With soaring sales, viral hits like Cat Person and a cameo by Tom Hanks, the form seems to be staging a comeback. But did it ever go away?In 2017, almost 50% more short story collections were sold than in the previous year. It was the best year for short stories since 2010. Booksellers are reporting a surge in popularity for the form, commentators note publishers are buying more collections and issuing them with greater care and enthusiasm; in December the newcomer Kristen Roupenian cut five- and seven-figure deals in the UK and US after her New Yorker story “Cat Person” went viral. On top of all that, collections are being reviewed more than ever before, the Sunday Times EFG short story award (worth £30,000) has received its highest ever number of entries and the BBC national short story award continues to grow in popularity. We are experiencing the renaissance of the short story form, right?Wrong; which isn’t to say 2017 wasn’t a good year for the short story – it was, but the “renaissance of the short story” story is an old one that is rolled out year after year. Does that matter? I think it does. By getting caught up in this recurring phantom narrative, and dwelling on press release froth rather than the work being produced, we spurn the opportunity to talk about short stories in a way that might actually deepen how they are understood and engaged with by readers.How can the short story ever have time to wither, given the frequency of its rebirth?In the cases of Tom... Continue reading at 'The Guardian'
[ The Guardian | 2018-03-12 00:00:00 UTC ]
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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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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The Keats-Shelley prize, launched in 1998 to celebrate the lives and works of the Romantic poets, has launched a new competition for teen writers. To enter the Young Romantics prize, teenagers aged 16-18 can write a poem or short story that is inspired by the work or lives of the Romantic... Continue reading at The Bookseller
[ The Bookseller | 2015-01-06 00:00:00 UTC ]
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Hilary Mantel says criticism of the BBC's decision to broadcast her short story The Assassination of Margaret Thatcher is "froth and bile". Continue reading at BBC News
[ BBC News | 2014-12-15 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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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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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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My romance with Chicken Soup for the Soul began and ended with the adolescent iteration, Chicken Soup for the Teenage Soul, and it was fostered in part because I read it when I was not yet teenaged. There was so much in that book for a 10-year-old to love: the amazing celebrity contributors... Continue reading at Slate
[ Slate | 2014-11-07 00:00:00 UTC ]
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A short story collection by Kuwaiti author Mai Al-Nakib has won the 2014 Edinburgh International Book Festival’s First Book Award. Continue reading at The Bookseller
[ The Bookseller | 2014-10-28 00:00:00 UTC ]
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Author Emily Perkins about imaginary worlds, acting and the ebooks v print debate. Continue reading at Stuff
[ Stuff | 2014-10-10 00:00:00 UTC ]
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John Murray has pre-empted a collection of short stories and debut novel from Irish writer... Continue reading at The Bookseller
[ The Bookseller | 2014-09-26 00:00:00 UTC ]
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Tom Hanks and Ron Howard are set to reunite to produce a film based on Dan Brown's Inferno.... Continue reading at The Bookseller
[ The Bookseller | 2014-08-27 00:00:00 UTC ]
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Jojo Moyes' chart-topping novel The One Plus One (Penguin) has been optioned by Hollwood film... Continue reading at The Bookseller
[ The Bookseller | 2014-08-21 00:00:00 UTC ]
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Jojo Moyes' The One Plus One (Penguin) has topped the official UK Top 50 for a second week.... Continue reading at The Bookseller
[ The Bookseller | 2014-08-20 00:00:00 UTC ]
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Jojo Moyes has ended John Green’s eight week run at the top of the chart with her first UK... Continue reading at The Bookseller
[ The Bookseller | 2014-08-13 00:00:00 UTC ]
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J.K. Rowling recently released a short story about the futures of such characters as Harry Potter, Ron Weasley, and Hermione Granger, while the new section of Universal Studios titled The Wizarding World of Harry Potter – Diagon Alley just opened to the public. J.K. Rowling also recently... Continue reading at The Christian Science Monitor
[ The Christian Science Monitor | 2014-07-09 00:00:00 UTC ]
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J.K. Rowling recently released a short story about the futures of such characters as Harry Potter, Ron Weasley, and Hermione Granger, while the new section of Universal Studios titled The Wizarding World of Harry Potter – Diagon Alley just opened to the public. J.K. Rowling also recently... Continue reading at The Christian Science Monitor
[ The Christian Science Monitor | 2014-07-09 00:00:00 UTC ]
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Nine romance writers are distributing an anthology of short stories, "Naught Nine," through INscribe Digital. Continue reading at Publishers Weekly
[ Publishers Weekly | 2014-07-08 00:00:00 UTC ]
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An obscure but fascinating aspect of the Civil War, when hundreds of women disguised as men enlisted in the army as Union soldiers to fight, is at the heart of Neverhome (Little, Brown; Sept.) by Laird Hunt, the author of five novels and a collection of short stories and a two-time finalist for... Continue reading at Publishers Weekly
[ Publishers Weekly | 2014-05-29 00:00:00 UTC ]
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Our annual collection of sales numbers for books sold in the last calendar year provides a granular portrait of the book business. Continue reading at Publishers Weekly
[ Publishers Weekly | 2014-03-14 00:00:00 UTC ]
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