Publishers want more black authors. Why have they silenced us for so long? | Candice Carty-Williams

As Black Lives Matter protests take place across the world, the publishing world is rushing to support those ‘ignored by the mainstream’. Who is the mainstream, then?The publishing industry is stilted and archaic. I worked in it for seven years, and left due to reasons I can’t legally talk about. Though, in that time, I was able to enforce and oversee some steps towards sustainable change. At 4th Estate, an imprint of HarperCollins, I started the Guardian 4th Estate BAME Short Story prize (still going strong, five years later). Staggered by the lack of underrepresented voices, I knew I had to do something, anything to give those voices a way to permeate the industry.It is taken for granted that would-be writers will know what a literary agent is. But most have no idea how to structure a book proposal, or where to send it. This information is possessed by those in the know, and the people in the know often want to keep it to themselves. Let’s talk about literary agents for a second; they are, effectively, tastemakers. Editors trust them to deliver books and authors that adhere to their (sometimes limited) taste. And what happens when these arbiters continue to work within the circles of writers who they already know? The same thing that always happens: books that follow trends, that look the same, that are written by the same kinds of people. Continue reading... Continue reading at 'The Guardian'

[ The Guardian | 2020-06-11 09:44:22 UTC ]

Other news stories related to: "Publishers want more black authors. Why have they silenced us for so long? | Candice Carty-Williams"


New Barker novel for 4th Estate

Fourth Estate's Clare Reihill has bought UK and Commonwealth rights to Nicola Barker’s... Continue reading at The Bookseller

[ The Bookseller | 2013-09-30 00:00:00 UTC ]
More news stories like this


Next Issue Media, the Hulu for iPad Magazines, Expands to Canada, Adds New Investor

Next Issue Media, the publishing industry's attempt to create a Hulu-style joint venture for digital magazines, is expanding to Canada and taking on a new investor. The JV, whose members include Time Inc., Hearst and Conde Nast, will add Rogers Communications' Roger Media unit as an equity... Continue reading at AllThingsD

[ AllThingsD | 2013-09-27 00:00:00 UTC ]
More news stories like this


Oyster: A Gorgeous New App Offering Unlimited Books for $9.95 a Month

Can a Spotify-like service created by ex-Googlers shake up the publishing industry?     Continue reading at Wired

[ Wired | 2013-09-05 00:00:00 UTC ]
More news stories like this


Agent? Scout? Send Frankfurt Book Fair Your Old LitAg Photos

To mark the 35th anniversary of the Literary Agents and Scouts Center, the Frankfurt Book Fair is asking for photo submissions from the Agents Center's past. Continue reading at Publishing Perspectives

[ Publishing Perspectives | 2013-08-16 00:00:00 UTC ]
More news stories like this


Gauging the Digital Divide

There’s still no more relevant topic of debate in the publishing industry than the future of the physical book versus the exponentially growing influence of digital publishing. Continue reading at Publishers Weekly

[ Publishers Weekly | 2013-08-09 00:00:00 UTC ]
More news stories like this


E-book publishers side with Apple, ask DoJ to scrap new price-fixing rules

Apparently Apple isn't the only company thinking the US Department of Justice's recently imposed remedies against it were "draconian." US publishers HarperCollins, Simon & Schuster, Penguin and others have also ganged up on the DOJ with a legal brief opposing the punitive restrictions. In... Continue reading at Engadget

[ Engadget | 2013-08-08 00:00:00 UTC ]
More news stories like this


A&B buys Flanders novel

Allison & Busby has secured a first novel about the publishing world from Judith Flanders,... Continue reading at The Bookseller

[ The Bookseller | 2013-07-31 00:00:00 UTC ]
More news stories like this


Kickstarting: The Design of Intern Magazine Pays

A new bi-annual publication dedicated to the unpaid workforce looks anything but entry-level. Intern magazine marks a new meta-high in the publishing industry: Unpaid interns who work in media are paying plenty of attention to a media launch dedicated to unpaid interns. If you had to think... Continue reading at Fast Company

[ Fast Company | 2013-07-30 00:00:00 UTC ]
More news stories like this


A Rogue By Any Other Name: What Was Learned?

