'Nobody in Tesco buys spy books by women': how female authors took on the genre

Publishing’s long established boys’ club in espionage fiction is having its cover blown by a new school led by Stella Rimington, Manda Scott and Charlotte PhilbyWhen Stella Rimington, the former director general of MI5 and spy author, wrote a new foreword last year to The Spy’s Bedside Book, Graham Greene and his brother Hugh’s 1957 anthology , she was glowingly complimentary. She had just one complaint. “After everything we have done for spying, there is, apart from the obligatory reference to Mata Hari, hardly anything in this book about women!” she wrote.The Greene brothers aren’t alone in their short sight. Wikipedia lists 127 notable writers of spy fiction, dead and living, and only seven of them are women. (Rimington is one of them.) Pick any list of the best spy novels, and it will usually be peopled only by male writers such as John le Carré, John Buchan, Rudyard Kipling, Erskine Childers, Joseph Conrad, Len Deighton, Ian Fleming, Tom Clancy and Robert Ludlum.Publishing has become much more gender-blind – before it was: ‘Only blokes can write this’ Continue reading... Continue reading at 'The Guardian'

[ The Guardian | 2020-01-07 09:00:54 UTC ]
News tagged with: #male writers #rudyard kipling #joseph conrad #ian fleming #tom clancy #anthology

Other Publishing stories related to: ''Nobody in Tesco buys spy books by women': how female authors took on the genre'

Arts Council defends Poetry Book Society cuts

Written By: Charlotte Williams Publication Date: Mon, 04/04/2011 - 09:16 The Arts Council has defended its funding cut to the Poetry Book Society (PBS), claiming its "reach and distribution was not as wide or effective as other applicants'". In a letter to the Times, Antonia Byatt, director of... Continue reading at The Bookseller

[ The Bookseller | 2011-04-04 00:00:00 UTC ]
More news stories like this | News stories tagged with: #funding cut #poetry publishing #arts council

The Dynamic Russian Book Market

Talk about transformation. In a span of 20 years, the Russian book market has made a 180-degree shift, from state-owned publishing and distribution to privately held (except for a few exceptions) and increasingly client driven. Every component of its book market was created overnight, after... Continue reading at Publishers Weekly

[ Publishers Weekly | 2011-04-04 00:00:00 UTC ]
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Lessons from Powell's Books

Just one week before Borders filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy protection, Powell's Books in Portland, Ore., laid off 31 employees, or 7% of its workforce, a move that followed downsizing the staff through attrition in 2010. While the situation at Powell's is not dire, unlike that of the nation's... Continue reading at Publishers Weekly

[ Publishers Weekly | 2011-04-04 00:00:00 UTC ]
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Cooking the Books with Cara Eisenpress and Phoebe Lapine

With their food blog aimed at 20-something cooks, college cooking website, and forthcoming book, In the Small Kitchen: 100 Recipes from Our Year of Cooking in the Real World (Morrow, May), Cara Eisenpress and Phoebe Lapine might seem a lot older than their (combined) 51 years. Continue reading at Publishers Weekly

[ Publishers Weekly | 2011-04-04 00:00:00 UTC ]
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On Rights and Book-Scouting

Translations account for about 12% of all titles published in Russia in 2010. Here, as in other corners of the world, American and British blockbusters are translated and almost guaranteed top slots on the bestseller list. Names like J.K. Rowling, J.R.R. Tolkien, C.S. Lewis, Agatha Christie,... Continue reading at Publishers Weekly

[ Publishers Weekly | 2011-04-04 00:00:00 UTC ]
More news stories like this | News stories tagged with: #titles published #bestseller list #agatha christie #nora roberts #stephenie meyer #john grisham

Media Cache: Playing Catch-Up in E-Books

Outside the United States, the digital book business is still in its infancy and has problems to resolve before taking off. Continue reading at The New York Times

[ The New York Times | 2011-04-04 00:00:00 UTC ]
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Canongate captures teen author

Written By: Charlotte Williams Publication Date: Fri, 01/04/2011 - 10:32 Canongate has signed a book it describes as a "fearlessly modern coming of age novel" from a 19-year-old début author. Senior editor Francis Bickmore bought world rights in a pre-emptive deal from Jon Elek at A P Watt.... Continue reading at The Bookseller

[ The Bookseller | 2011-04-01 00:00:00 UTC ]
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London Book Fair: ones to watch

Written By: Bookseller Staff Publication Date: Fri, 01/04/2011 - 11:26 Aitken Alexander is reporting strong interest in Grace McLeen's The Land of Decoration, sold last month to Chatto in the UK, Holt in the United States, HarperCollins in Canada and into 10 languages to date. It is about a... Continue reading at The Bookseller

[ The Bookseller | 2011-04-01 00:00:00 UTC ]
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Alex and Aki's Ideas in Food: A new book brings technological cuisine within reach of the everyday cook.

