29 November 2021 - What's new
29 November 2021
- ‘By the time you get to a company that's bigger than, say, 300 or 400 people, an amazing amount of the energy that's expended is internal, it's all about filling out forms and attending meetings and setting standards and training and it's got very little to do with publishing. As an editor with a book you really believe in, you don't tell the world about it... We're nimble, we're flexible, we're not numbers driven in the same way, so we can publish books at the optimum time which is best for the book and best for the author and not because we have to fit it in as the 1,000th book that has to slot in with 999 others... Andrew Franklin, publisher of UK indie Profile Books, speaking at a recent IPG conference on Why indie publishers are better than conglomerates.
- Bob's Journal is a long-running column from writer Bob Ritchie described by fellow EastEnders script-writer Pippa McCarthy: 'Just discovered your web page... I've just spent the last hour crying with laughter with periodic yelps of 'been there!'... I'm going to make my entire family read your diary. Then perhaps will understand own bizarre behaviour every time I start a script... Anyway, will shut up now but just wanted to say you have cheered me up no end. It's brilliant.'
- New - the PFD Queer Fiction Prize 2022. Anyone who identifies as LGBTQIA+ and who is un-agented and in the process of writing a piece of fiction is eligible to enter. No entry fee. Three category winners will receive representation at PFD and guidance for completing their novel. Closing on 22 March, so plenty of time to prepare your entry.
- Have you been working on your book? Are you now ready to submit to publishers or to self-publish? We offer the widest range of editorial services on the web, tailored to writers' requirements and carried out by our professional editors, Our Services for writers.
- From our Endorsements page: 'I've used two services with this company: The Editor's Plus Report and the Writer's Edit. I am completely satisfied with the service I received and said service has led to the completion and publication of my first novel: Lightforce. I would recommend any of these services to any aspiring author.' Jason Handleman, author of Lightforce (Everything Changes Book 1).
- Our links for writers: can you write anywhere? Ann Patchett on Creating the Work Space You Need ‹ Literary Hub; the early days of forensics, From Superstition to Science ‹ CrimeReads; lockdown offered many frustrated writers a key to unbolt the constraints of daily routine and an opportunity to work on your manuscript, Authors and experts on how to get your book published; this year's key prizes have gone to writers from Africa and the diaspora, From the Booker to the Nobel: why 2021 is a great year for African writing | Books | The Guardian; and languages rich in imagery and metaphor, Languages and fiction.
- Advice for writers is a really useful page which takes you into our archive and helps you explore our more than 8,000 pages of information for writers.
- Links from the publishing world: a well-informed but common-sense view from Mike Shatzkin, Doubts about the Department of Justice's objection to the PRH acquisition of S&S - The Idea Logical Company; the publisher's initial diversity report, Penguin Random House Authors and Creators Skew Heavily White; audio is booming, The UK's Publishers Association Charts a 'Steep Rise' in Audiobook Sales; small decline but Will Publishing Sales Grow Again? The huge potential of the backlist, A reprinted 1934 book going viral on BookTok sends an unequivocal message to publishers sitting on backlists and to publishers who still think the internet is the enemy of reading - The New Publishing Standard.
- Are you struggling to get someone to look at your poetry? Our Poetry Critique service for 150 lines of poetry can help. Our Poetry Collection Editing service, unique to WritersServices, edits your collection to prepare it for submission or self-publishing. Both can provide the professional editorial input you need.
- More links for writers: "What is the feeling you want to leave the reader with, when they finish this piece?" Nailing the Walkaway - The Millions; "There is really so much to admire in this manuscript," the email began. The Kindest Cut: On Rejection - The Millions; fascinating background reading, The British and Reading: a short history; and ripping up the traditional book publishing paradigm in politics, Trump allies launch publishing house with an eye on upending the book industry - POLITICO.
- Have you managed to find a publisher for your work and are now enjoying the thrill of knowing that your book will soon be published? If you're wondering what happens next, here is an outline of the processes involved. Preparing for publication.
- ‘All fiction is largely autobiographical and much autobiography is, of course, fiction.' P D James in our Writers' Quotes.
