The Desmond Elliott prize reminds us that authors need long-term support

With her prizewinning debut, Claire Fuller could be following in the footsteps of Ian Rankin and Hilary Mantel who found success with their later work – but only with the support of her publisherAs one of the judges for the Desmond Elliott prize for best debut novelist this year, I couldn’t help reflect on some of the challenges still to come for the authors. With three such accomplished novels on our shortlist, there was some hard talking in the judges’ room, but in the end we decided, by an honourable 2:1 vote, to award the prize to Claire Fuller for Our Endless Numbered Days. It is a dark and perfectly poised account of a survivalist father hiding out in a remote forest with his increasingly embattled daughter that recalls the early work of Ian McEwan in its brooding slow build to a dramatic climax. But nobody could dispute the literary skill evident in the other books on the shortlist: Elizabeth Is Missing by Emma Healey and Carys Bray’s A Song for Issy Bradley.The vital thing now is that these writers are offered long-term support from their agents and publishers. The amount of publicity given to those first novels that become instant bestsellers distorts the reality for the majority of debut novelists, even very gifted ones: a moderate advance, a small amount of acclaim, a continuing battle to get their next book written and then published. This is the reality for authors who want a sustained career in books. Related: Desmond Elliott prize goes to Claire Fuller's... Continue reading at 'The Guardian'

[ The Guardian | 2015-07-03 00:00:00 UTC ]
News tagged with: #emma healey #carys bray #debut novelists #book written #sustained career

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Indies First: Authors share their experiences working as booksellers

The Indies First movement garnered more than 1,000 authors working at bookstores across the US and in Canada for Small Business Saturday, including James Patterson and Garth Stein. Continue reading at The Christian Science Monitor

[ The Christian Science Monitor | 2013-12-04 00:00:00 UTC ]
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'Lazarus' novel awarded book prize

Stoner by late US author John Williams, first published 48 years ago, wins the Waterstones Book of the Year prize. Continue reading at BBC News

[ BBC News | 2013-12-03 00:00:00 UTC ]
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Biteback author bids to overturn Ward conviction

The author of Stephen Ward Was Innocent, OK (Biteback Publishing), has revealed his book has been... Continue reading at The Bookseller

[ The Bookseller | 2013-12-02 00:00:00 UTC ]
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'Burial Rites' author Hannah Kent finds mystery in Iceland

Chronicling the Chill of 1820s Iceland in 'Burial Rites,' Australian author Hannah Kent finds deep humanity, for better and worse, in a faraway isle. Continue reading at The Christian Science Monitor

[ The Christian Science Monitor | 2013-11-30 00:00:00 UTC ]
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For Indies First day, authors get behind independent bookstores

Thanks to Sherman Alexie's forgetfulness, writers across the U.S. will volunteer at their local bookstore Saturday for the inaugural Indies First day.Not long ago the writer Sherman Alexie missed one of his readings, standing up fans at the Queen Anne Book Company, a store in Seattle. Continue reading at Los Angeles Times

[ Los Angeles Times | 2013-11-27 00:00:00 UTC ]
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From Crowdfunding to Author Advances: German Self-Publishing Experimentation

The self-publishing ecosystem in Germany is expanding into more dramatic experimentation, from crowdsourcing to offering author advances. Continue reading at Publishing Perspectives

[ Publishing Perspectives | 2013-11-27 00:00:00 UTC ]
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'Bookstar' talent show for authors

Agents Madeleine Milburn and David Headley [pictured] will help judge an "X Factor"... Continue reading at The Bookseller

[ The Bookseller | 2013-11-27 00:00:00 UTC ]
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Ether for Authors: Can We Stop Short of Overstatement?

Our weekly round-up of web buzz from Porter Anderson looks at how easily exaggerated interpretations of publishing industry commentary can skew the debate. Continue reading at Publishing Perspectives

[ Publishing Perspectives | 2013-11-26 00:00:00 UTC ]
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Self-published title shortlisted for business book prize

A self-published title has been included in the shortlist for the CMI Management Book of the... Continue reading at The Bookseller

[ The Bookseller | 2013-11-26 00:00:00 UTC ]
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Google v Authors Guild: a victory for readers' right to choose

A Manhattan court case about digitisation rights has brought books and the web a step closer togetherOn 14 November, after eight years of wrangling, Judge Denny Chin of the Manhattan district court finally ruled in the case of Google versus the Authors Guild. At issue was Google's scanning and... Continue reading at The Guardian

[ The Guardian | 2013-11-24 00:00:00 UTC ]
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Kobo, 'PW Select' Partner for Self-Pubbed Authors

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[ Publishers Weekly | 2013-11-22 00:00:00 UTC ]
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'Hunger Games' author Suzanne Collins, in rare interview, muses on war and the cycle of violence

Suzanne Collins says she 'sort of completed' a goal of hers this fall by releasing her children's book 'Year of the Jungle,' which examines war from a child's point of view. Collins wants to write a book about war for every child age group, she says. Continue reading at The Christian Science Monitor

[ The Christian Science Monitor | 2013-11-21 00:00:00 UTC ]
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Avon Goes Back to School for Next Big Romance Author

Partnering with HarperCollins's academic marketing division, Avon (which is a trade imprint at HC), is opening its editorial doors to submissions from undergraduate and graduate students. Continue reading at Publishers Weekly

[ Publishers Weekly | 2013-11-21 00:00:00 UTC ]
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Frances Lincoln launches nature prize

Frances Lincoln has launched a new prize for British nature and nature travel writing, with... Continue reading at The Bookseller

[ The Bookseller | 2013-11-19 00:00:00 UTC ]
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Ether for Authors: Is There an “Architecture of Collaboration” for Startups?

This week's web buzz takes in the troubled relationship between traditional publishers and startups, the death of Small Demons, writer dads, and more. Continue reading at Publishing Perspectives

[ Publishing Perspectives | 2013-11-19 00:00:00 UTC ]
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Big names back Authors for the Philippines campaign

Popular authors including George R R Martin, Neil Gaiman, Kate Atkinson and David Nicholls are... Continue reading at The Bookseller

[ The Bookseller | 2013-11-18 00:00:00 UTC ]
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Nobel prize-winner Doris Lessing dies

Winner of the Nobel Literature prize and author of more than 55 works of fiction, opera, nonfiction, and poetry, including 'The Golden Notebook,' British author Doris Lessing died Sunday at her home in London. Continue reading at The Christian Science Monitor

[ The Christian Science Monitor | 2013-11-18 00:00:00 UTC ]
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Junie B. Jones author Barbara Park dies at 66

Barbara Park, author of the Junie B. Jones series of childrens' books has died, her publisher Random House announced. Park, 66, had ovarian cancer.Barbara Park, author of the Junie B. Jones series of childrens' books has died, her publisher Random House announced. Park, 66, had ovarian cancer. Continue reading at Los Angeles Times

[ Los Angeles Times | 2013-11-18 00:00:00 UTC ]
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Indies First movement turns hundreds of authors into booksellers

To support Indies First, scores of authors will be working in indie bookstores on Small Business Saturday. Continue reading at The Christian Science Monitor

[ The Christian Science Monitor | 2013-11-16 00:00:00 UTC ]
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Strange Ads Promote an Author Who Isn't Real and a Book That Doesn't Exist

IFC's upcoming The Spoils of Bablyon, a comedy miniseries that spoofs serious miniseries, is based on a book that seems to be sold out in Hudson News stores around the country. The problem with keeping the book in stock, though, is that there were never any printed copies. Eric Jonrosh (and the... Continue reading at AdWeek

[ AdWeek | 2013-11-15 00:00:00 UTC ]
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