Our Books, Our Shelves: BE A QUITTER, or HOW TO WRITE THE NOVEL OF YOUR HEART
themarysue.com – Tuesday March 24, 2020
Sometimes, you quit.
Quitting isn’t something we’re taught to do, especially not as writers. Established authors share stories of rejections and perseverance. Of the manuscript they refused to give up on. That they published to great acclaim and poo-poo on those editors who rejected them! It’s supposed to inspire—and goodness knows we need all the inspiration we can get in this field.
When I was in graduate school, I started writing my first novel. A novel that my mother recently retrieved from the depths of her house, printed and spiral bound. “In five years, we can put that on eBay,” my dad said, while fixing himself a burger. “Absolutely not!” I said. Probably should’ve snatched it from Mom when I had the chance. (Please, if in five years you see an eBay listing titled “K M SZPARA UNPUBLISHED MANUSCRIPT RARE,” report it.)
Are you a new or emerging writer from a working-class background?
irishtimes.com – Monday March 23, 2020
Are you a new or emerging writer from a working class background? Would you like to be published alongside an Impac Award-winner, a Booker Prize-winner, two Sunday Times Short Story Award-winners, a senator, playwrights and poets? What about a professional development programme with the help of leading publishers and the Irish Writers Centre.
Well, now is your chance. Next spring, The 32: An Anthology of Working Class Voices will be published in Ireland and the UK. It will include 16 well-known contributors and 16 new and emerging writers. We are launching the search for those new writers today in The Irish Times.
New Publisher Listing
firstwriter.com – Thursday March 19, 2020
Publishes: Fiction; Nonfiction; Poetry
Markets: Adult
Preferred styles: Literary
Publishes books of literary fiction, nonfiction, and poetry. Accepts submissions through competitions and open submissions ($25 submission fee) via online submission system.
Winchester Poetry Festival launches best new writing competition
hampshirechronicle.co.uk – Sunday March 15, 2020
AN ANNUAL poetry competition celebrating the best in new writing for 2020 has been launched.
The Winchester Poetry Prize is organised by the Winchester Poetry Festival and is open to poets from around the world.
This year’s entries will be judged by Andrew McMillan, whose first collection, physical, was the only poetry collection to ever win The Guardian First Book Award and was the Poet in Residence at Basingstoke Discovery Centre in 2012. He is also a senior lecturer in the Manchester Writing School.
How to publish a book: The publishing process, explained
goodhousekeeping.com – Saturday March 14, 2020
You've had the killer idea, you've developed your book characters, planned and plotted, and found the motivation to finally write the novel you've always dreamed about.
You may even have found an agent. But when it comes to a publishing a book, how does the industry actually work?
There are so many stages, so many edits and buzzwords - it can feel impossible to navigate. Before my first novel, Five Steps To Happy, came out last year, I felt utterly lost, confused about the role of an editor and full of questions about the publishing process.
If you feel the same, fear not. In this piece I'll explain the publishing industry, rounding up the people who know to answer the most common questions about writing a book.
How to publish a book: Finding an agent
goodhousekeeping.com – Saturday March 14, 2020
Publishing a book can feel like a minefield. There are so many ways to go about it - from the traditional agent and publisher route, to entering writing competitions to self publishing.
Before my first book, Five Steps To Happy came out last year, I was pretty much clueless as to the process. I took a 3 month novel writing course with Curtis Brown Creative, which offered a valuable insight into how the industry works.
A couple of years (and a lot of rejections) later, I signed with literary agent Richard Pike, at C&W, Curtis Brown's sister agency. My novel was bought by Trapeze, an imprint of Orion - and my dream came true.
Going through the process first-hand, I've gained a lot of useful knowledge. Burning questions about where an agent fits in with publishing a book? Read on!
Agents Highlight Leading Christian Publishing Trends
publishersweekly.com – Wednesday March 11, 2020
The religion publishing category is as strong as ever, interviews with several with literary agents found. Among the favorable trends they pointed to are a growing interest by publishers in the beliefs and behaviors of younger generations as well as an increase in the types of self-help books being released.
According to Kathryn Helmers, managing partner at Creative Trust Literary Group, readers are keen to move beyond books based on traditional thinking about the Christian faith—proper beliefs, a Bible-based worldview, and didactic teachings. Instead, readers are looking for “an ethos that values experience over knowledge, authenticity over authority,” she says.
London Book Fair award winners revealed
thebookseller.com – Wednesday March 11, 2020
The winners of the London Book Fair Awards 2020 have been revealed with the LBF International Excellence Awards, CAMEOs and UK Book Blog Awards all taking place online with the prizes posted to winners after the event was cancelled due to the coronavirus outbreak.
The winners of the London Book Fair’s International Excellence Awards, in association with the Publishers Association, have been announced, with Europe and Asia leading the way with five and four winners respectively.
Shortlisted in three categories, Karadi Tales (India) took home the Audiobook Publisher of the Year. The judges congratulated it on its “firm commercial focus on their future web-based strategy, and continued dedication to both educating and entertaining young people in India.” Maadi Public Library in Egypt was crowned Library of the Year, with judges praising the library’s “sheer energy, diversity and vibrancy”.
Educational publishing merger raises competition concerns
gov.uk – Wednesday March 11, 2020
The Competition and Markets Authority (CMA) is concerned that the loss of competition brought about by the proposed merger could result in university textbooks costing more.
McGraw-Hill and Cengage are two leading publishers, producing textbooks and associated materials, for higher education students.
Coronavirus in the UK: an unlikely ally for aspiring novelists
inews.co.uk – Sunday March 8, 2020
You don’t come to the Arts pages of a newspaper to read about coronavirus. This should be a World Health Organisation-free zone, the last place you expect to find updates on Government action plans. We do ballet here. I understand all that but, please, bear with me, because I think I have some good news. Or at least the glint of a silver lining.
Earlier this week, the London Book Fair was cancelled (don’t worry, that’s not the good bit) amid concerns that thousands of publishers and literary agents flying in from all over the world to shake hands and breathe on each other might not be very sensible right now.
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