


Selling Abroad

Books that showed strong on English language bestseller lists in recent months populated the top spots on foreign charts in November. Continue reading at Publishers Weekly

[ Publishers Weekly | 2013-12-20 00:00:00 UTC ]
More news stories like this | News stories tagged with: #selling abroad #top spots


2013′s Best Books: What Are Your Sleeper Favorites?

On behalf of the other 99.9% of books published this year that didn't make the consensus top ten, tell us what were your favorite sleeper best books of 2013? Continue reading at Publishing Perspectives

[ Publishing Perspectives | 2013-12-20 00:00:00 UTC ]
More news stories like this |


Don't judge a cat book by its cover

Publishers may think a cute animal on the cover is what sells in the supermarket, but ask around online and those who buy pet books will tell you otherwiseThe moment of receiving your first book jacket is one that every author remembers. I was so excited when I got mine – a jacket, for a book,... Continue reading at The Guardian

[ The Guardian | 2013-12-19 00:00:00 UTC ]
More news stories like this | News stories tagged with: #screen trade #tom cox


Police officer awarded £60,000 damages over Times article

Report about Met detective sergeant Gary Flood claimed there were strong grounds to believe he was dishonest and corruptA police officer has been awarded £60,000 in damages in a high court judgment against the Times over an article which claimed that there were strong grounds to believe he was... Continue reading at The Guardian

[ The Guardian | 2013-12-19 00:00:00 UTC ]
More news stories like this | News stories tagged with: #public interest


The 2013 Folio: Awards in Pictures

In early December, FOLIO: presented its annual Eddie & Ozzie Awards ceremony, which celebrates the best in magazine editorial and design. Huffington. and Nautilus were both big winners, taking home four and three awards, respectively. In all, more than 150 awards were given to brands... Continue reading at Folio Magazine

[ Folio Magazine | 2013-12-19 00:00:00 UTC ]
More news stories like this | News stories tagged with: #early december #magazine editorial #big winners #taking home #association publishing


Oyster, Perseus Ink Pilot E-Book Deal

Oyster, the ebook subscription service launched this year, has reached a deal with the Perseus Books Group to launch a pilot program offering 100 Perseus titles through the Oyster subscription catalog Continue reading at Publishers Weekly

[ Publishers Weekly | 2013-12-19 00:00:00 UTC ]
More news stories like this |


7 Tips from The German Book Office’s Translation Workshop

At the GBO's recent translator workshop, two US book editors and translator Susan Bernofksy shared techniques and tips for literary translators. Here's what they said. Continue reading at Publishing Perspectives

[ Publishing Perspectives | 2013-12-18 00:00:00 UTC ]
More news stories like this | News stories tagged with: #book editors #literary translators