TV books programmes: if nobody watches them, make better ones

The novelist Robert Harris was right to call the BBC’s lack of a books show a ‘disgrace’. There’s plenty the corporation could do to make a popular literary programme on TVWith injury, there is always a little insult. When a BBC spokesperson, responding to Robert Harris’s complaints at the Costa book of the year ceremony about the absence of a dedicated book show on its television channels, pointed out that the corporation was responsible for introducing readers to books by way of adaptations such as Wolf Hall and The Casual Vacancy, one might feel that Harris’s comments – in which he called the absence of a BBC TV books show an ‘absolute disgrace’ – had been somewhat misunderstood.While Hilary Mantel and JK Rowling, their publishers, agents and the book industry doubtless benefit from book adaptations, the BBC’s motive in putting them on is not altruistic. It does not broadcast these adaptations to benefit poor, garret-bound writers, nor because it thinks the publishing industry is struggling to connect with potential readers, nor because it worries that amid the hubbub of rapid-fire entertainment opportunities, the novel is becoming marginalised. It does it because the best novels - whether classic or contemporary, comic or tragic, philosophical or political or romantic - are masterpieces of narrative and entertainment. The BBC is in the debt of writers of such novels as Parade’s End, Mapp and Lucia, South Riding, Death Comes to Pemberley and The Night Watch for... Continue reading at 'The Guardian'

[ The Guardian | 2015-01-29 00:00:00 UTC ]

Other news stories related to: "TV books programmes: if nobody watches them, make better ones"


Marketing to kids in difficult times

Many months ago, when we all sat in our meeting rooms, sipping coffee and bouncing campaign ideas around, I don’t think any one of us marketing folk could have predicted just how much our plans would be forced to change. The effects of the national lockdown on marketing campaigns and the... Continue reading at The Bookseller

[ The Bookseller | 2020-05-20 21:41:29 UTC ]
More news stories like this


Weird, Funny, Delicious Books Wanted: A Conversation with Emma Ramadan, by Veronica Esposito

Interviews Veronica Esposito Emma Ramadan is a literary translator based in Providence, Rhode Island, where she is the co-owner of Riffraff, a bookstore and bar. She is the recipient of an NEA Translation Fellowship, a PEN/Heim grant, and a Fulbright... Continue reading at World Literature Today

[ World Literature Today | 2020-05-18 18:20:27 UTC ]
More news stories like this


Coronavirus: Italy’s Literary Agents Form ADALI, Their First Association

Offering what they call their ‘360-degree view of the potential as well as the shortcomings of the publishing industry,’ Italy’s literary agents are organizing during the ‘critical situation’ imposed by COVID-19. By Porter Anderson, Editor-in-Chief | @Porter_Anderson ‘For a New Start After the... Continue reading at Publishing Perspectives

[ Publishing Perspectives | 2020-05-11 03:29:40 UTC ]
More news stories like this


What We're Reading - Lockdown Bank Holiday Edition

Whether delving into chunky historical narratives or listening to short story podcasts, we’ve all been approaching reading differently during lockdown. Our reading habits can take us back in time, allow us to examine our present, or give us hope for the future. In time for the May bank holiday... Continue reading at British Council global

[ British Council global | 2020-05-07 13:58:54 UTC ]
More news stories like this


It's time to face the data

April 2020 found the publishing industry entering a period of unexpected change as bookshops closed and the focus turned to digital sales. The COVID-19 lockdown has forced writers to re-evaluate the future in this difficult time. As a narrative psychologist and fiction writer, I am interested... Continue reading at The Bookseller

[ The Bookseller | 2020-05-05 04:49:45 UTC ]
More news stories like this


AAP Monthly StatShot: February

Publishing industry sales rose 3.5% in the first two months of 2020 over the same period in 2019, according to data supplied to the AAP by 1,361 publishers for the organization’s StatShot report. Continue reading at Publishers Weekly

[ Publishers Weekly | 2020-05-01 04:00:00 UTC ]
More news stories like this


A world without bookshops

Could the coronavirus crisis and the UK lockdown be offering the publishing industry a glimpse into a world without bookshops? Continue reading at The Bookseller

[ The Bookseller | 2020-04-30 02:18:22 UTC ]
More news stories like this


Industry Sales Up 3.5% in First Two Months of '20

Publishing industry sales had a nice start to 2020, rising 3.5% through February, according to AAP's StatShot program. Sales of adult books were up 2.9%, and sales in the children/young adult rose 6.3%. Continue reading at Publishers Weekly

[ Publishers Weekly | 2020-04-27 04:00:00 UTC ]
More news stories like this


Publishing Organizations Urge Public to Support Bookstores

In a joint statement released to mark World Book Day, leaders of three organizations serving the publishing industry issued a cry to support the country’s booksellers as they struggle to survive the Covid-19 pandemic. Continue reading at Publishers Weekly

