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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Reviews editor Everett Jones recommends Michael Burleigh’s lengthy, speedy account of two decades of imperialist 'little wars' Continue reading at Publishers Weekly
[ Publishers Weekly | 2015-07-31 00:00:00 UTC ]
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Nikkei’s $1.3 billion deal to buy the Financial Times underscores the fact that the publishing industry’s fortunes lie in going digital, experts say. Continue reading at Knowledge@Wharton
[ Knowledge@Wharton | 2015-07-29 00:00:00 UTC ]
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Letter to the FT by Daily Mail group director on the difference between business ownership based on ‘long term value’ and the need to make quick profitsA short letter in Wednesday’s Financial Times makes for fascinating reading. Stimulated by Pearson’s sale of the FT to Nikkei, it poses profound... Continue reading at The Guardian
[ The Guardian | 2015-07-29 00:00:00 UTC ]
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Oklahoma poet Nathan Brown is garnering attention during his book tour for a poem touching on the life of Presidential candidate Donald Trump. The post Timely Poet’s Tour Trumps Trump with Trump appeared first on Publishing Perspectives. Continue reading at Publishing Perspectives
[ Publishing Perspectives | 2015-07-28 00:00:00 UTC ]
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Frankfurt Book Fair director Juergen Boos spends much of the year traveling to ensure that the best of global publishing is represented at the Fair in October. The post A Curator Connecting Frankfurt to the World appeared first on Publishing Perspectives. Continue reading at Publishing Perspectives
[ Publishing Perspectives | 2015-07-27 00:00:00 UTC ]
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Pearson Plc moved closer to an exit from business publishing as it announced plans to dispose of its stake in the 172-year-old Economist magazine, just days after the sale of The Financial Times newspaper. Discussions with The Economist Group& ... Continue reading at Editor & Publisher
[ Editor & Publisher | 2015-07-27 00:00:00 UTC ]
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John Fallon says it was getting harder to run education and journalism arms well and is confident Japanese firm will honour editorial freedomPearson was no longer the best owner of the Financial Times, the publishing group’s chief executive has said in defence of the decision to sell the... Continue reading at The Guardian
[ The Guardian | 2015-07-24 00:00:00 UTC ]
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It may not prove easy to marry British and Japanese journalistic cultures. But in a global media world this deal makes senseThe Financial Times is one of the best newspapers in the world, not just in Britain. It is quick without being rash, accurate without leaden pedantry, thoughtful without... Continue reading at The Guardian
[ The Guardian | 2015-07-24 00:00:00 UTC ]
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'What Pet Should I Get?': New illustrations, books, and exhibits are still to come from Dr. Seuss, 24 years after his death. Continue reading at The Christian Science Monitor
[ The Christian Science Monitor | 2015-07-23 00:00:00 UTC ]
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'What Pet Should I Get?': New illustrations, books, and exhibits are still to come from Dr. Seuss, 24 years after his death. Continue reading at The Christian Science Monitor
[ The Christian Science Monitor | 2015-07-23 00:00:00 UTC ]
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Japanese publisher Nikkei Inc. agreed to acquire Pearson Plc's FT Group for $1.3 billion to gain control of the Financial Times newspaper. The sale doesn't include Pearson's 50% stake in... To view the full story, click the title link. Continue reading at Crains New York
[ Crains New York | 2015-07-23 00:00:00 UTC ]
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First the Serial podcast became wildly popular. Then President Barack Obama sat down for an interview with Marc Maron for the comedian's WTF program, and the audio-only format that is podcasting was validated like never before. The developments largely flew in the face of the increasingly... Continue reading at AdWeek
[ AdWeek | 2015-07-22 00:00:00 UTC ]
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Over the past two years Time Inc., the magazine company, has attempted to position itself as Time Inc., the digital content brand. Core to the push has been video, which Time Inc. has produced in multiple forms. On the Web, its video team, now ... Continue reading at Editor & Publisher
[ Editor & Publisher | 2015-07-21 00:00:00 UTC ]
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The International Publishers Association and the Federation of European Publishers has released a report of VAT rates on books and ebooks around the world. The post VAT Rates on Books and Ebooks Around the World appeared first on Publishing Perspectives. Continue reading at Publishing Perspectives
[ Publishing Perspectives | 2015-07-20 00:00:00 UTC ]
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Media brands were quick to adopt video apps Periscope and Meerkat to broadcast live streams, and now Facebook marketers want in on that action. Social platform BumeBox started hosting live Facebook chats for brands like VH1 and Discovery Channel back in October, as an alternative to the Twitter... Continue reading at AdWeek
[ AdWeek | 2015-07-17 00:00:00 UTC ]
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Last fall, things looked as bleak as they ever have when it became publicly known that the Tampa Bay Times, like so many newspapers around the country, was struggling financially. “If you are uncertain about your standing with the Ti ... Continue reading at Editor & Publisher
[ Editor & Publisher | 2015-07-14 00:00:00 UTC ]
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The New York Times on Monday defended its decision to exclude Republican presidential candidate Ted Cruz's book "A Time for Truth" from its bestseller list after discovering "strategic bulk purchases," though it did not offer any further details behind the decision."The Times's best-seller lists... Continue reading at Advertising Age
[ Advertising Age | 2015-07-14 00:00:00 UTC ]
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The Reading Agency is hoping to set a new record for "most pledges received for a reading campaign" for this year’s Summer Reading Challenge, which launches tomorrow (11th July). The agency has teamed up with Guinness World Records for the challenge and, starting from this weekend, libraries... Continue reading at The Bookseller
[ The Bookseller | 2015-07-10 00:00:00 UTC ]
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As a literary agent, Frankfurt has been a launch pad for some of the most powerful women’s voices from around the world. This year will be no different. The post How Can Women Change the World? Book by Book appeared first on Publishing Perspectives. Continue reading at Publishing Perspectives
[ Publishing Perspectives | 2015-07-09 00:00:00 UTC ]
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Paula Hawkins’s novel has now been top of the UK hardback book chart for 20 weeks, outlasting even Dan Brown’s Lost Symbol• How Paula Hawkins wrote ‘the new Gone Girl’A record set six years ago by Dan Brown’s The Lost Symbol was broken this week by Paula Hawkins’s dark thriller The Girl on the... Continue reading at The Guardian
[ The Guardian | 2015-07-08 00:00:00 UTC ]
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