Porter Anderson's wrap-up of Publishing Perspectives' look at literary agents in digital transition pinpoints issues highlighted by The Rogue Reader project. Continue reading at Publishing Perspectives

[ Publishing Perspectives | 2013-07-18 00:00:00 UTC ]
More news stories like this


Why Did They Let Her on the Zimmerman Jury?

Less than two days after a Florida jury found George Zimmerman not guilty in the death of Trayvon Martin, juror B37, one of the six members of the anonymous panel, signed with a literary agent to shop her book about the trial. Continue reading at Slate

[ Slate | 2013-07-16 00:00:00 UTC ]
More news stories like this


George Zimmerman juror dropped by literary agent, won't write book

On Monday it was announced that one juror who had found George Zimmerman not guilty had landed literary agent, Sharlene Martin. By 10 p.m., Martin announced she was dropping Juror B37 as a client.Maybe a book by a juror in the Trayvon Martin murder trial isn't such a good idea after all. Continue reading at Los Angeles Times

[ Los Angeles Times | 2013-07-16 00:00:00 UTC ]
More news stories like this


“Agent-Assisted Publishing”: An Interrupted Debate

To kick off a week-long series on agents and self publishing from guest editor Porter Anderson, we start by reopening the discussion on literary agents as publishers. Continue reading at Publishing Perspectives

[ Publishing Perspectives | 2013-07-15 00:00:00 UTC ]
More news stories like this


Insight: How Three UK Publishers Are Finally Making The Most Of Digital

For the first time in a long time some optimism is returning to the publishing industry. Circulation numbers and revenues were decimated by the rise of the internet and while the future for print still looks shaky, the companies behind newspapers and ... Continue reading at Editor & Publisher

[ Editor & Publisher | 2013-05-28 00:00:00 UTC ]
More news stories like this


Penguin to Settle in E-Book Dispute

Pearson PLC's book publishing business, Penguin Group, has agreed to pay $75 million to settle a dispute in the U.S. over the way it priced electronic books, drawing to a close an investigation into the publishing industry's ebook pricing tactics. Continue reading at AllThingsD

[ AllThingsD | 2013-05-22 00:00:00 UTC ]
More news stories like this


Are Publishers in South Korea Gaming Their Bestseller Lists?

Allegations of stockpiling and best-seller list manipulation have rocked the publishing world in South Korea as publishers combat decreasing book sales. Continue reading at Publishing Perspectives

[ Publishing Perspectives | 2013-05-15 00:00:00 UTC ]
More news stories like this


After 37 Years, Winton Steps Back

After spending 37 years in the publishing industry, including the last five as chairman, CEO, and publisher of Counterpoint LLC, Charlie Winton turned over the publisher reins at the press to Rolph Blythe on May 1. Continue reading at Publishers Weekly

[ Publishers Weekly | 2013-05-12 00:00:00 UTC ]
More news stories like this


Would Someone Take Advantage of America’s Most Beloved Author?

Author Harper Lee, now 87-years-old, is suing the son-in-law of her former literary agent after he "duped" her into signing over rights to her beloved classic "To Kill a Mockingbird." Continue reading at Publishing Perspectives

[ Publishing Perspectives | 2013-05-06 00:00:00 UTC ]
More news stories like this


Whither Bargain Books?

E-books are affecting bargain books, like everything else in the publishing industry. Continue reading at Publishers Weekly

[ Publishers Weekly | 2013-04-12 00:00:00 UTC ]
More news stories like this


Pippa Middleton dropped by her literary agent. Why?

Pippa Middleton and David Goodwin have parted ways. Pippa Middleton's first book was a flop. But you haven't seen the last of Pippa Middleton and her writing. Continue reading at The Christian Science Monitor

[ The Christian Science Monitor | 2013-03-23 00:00:00 UTC ]
More news stories like this


Is There a Dearth of Literary Agents in Developing Markets?

Evidence is growing that a lack of skilled, knowledgable literary agents may be hindering the translation and publishing of books from developing markets in Asia and Latin America. Continue reading at Publishing Perspectives

[ Publishing Perspectives | 2013-03-15 00:00:00 UTC ]
More news stories like this