[ Publishers Weekly | 2020-04-24 04:00:00 UTC ]
More news stories like this


Bluemoose's Duffy calls for industry fund to support indie presses

Bluemoose Books founder Kevin Duffy has called on the publishing industry to rally behind its smaller presses at this time of crisis and to establish a fund to help independent publishers survive what Duffy said had been a 90% reduction in revenue as a result of the lockdown. Continue reading at The Bookseller

[ The Bookseller | 2020-04-14 17:49:26 UTC ]
More news stories like this


Amazon Charts: Walliams Slimes into the top spot

David Walliams' Slime (HarperCollins Children's) has ended the reign of Hilary Mantel's The Mirror and the Light (Fourth Estate) in the Amazon Charts' Most-Sold: Fiction number one spot, as Mrs Hinch's The Little Book of Lists (Michael Joseph) sweeps into the Most-Sold: Non-Fiction top spot. Continue reading at The Bookseller

[ The Bookseller | 2020-04-08 01:38:42 UTC ]
More news stories like this


Mrs Hinch dust-busts into the top spot, with Nielsen data still incomplete

Mrs Hinch's The Little Book of Lists (Michael Joseph) has swept straight into the UK Official Top 50 number one spot, ending the four-week reign of Hilary Mantel's The Mirror and the Light (Fourth Estate) at the top. Continue reading at The Bookseller

[ The Bookseller | 2020-04-07 17:08:28 UTC ]
More news stories like this


New Works by Writers with Disabilities Hit Publisher Lists

For the first time, a spate of new and forthcoming titles written by people with disabilities across the United States suggests that the publishing industry may finally be amplifying their voices and stories. Continue reading at Publishers Weekly

[ Publishers Weekly | 2020-04-03 04:00:00 UTC ]
More news stories like this


Amazon Charts: Mantel's reign continues as Kay boomerangs back

Hilary Mantel's The Mirror and the Light (Fourth Estate) has held the Amazon Charts' Most-Sold: Fiction number one, as Adam Kay's This is Going to Hurt bounces back up into the Most-Sold: Non-Fiction top spot. Continue reading at The Bookseller

[ The Bookseller | 2020-04-02 03:13:55 UTC ]
More news stories like this


Finally working on that novel as you self-isolate? You're not alone

There’s been a rapid rise in submissions from would-be authors since the coronavirus outbreak. If you’re dusting off your manuscript, here are some things to keep in mindIf you’re one of those people who always said they would write a novel if only they had the time: this is your moment. As more... Continue reading at The Guardian

[ The Guardian | 2020-03-26 16:00:31 UTC ]
More news stories like this


It Hasn’t Taken Long for COVID-19 to Wreak Havoc on Publishing

A lot has happened since I wrote to you last week about the rapid spread of COVID-19, its impact on all of us in publishing and our continued commitment to serve you. As I stated then, Folio: will keep our promise to seek out positive stories on how our community can get through this... Continue reading at Folio Magazine

[ Folio Magazine | 2020-03-26 13:00:37 UTC ]
More news stories like this


PA 'strengthens platform' with new branding

The Publishers Association has unveiled a brand and website redesign, including a new logo, icon and colour scheme that have been chosen "to reflect the creativity and dynamism of the publishing industry". Continue reading at The Bookseller

[ The Bookseller | 2020-03-25 01:18:09 UTC ]
More news stories like this


Mantel maintains top spot as print market hangs on

Hilary Mantel's The Mirror and the Light (Fourth Estate) has held the UK Official Top 50 number one spot for a third week running, selling 30,280 copies through Nielsen BookScan's TCM. Continue reading at The Bookseller

[ The Bookseller | 2020-03-23 20:03:58 UTC ]
More news stories like this


Weekend Reality Check: Our Bookstores and What’s ‘Essential’

The publishing industry looks for the way forward–in a world in which what's truly essential simply may not include physical bookselling for a time. The post Weekend Reality Check: Our Bookstores and What’s ‘Essential’ appeared first on Publishing Perspectives. Continue reading at Publishing Perspectives

[ Publishing Perspectives | 2020-03-23 14:30:16 UTC ]
More news stories like this


Teresa Mlawer, Spanish-Language Publishing Pioneer, Dies at 75

Mlawer, one of the most recognized and respected people in the Hispanic publishing industry in the U.S., died on March 21; 'PW' Spanish-language editor Leyhla Aquile, who worked with Mlawer, offers a tribute. Continue reading at Publishers Weekly

[ Publishers Weekly | 2020-03-23 04:00:00 UTC ]
More news stories like this