She published her first book in her 40s and became the biggest selling author of the past decade in any genre – The Gruffalo alone has sold 13m copies. How did this former busker make it so big?The room where the children’s author Julia Donaldson writes – the heart of her vast picture book empire – is down a winding staircase, in the cellar of her grand white house in Steyning, West Sussex. Her desk looks out on the street at knee height. “I’m thinking of writing a book about legs,” Donaldson said, as she showed me around the house this summer. Children from the nearby school often wave in at her as they pass. Donaldson is well known in Steyning, due to her frequent signings at the local bookshop. She and her husband, Malcolm, a retired paediatrician, recently bought the local post office to save it from closure. But elsewhere she can walk the pavement without being recognised. “I got a letter the other day for Jacqueline Wilson,” Donaldson told me. “It said: ‘You’re my favourite author!’”If you are not someone who spends much time with young children, you may only be dimly aware of Donaldson’s work – although you will probably be familiar with her most famous creation, the Gruffalo. If you have children, however, you will know her as a cultural juggernaut whose influence among children is perhaps only surpassed by the works of Disney and CBeebies. Donaldson, who is 72, has written more than 210 books: chiefly picture books, but also poetry, plays, a 60-part phonics... Continue reading at 'The Guardian'
[ The Guardian | 2020-12-17 06:00:31 UTC ]
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Tomorrow, TIME Magazine will show off its makeover. After months of trial, the editors of TIME have created a new version of the iconic magazine. Though some of the publication remains the same, other features will be transformed. Continue reading at Folio Magazine
[ Folio Magazine | 2011-02-18 00:00:00 UTC ]
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Written By: Charlotte Williams Publication Date: Wed, 16/02/2011 - 15:40 World Book Day will be supported by News International for the second year running, with £1 WBD book tokens to be printed in both the Times and the Sun. read more Continue reading at The Bookseller
[ The Bookseller | 2011-02-16 00:00:00 UTC ]
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As the Paris Cookbook Fair gets underway next month, cookbook publishers are getting ready to do some shopping--and not just the sort that involves stocking up on Dijon mustard and bonbons from Fauchon. Continue reading at Publishers Weekly
[ Publishers Weekly | 2011-02-14 00:00:00 UTC ]
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At a press conference this morning, Time Inc. announced it is launching an "all access" digital subscription plan in an effort to offer their brands to readers on any platform. Continue reading at Folio Magazine
[ Folio Magazine | 2011-02-11 00:00:00 UTC ]
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There was no shortage of debates and discussions at last week's second annual Digital Book World, where about 1,300 members of the trade publishing industry turned out in New York to explore ways to navigate the digital transition. Continue reading at Publishers Weekly
[ Publishers Weekly | 2011-01-31 00:00:00 UTC ]
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Written By: Katie Allen E-books are to be accepted for entry for the Man Booker prize for the first time in 2011 as a number of changes are made to the rules. Publishers are being asked to submit a digital version of their submissions as judges are to be supplied with e-readers for the first... Continue reading at The Bookseller
[ The Bookseller | 2011-01-28 00:00:00 UTC ]
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Morgan Entrekin, holding book, publisher at Grove/Atlantic, met with booksellers at the Winter Institute book fair last week. Continue reading at The New York Times
[ The New York Times | 2011-01-24 00:00:00 UTC ]
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After several stark years in which stores like Cody's in San Francisco and Davis-Kidd Booksellers in Nashville closed and the nation's second largest chain is teetering more than ever, publishers and booksellers are looking for new ways to work together. Continue reading at Publishers Weekly
[ Publishers Weekly | 2011-01-17 00:00:00 UTC ]
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