'Where are the brown people?': authors slam lack of diversity in UK publishing

Nikesh Shukla calls industry’s backtracking ‘a perfect loop-de-loop of blame’ as he is joined by Jon McGregor in a groundswell of readers and authors demanding more diverse representationMan Booker winner Marlon James: ‘Writers of colour pander to the white woman’Authors Nikesh Shukla and Jon McGregor have launched separate, scathing attacks on UK publishing for its failure to take diversity seriously, with Shukla asking “where are the brown people?” and McGregor slamming the eliteness of an industry which “work[s] to perpetuate an environment in which their own sort feel at home”.The broadside from the two writers follows the Writing the Future report, which found back in April that “an old mono-culture still prevails”, in British publishing, and called for change. But Shukla, who has led a groundswell of anger about the issue on social media after he highlighted the fact that the list of titles announced for 2016 World Book Night failed to include a single BAME (Black, Asian and Minority Ethnic) writer, said that publishing as a whole was keen to shift the blame elsewhere. Related: World Book Night criticised for all-white 2016 giveaway list Related: Battling bias on the shop floor: how bookstores can support diversity Continue reading... Continue reading at 'The Guardian'

[ The Guardian | 2015-11-30 00:00:00 UTC ]
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Algonquin Launches Author Interview Series

Algonquin Books held the first in its new Algonquin Book Club Author Interviews March 21 at Miami's independent bookseller Books & Books, where local author Edwidge Danticat and local favorite Julia Alvarez sat down to talk about Alvarez's In the Time of the Butterflies. The sold-out event... Continue reading at Publishers Weekly

[ Publishers Weekly | 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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Publishers "buoyant" at Bologna fair

Written By: Benedicte Page Publication Date: Fri, 01/04/2011 - 14:45 An upbeat Bologna Book Fair this week saw a strong US presence and a notable upturn from the past two cautious years, with publishers willing to buy, albeit selectively. read more Continue reading at The Bookseller

[ The Bookseller | 2011-04-01 00:00:00 UTC ]
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Content Aggregator Zite Comes Under Fire From Publishers

Zite, the app that gathers content according to a user’s interests and behaviors to form a personalized web magazine, has run into legal issues abound from major publishers such as Washington Post, Associated Press, Getty Images, Time and Dow Jones. Continue reading at Folio Magazine

[ Folio Magazine | 2011-04-01 00:00:00 UTC ]
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Sphere to publish Judy Finnigan

Publication Date: Fri, 01/04/2011 - 08:35 Judy Finnigan, one half of publishing phenomenon Richard and Judy, is to publish her long-rumoured first novel with Sphere. Catherine Burke, Sphere editorial director, signed world rights to two titles from Luigi Bonomi. read more Continue reading at The Bookseller

[ The Bookseller | 2011-04-01 00:00:00 UTC ]
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Agents warn publishers over digital rates

Written By: Philip Jones and Charlotte Williams Publication Date: Fri, 01/04/2011 - 08:50 Literary agent Sonia Land has warned book publishers they will lose control over authors’ digital backlists unless they improve their royalty offer. Land this week announced her decision to publish 100 of... Continue reading at The Bookseller

[ The Bookseller | 2011-04-01 00:00:00 UTC ]
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Transworld to publish scratch and sniff title

Written By: Charlotte Williams Publication Date: Fri, 01/04/2011 - 08:10 Transworld is to publish a limited edition scratch and sniff version of Dirty Tricks by Jo Carnegie. Managing director Larry Finlay said: "This is a new move for us and it's certainly been a challenge for our production... Continue reading at The Bookseller

[ The Bookseller | 2011-04-01 00:00:00 UTC ]
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Fourth Estate to publish next Tan novel

Written By: Graeme Neill Publication Date: Wed, 30/03/2011 - 14:55 Fourth Estate will publish the latest novel by The Joy Luck Club author Amy Tan after HarperCollins bought The Valley of Amazement. Publication date for the novel is expected to be autumn 2012. Daniel Halpern, president and... Continue reading at The Bookseller

[ The Bookseller | 2011-03-30 00:00:00 UTC ]
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Profit up at Jonathan Goodman Publishing

Written By: Katie Allen Publication Date: Mon, 28/03/2011 - 15:31 Profit before tax at Jonathan Goodman Publishing, the parent company of Carlton Books Ltd and Andre Deutsch Ltd, has increased by 72% to £1.6m. The figures, for the year to end December 2010, also show turnover is up 6% to... Continue reading at The Bookseller

