Reports of sparkling growth from the UK's Northern Fiction Alliance show the strength provided by working together, the importance to small publishers of international rights and book sales, and how public subsidy can make a difference. Read more
The Booker shortlist is unusually interesting this year because of the presence of books by comparative newcomers, including two authors who have struggled to find a publisher at all and are now published by small presses. Read more
The role of small publishers in the publishing mix seems on the face of it to be declining as they are edged out by the big boys (see News Review 4 April). In fact as corporate publishers become more risk-averse, this is where we can look for innovation and new ideas. Read more
The extraordinary success of Lynne Truss's Eats, Shoots and Leaves has shown yet again how one hugely successful book can transform the performance of a small publisher. There are now more than 1.1m copies of the book in print in the UK and it has also been a surprise international bestseller, in spite (or perhaps because of) its very English appeal. Read more
The man in the video says there's a simple reason why I'm not rich. "Most people have a scarcity mindset," he explains through a thick Australian accent, addressing the camera like a wise mentor lecturing a student. "Top-tier people-actual movers and shakers that are doing things-have an abundance mindset." Behind him, an ancient sword hangs on the wall. For some reason, he's in a bathrobe.
Unlike English native-speakers, I didn't really encounter gothic novels in the first twenty-or-so years of my life. I grew up in the French-speaking part Switzerland, and my modern and medieval literature studies focused on French authors and their preoccupations. Therefore hearing the concept of ‘gothic' as a formative genre for the English psyche didn't really mean much to me... Read more
'As someone who's on their sixth novel and has had their ups and downs, I'm aware of how privileged and lucky I have been, and what a shock it can be for debut writers - all the reality of that world, and that new voice and when the book doesn't quite take off, it's a shock.
Publisher Spines will charge authors between $1,200 and $5,000 to have their books proofread, designed and distributed with the help of artificial intelligence
The 11th edition of the China Shanghai International Children's Book Fair ended its three-day run on November 17. Post-event statistics from co-organizer BolognaFiere showed that 41,262 attended the fair, including 17,081 professional visitors. A total of 353 professional events, book launches, and reading promotion activities were held. Read more
In These Strange New Minds: How AI Learned to Talk and What It Means (Viking, Mar.), neuroscientist Christopher Summerfield explores how large language models work.
The poet Ted Kooser turned 85 this year, and the Pulitzer Prize winner and former poet laureate of the United States is as productive as ever, with Copper Canyon Press putting out his latest volume, Raft, earlier this fall.