The truth about book prizes, why Amazon is like an old-fashioned library and how much famous writers really earned from their journalism …Periodically, signs go up saying that Grub Street is closed to through traffic. Observers speculate that the street is being redeveloped as gentrification forces the former inhabitants to move out, or else that the closure may be due to the expansion of the neighbouring university’s English department. Older heads are shaken in what had been the local pub but is now a coffee’n’crafts shop: there used to be more life in the place, they mourn, when bohemian writers could dash off a review against the clock to pay for their round. Even if Grub Street is eventually reopened, it will never be the same again, and anyway it will probably have been renamed “Creatives Crescent”.Such cliches and exaggerations are characteristic of this genre of lament. Like most keening for the good old days, these threnodies are not pieces of dispassionate historical analysis: they are attempts to compensate for so much that is disagreeable about one’s own time by inventing a more or less idealised version of the past. Still, it is worth wondering why “Grub Street” should be the form taken by paradise lost in this case. After all, the street originally so named in London (it was real before it was metaphorical) came to be the home of that kind of “grub” defined by the OED as “a person of mean abilities; a dull industrious drudge; a literary hack”. Even allowing... Continue reading at 'The Guardian'
[ The Guardian | 2016-01-09 00:00:00 UTC ]
Want to know when your favourite author has a new book published? When the awards are being dished out? What film adaptations are up-coming or get the low-down on festivals near you? Then check out our literary calendar for 2016Have we missed anything? Email us at [email protected]... Continue reading at The Guardian
[ The Guardian | 2016-01-04 00:00:00 UTC ]
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As one of the books industry’s most glamorous figures is awarded a New Year’s honour, David Barnett looks back at Ed Victor’s star-studded literary careerThe veteran literary agent Ed Victor has been awarded a CBE in the New Year honours list.With a client list that ranges from Joan Collins to... Continue reading at The Guardian
[ The Guardian | 2015-12-31 00:00:00 UTC ]
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In our final review of the year, we look at the big stories from September to December. See our reviews for January to March, April to June, and July to December. October Continue reading at The Bookseller
[ The Bookseller | 2015-12-24 00:00:00 UTC ]
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In the third part of our review of the year, we look at the big stories from July to September. Continue reading at The Bookseller
[ The Bookseller | 2015-12-23 00:00:00 UTC ]
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In the second part of our review of the year, we take a look at the big stories from April to June. Continue reading at The Bookseller
[ The Bookseller | 2015-12-22 00:00:00 UTC ]
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Omaira Rodríguez is Uruguay's only literary agent, tasked with selling rights abroad and increasing the international awareness of authors from her country. The post Omaira Rodríguez is Uruguay’s Lone Literary Agent appeared first on Publishing Perspectives. Continue reading at Publishing Perspectives
[ Publishing Perspectives | 2015-12-19 00:00:00 UTC ]
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Quercus is set to release The Life-Changing Magic of Not Giving a F**K on New Year's Eve in what the publisher has called its "take on New Year, New You". Continue reading at The Bookseller
[ The Bookseller | 2015-12-17 00:00:00 UTC ]
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Novelists Nurrudin Farah and Taiye Selasi stole the show at the the fifth biennial Kwani? Litfest in Nairobi, Kenya earlier this month. The post Nairobi’s Kwani? Literary Festival Showcases “Afropolitanism” appeared first on Publishing Perspectives. Continue reading at Publishing Perspectives
[ Publishing Perspectives | 2015-12-16 00:00:00 UTC ]
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Macmillan Children’s Books has bought the world rights to A Girl Called Owl, a new tween fiction novel, from Skylark Literary. Continue reading at The Bookseller
[ The Bookseller | 2015-12-11 00:00:00 UTC ]
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"I'm bullish on Sudden Oak," writes Ami Greko. And when Sudden Oak's Eli Horowitz and Russell Quinn ran their The Silent Story app-novel event in 2012 and 2013, many more people were bullish on them. Continue reading at The Bookseller
[ The Bookseller | 2015-12-11 00:00:00 UTC ]
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The life of an Instagram star might seem stylish and elegant, but what about the poor sidekick left holding the camera like some off-screen putz? A new video called "Instagram Husband" tells the heartbreaking (or at least relatable) story of men whose existence has dwindled into two roles:... Continue reading at AdWeek
[ AdWeek | 2015-12-09 00:00:00 UTC ]
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HarperCollins UK c.eo Charlie Redmayne has urged publishers “living in a rose-tinted world” to beware the threat of cyber attacks which are “increasingly sophisticated and are happening all the time”. Closing the FutureBook Conference with his views on the changes taken place in the industry... Continue reading at The Bookseller
[ The Bookseller | 2015-12-05 00:00:00 UTC ]
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Newspaper publishes online article saying ECB had ‘confounded expectations’ by deciding to hold interest rates, causing euro to temporarily plummetThe Financial Times is to review its digital publishing practices after publishing an inaccurate article about the European Central Bank’s decision... Continue reading at The Guardian
[ The Guardian | 2015-12-04 00:00:00 UTC ]
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Writers in Zimbabwe have created a traveling book fair and are marshaling social media to build direct bonds with impoverished readers. The post Zimbabwe Writers Battle Disinterest With Literary Festival appeared first on Publishing Perspectives. Continue reading at Publishing Perspectives
[ Publishing Perspectives | 2015-12-02 00:00:00 UTC ]
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The Arts Council will have its funding protected under the Spending Review, while business rates will be devolved to local councils. Continue reading at The Bookseller
[ The Bookseller | 2015-11-26 00:00:00 UTC ]
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The Publishers Association said it is “not expecting good news” from the Chancellor’s Spending Review tomorrow, while library campaigners have warned that further cuts to local councils could “all but destroy the public library service as we know it.” Continue reading at The Bookseller
[ The Bookseller | 2015-11-24 00:00:00 UTC ]
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Writer and editor John Freeman discusses his transition from book criticism to editing Granta, and now, to launching his own journal, Freeman's. The post John Freeman on Transitioning from Critic to Literary Journal Entrepreneur appeared first on Publishing Perspectives. Continue reading at Publishing Perspectives
[ Publishing Perspectives | 2015-11-23 00:00:00 UTC ]
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Ranjit Bolt has won plaudits with A Lion Was Learning to SkiIn the summer of 2014, the spectacle of a middle-aged playwright selling limericks about “comedic giraffes” and “Spanish cicadas” was a regular one at Cambridge market. But as more followed – elephants, sharks and “a young lady from... Continue reading at The Guardian
[ The Guardian | 2015-11-22 00:00:00 UTC ]
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Asymptote Magazine features an interview with Danish-to-English translator K.E. Semmel about his latest book projects and more. The post Literary Translator K.E. Semmel on Reacting to Readers and More appeared first on Publishing Perspectives. Continue reading at Publishing Perspectives
[ Publishing Perspectives | 2015-11-20 00:00:00 UTC ]
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This week saw an unexpected new title shoot to the top of the U.K's official book charts: "Mog's Christmas Calamity," by children's author Judith Kerr. Aged 92, Kerr has penned a new book featuring "Mog," a cat beloved to generations of British kids but what's really unusual is that she wrote... Continue reading at Advertising Age
[ Advertising Age | 2015-11-20 00:00:00 UTC ]
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