The saying goes ‘everyone has a book in them', and these days it really is possible to get published as there are multiple routes to seeing your book in the shops. Read more
Whenever I teach on nonfiction book proposals, I open up the conversation by talking about market potential ($) and how to convince agents or editors that your project has it.
A new survey on American literary agents' experience surfaces concerns about the business model's viability, diversity, and burnout in a demanding job.
United Talent Agency (UTA) has said it is aiming to continue to scale up either organically or with further acquisitions, as it concludes its first London Book Fair following the purchases of Curtis BrownSee Curtis Brown listing and Fletcher & Company (F&C).
Writers are the lifeblood of the publishing industry. I would expect agents and publishers, who work with them every day-and whose livelihood depends on them-to understand and respect writers. Most agents and publishers would claim that they do. But an industry practice that began some time ago, and has increased dramatically in recent years, belies that. Read more
Unionized HarperCollins employees are planning to rally outside the company's headquarters at 195 Broadway in Manhattan's Financial District at 12:30 p.m. on December 16, according to the union. Authors including Nana Kwame Adjei-Brenyah, R.F. Kuang, and Molly McGhee will "co-host" the rally, the union said.
NEW YORK -- More than 150 literary agents, whose clients include Danielle Jackson, V.E. Schwab and L.A. Chandlar, have signed an open letter to HarperCollins vowing to "omit" the publisher from upcoming book submissions until it reaches an agreement with striking employees. Read more
Curtis BrownSee Curtis Brown listing c.e.o. Jonny Geller has warned that the current "tired" publishing model threatens to "dry itself out" if the role of the agent - and their relationship with publishers - isn't reimagined to become more of a partnership. Read more
The long, frustrating process of querying seems so one-sided. Most queries receive form rejections with cryptic phrases like "I didn't connect" or "just not for me," or fall into the deep valley of No response means no.
'The creative process is open to all. I don't believe in some magical creative gift, the exclusive possession of a few, nor need it concern big or sophisticated ideas. On the contrary, creativity may depend upon the recognition that our own thoughts and ideas are as valid as anyone else's; something which we knew as children, and which we were taught to unlearn. Read more
Open to unpublished and unagented writers from around the world.
No entry fee
Prize:
Prize of £3,000; publication with Tortoise Media; literary representation by RCW literary agent Laurence Laluyaux and other prizes
Fern Press and How to Academy have partnered on a new essay award worth £3,000, in association with Tortoise Media, for unpublished authors.
Fern Press was launched by Vintage last year, while the annual non-fiction essay prize is "for those working at the frontier of creativity and thought", organisers said. Read more
It's not a pretty word, 'blurb'; it smacks of nonsense, or slightly less than entirely honest marketing. Which is unfortunate, because a blurb is a useful and necessary thing; without it, your book is at risk of being a blank text, what you might call a closed book. Read more
'You want to write the twist so that it doesn't suddenly come out of nowhere. I tried to see a few things so that (the reader) thinks, of course! But it is hard to get that balance I think, of trying to get a twist in that is unguessable but not too "out there"... Writing in lockdown, 'So that was a bit of freedom in a way, I didn't have any expectations almost.
'You want to write the twist so that it doesn't suddenly come out of nowhere. I tried to see a few things so that (the reader) thinks, of course! But it is hard to get that balance I think, of trying to get a twist in that is unguessable but not too "out there". Read more
Waterstones managing director James Daunt said social media is reinforcing the reading of "proper" paper books among young people.
Mr Daunt, who is also chief executive of Barnes & Noble, said social media trends such as 'BookTok' on TikTok had been "hugely positive", as he was made a CBE for his services to publishing by the Princess Royal.
A new generation of romance novel consumers has moved a long-standing three-way conversation between reader, writer and publisher onto social media, industry insiders say, speeding up an already fast-moving segment of the publishing world.
When you are next visiting a bookstore, and find your way to the children's section, you might be forgiven for thinking that there is no longer such a thing as a children's author. Instead, you will be ambushed by piles of books blazoned with the names of actors, singers, comedians, DJs and people who generously exhibit themselves on social media.
A federal judge in California this week dismissed four of six claims made by authors in a now consolidated lawsuit alleging that Open AI infringes their copyrights. But the court gave the authors a month to amend their complaint, and the suit's core claim of direct infringement-which Open AI did not seek to dismiss-remains active.
For budding authors, the submissions process can be daunting. For anyone with little understanding of the publishing industry and how it works, it can be even more so. And for anyone whose writing sits outside of the established ideas of genre, style or content, it can be utterly baffling as to how to present that to an agent or publisher.
Children's creativity
'The creative process is open to all. I don't believe in some magical creative gift, the exclusive possession of a few, nor need it concern big or sophisticated ideas. On the contrary, creativity may depend upon the recognition that our own thoughts and ideas are as valid as anyone else's; something which we knew as children, and which we were taught to unlearn. Read more