As you may have heard, the cookbook sensation of the season, if not the decade, is Modernist Cuisine, a six-volume magnum opus on contemporary cooking principles that will set you back roughly $500. Self-published by Nathan Myhrvold—the genius founder of Microsoft's research division,... Continue reading at Slate

[ Slate | 2011-04-01 00:00:00 UTC ]
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Tonto buys Inspiral Carpets memoir

Written By: Charlotte Williams Publication Date: Fri, 01/04/2011 - 10:33 Tonto Books has bought rights to the frank memoir of former Inspiral Carpets frontman Tom Hingley. Tonto publisher Stu Wheatman bought world rights direct from Hingley to the aptly-titled Carpet Burns. The title will be... Continue reading at The Bookseller

[ The Bookseller | 2011-04-01 00:00:00 UTC ]
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Taschen's First 3D Books Are Big

Always adventurous publisher Taschen is launching its first line of 3D books, and, as you’d expect from a house known for its outsize books--and subjects--the first Taschen books getting the 3D treatment are Taschen’s Big Body Parts series: The Big Penis Book and The Big Book of Breasts. Continue reading at Publishers Weekly

[ Publishers Weekly | 2011-03-31 00:00:00 UTC ]
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"Forensic and furious" books up for Orwell Prize

Written By: Katie Allen Publication Date: Thu, 31/03/2011 - 09:00 Titles on feminism, New Labour and the life and times of Christopher Hitchens have been longlisted for the 2011 Orwell Prize for political writing. The announcement was made at an event on Wednesday [30th March]. Eighteen titles... Continue reading at The Bookseller

[ The Bookseller | 2011-03-31 00:00:00 UTC ]
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Indigo buys The Grisha Trilogy

Written By: Charlotte Williams Publication Date: Thu, 31/03/2011 - 08:48 Orion young adult imprint Indigo has acquired a debut trilogy by Jerusalem-born author Leigh Bardugo. Indigo publisher Fiona Kennedy bought UK and Commonwealth rights (excluding Canada) in the three titles from Alex Webb... Continue reading at The Bookseller

[ The Bookseller | 2011-03-31 00:00:00 UTC ]
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W&N buys two more from McMahon

Written By: Charlotte Williams Publication Date: Thu, 31/03/2011 - 15:29 Weidenfeld & Nicolson has acquired two further novels by Rose of Sebastopol-author Katherine McMahon. Publishing director Kirsty Dunseath bought world rights excluding US (Europe and far east exclusive) to the... Continue reading at The Bookseller

[ The Bookseller | 2011-03-31 00:00:00 UTC ]
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Coronet buys quirky romantic comedy

Written By: Charlotte Williams Publication Date: Thu, 31/03/2011 - 08:54 Coronet has acquired two books from a journalist and debut novelist Jessica Thompson. Editor Charlotte Haycock bought British Commonwealth rights in a deal with Sheila Crowley at Curtis Brown. The first title, This is a... Continue reading at The Bookseller

[ The Bookseller | 2011-03-31 00:00:00 UTC ]
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Hardie Grant buys three by Hay

Written By: Katie Allen Publication Date: Thu, 31/03/2011 - 08:55 Independent publisher Hardie Grant has acquired three titles by Australian food editor and cookbook author Donna Hay. Stephen King, general manager of Hardie Grant London, acquired UK rights to the titles from Hollie Zondanos,... Continue reading at The Bookseller

[ The Bookseller | 2011-03-31 00:00:00 UTC ]
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TV Book Club titles take £3m through the tills

Written By: Philip Stone Publication Date: Wed, 30/03/2011 - 15:17 Just shy of £3m has been spent on the 10 titles of More 4's latest "TV Book Club" in 2011, with sales over the series up 2% on the 2010 selections and against an overall book market decline of 7%. A grand total of 506,200... Continue reading at The Bookseller

[ The Bookseller | 2011-03-30 00:00:00 UTC ]
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Eason to inject €20m into book chain as part of restructure

Written By: Lisa Campbell Publication Date: Wed, 30/03/2011 - 09:36 Eason is pumping €20m into the company over the next three years, at the same time as embarking on trade union talks over a restructure that will likely include some job losses. The Irish bookselling chain announced to staff... Continue reading at The Bookseller

[ The Bookseller | 2011-03-30 00:00:00 UTC ]
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Eason to inject €20m into book chain as part of resructure

Written By: Lisa Campbell Publication Date: Wed, 30/03/2011 - 09:36 Eason is pumping €20m into the company over the next three years, at the same time as embarking on trade union talks over a restructure that will likely include some job losses. The Irish bookselling chain announced to staff... Continue reading at The Bookseller

[ The Bookseller | 2011-03-30 00:00:00 UTC ]
More news stories like this | News stories tagged with: #inject 20m #book chain #pumping 20m #job losses #strategic plan

Print book sales continue to fall

Written By: Philip Stone Publication Date: Tue, 29/03/2011 - 15:50 Book sales slipped for the fourth week in a row last week, and were down more than £3.3m last year, according to Nielsen BookScan data. A total of £24.2m was spent on printed books at UK retail outlets in the seven days to 26th... Continue reading at The Bookseller

[ The Bookseller | 2011-03-29 00:00:00 UTC ]
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