[ The Bookseller | 2011-03-28 00:00:00 UTC ]
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Media Decoder: Self-Publisher Signs Four-Book Deal With St. Martin's

Amanda Hocking, the 26-year-old author who shot to fame by selling more than a million copies of her self-published books, has signed a deal with St. Martin's Press. Continue reading at The New York Times

[ The New York Times | 2011-03-24 00:00:00 UTC ]
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Stacey International and Capuchin relaunch as Stacey Publishing

Written By: Charlotte Williams Publication Date: Thu, 24/03/2011 - 15:31 Independent publisher Stacey International and its imprint Capuchin Classics have launched a new company, Stacey Publishing, with fresh financial backing. It will be headed by m.d. Patrick Kelly, previously part-time... Continue reading at The Bookseller

[ The Bookseller | 2011-03-24 00:00:00 UTC ]
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Trade publishers say ebook sales will not reach 10% until 2012

Written By: Philip Jones Publication Date: Wed, 23/03/2011 - 11:58 A third of UK trade publishers think that over 10% of their total book revenue will come from ebooks by 2012, according to new research released by Publishing Technology at BML’s annual Books & Consumers Conference. The... Continue reading at The Bookseller

[ The Bookseller | 2011-03-23 00:00:00 UTC ]
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E-book sharing: Amazon and book publishers' stupid attempts to curtail lending sites.

As convenient as they are, I've long worried about the many ways in which ebook purveyors restrict readers' rights. You can't resell the books you purchase for the Amazon Kindle, and you can't read them on most other e-readers. We also don't really own ebooks in the same way we own... Continue reading at Slate

[ Slate | 2011-03-23 00:00:00 UTC ]
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Implementing a Mobile Strategy as an Independent Publisher

A b-to-b publisher shares lessons from its first app launch including mobilizing Web sites and implementing QR codes. Continue reading at Folio Magazine

[ Folio Magazine | 2011-03-23 00:00:00 UTC ]
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Transworld signs three from debut author Lamb

Written By: Charlotte Williams Publication Date: Tue, 22/03/2011 - 08:30 Transworld has acquired three novels by debut author Victoria Lamb, all set in the time of Elizabeth I's reign. Publishing director Selina Walker bought world rights in the trilogy from agent Luigi Bonomi, and will... Continue reading at The Bookseller

[ The Bookseller | 2011-03-22 00:00:00 UTC ]
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Cader and Shatzkin ready Publishers Launch

Written By: Bookseller Staff Publication Date: Tue, 22/03/2011 - 16:40 Two of US publishing's leading commentators are moving into the conference business with Publishers Launch Conferences, which will "convene up to eight events in four cities over the next year", including New York, San... Continue reading at The Bookseller

[ The Bookseller | 2011-03-22 00:00:00 UTC ]
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Media Decoder: Noted Self-Publisher May Be Close to a Book Deal

Amanda Hocking, the darling of the self-publishing world who has sold more than 900,000 copies of nine books in the last year, has been shopping a four-book series to major publishers. Continue reading at The New York Times

[ The New York Times | 2011-03-21 00:00:00 UTC ]
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Library bodies warn publishers off 'retrenchment' over ebook lending

Written By: Charlotte Williams Publication Date: Thu, 17/03/2011 - 09:23 The Society of Chief Librarians and the Museums, Libraries and Archives Council have signed a joint position on ebook lending in libraries, saying the Publisher Association's baseline position has "limited practical use"... Continue reading at The Bookseller

[ The Bookseller | 2011-03-17 00:00:00 UTC ]
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No breakthrough over author ebook rights in France ahead of fair

Written By: Barbara Casassus Publication Date: Thu, 17/03/2011 - 06:39 French authors have urged culture minister Frédéric Mitterrand to intecede in order to break the deadlock in their negotiations with publishers over electronic rights. For the second year running, the Permanent Council of... Continue reading at The Bookseller

[ The Bookseller | 2011-03-17 00:00:00 UTC ]
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Media Decoder: Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publisher Steps Down

Barry O'Callaghan, the chief executive of Houghton Mifflin Harcourt, resigned on Tuesday after less than two years on the job. Continue reading at The New York Times

[ The New York Times | 2011-03-16 00:00:00 UTC ]
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