Cyber Edge Writing Award Welcomes Submissions for 2025 Contest
afcea.org – Saturday October 19, 2024
AFCEA International’s The Cyber Edge Writing Award contest is now open for submissions. Each year, SIGNAL Media invites thought leaders from industry, academia, government and military backgrounds to address a theme within the cyber domain and share their knowledge with AFCEA’s audience.
The theme for the 2025 contest is Cyber Defense for Critical Infrastructure. Since news broke that Volt Typhoon, a criminal hacker group backed by the Chinese Communist Party, has been infiltrating U.S. critical infrastructure networks for the past five years, experts have said that an even larger threat to cybersecurity could be on the horizon. SIGNAL Media is challenging thought leaders to consider this threat and provide convincing solutions.
The panel of industry experts who review the submissions are looking for articles that not only explain the extent of the threat but offer unique suggestions for strengthening critical infrastructure defense and plans for implementation. Whether the articles touch on emerging technologies, training, tactics, techniques, procedures, policies or partnerships, authors should also recognize challenges to implementing solutions and recommendations for overcoming those obstacles.
So hot right now: literary agents going out on their own
thebookseller.com – Thursday October 17, 2024
The sizzling trend across the British Isles for this autumn/winter? No, it’s not wide shoulders or the return of boho—though we are absolutely here for both of those—it is agents from established larger firms going out on their own.
The exhaustive list of new companies springing up includes (but is not limited to) United Agents duo Seren Adams and Kat Aitken starting up Lexington Literary (see their Frankfurt profile); ex-Darley Anderson colleagues Tanera Simons and Laura Heathfield opening Greenstone Literary; The Marsh Agency joint m.d. Jemma McDonagh kickstarting Jemma McDonagh Associates; Kemi Ogunsanwo launching Seventh Agency after leaving The Good Literary Agency; three-time British Book Awards Literary Agent of the Year shortlistee Amanda Harris announcing she would depart YMU at the beginning of 2025 to start an as-yet-unnamed new company; and Marilia Savvides stepping out from the 42 M&P umbrella to found The Plot Agency.
The trend is so red-hot, other publishing professionals have jumped on board: former HarperCollins Ireland boss Conor Nagle set up The Nagle Agency at the beginning of the year, while just two weeks ago ex-David Fickling and Usborne publicist Carolyn May McGlone launched her Oxfordshire-based May Literary Agency.
'New romance,' a growing literary genre and gold mine for publishers
lemonde.fr – Sunday October 13, 2024
The literary niche, targetting an almost exclusively female audience, saw its sales double last year. Publishers are trying to carve out their slice of the pie.
Peppered with erotic scenes, these romantic tales where an innocent girl falls for a man who is often crazy and sometimes violent but where everything ends well, have the primary advantage of boosting French publishing figures. According to the latest GFK NielsenIQ study, this literary genre, known as "new adult romance", accounted for 1.8% of books sold in 2023, or 6 million copies – and generated €75 million in revenue.
After a decline between 2015 and 2020, the segment is now thriving, having more than doubled compared to 2022. The selection is expanding and appealing to its audience – both adult women and teenage girls. One striking aspect of the study is that the market is heavily concentrated on the top 100 bestselling titles.
So much so that five authors – French novelists C.S. Quill, Emma Green (a pseudonym for a writing duo), Morgane Moncomble, Algerian writer Sarah Rivens and US author Colleen Hoover – who all have huge social media fan bases – can flaunt sales of between 200,000 and over a million copies of each of their books. The film It Ends With Us, adapted from Hoover's book of the same name and released in cinemas on August 14, should further boost sales of this bestseller.
Akoya Publishing launches with slate of 10 books for 2026
thebookseller.com – Thursday October 10, 2024
A new independent publisher, Akoya Publishing, has announced its launch with a slate of 10 books set for 2026. Akoya is a new literary press which "celebrates courageous, visionary and innovative writing". Akoya has been founded by Norwegian entrepreneur Camilla Hagen, with Xenia Stafford as the managing director, and is a "longtime vision coming to life".
The new press will be dedicated to publishing an inspiring range of literary fiction, non-fiction and poetry.
Akoya will begin publishing in spring 2026, with the release of They by award-winning Danish writer Helle Helle, translated from Danish by Martin Aitken.
Hagen acquired UK and Commonwealth rights from Gina Winje at Winje Agency with rights sold in six languages. They is the first of three books by Helle Helle that Akoya has acquired, with Hafni Says and Hey Hafni following.
AAP StatShot: US Industry Was up 18.1 Percent for Month of July
publishingperspectives.com – Thursday October 10, 2024
In its July 2024 StatShot report released this morning (October 8), the Association of American Publishers (AAP) cites total revenues across all categories up 18.1 percent over July 2023.
Year-to-date revenues, the AAP reports, were up 7.6 percent at US$7.8 billion for the first seven months of this year.
As Publishing Perspectives readers know, the AAP’s numbers reflect reported revenue for tracked categories including trade (consumer books); religious presses; educational course materials; and professional publishing.
Authors of the July 2024 AAP StatShot report point out that, “Nearly all categories experienced an uptick year-over-year.”
In the trade category, adult book net sales rose by 23.9 percent in July, compared to the same month in 2023. Both fiction and nonfiction contributed significantly to this growth, with fiction sales up 25.8 percent and nonfiction up 21.4 percent. This contributed to a 9.0-percent year-to-date increase in adult book sales, with fiction growing by 13.4 percent and nonfiction by 4.0 percent.
In children’s and young adult (YA) book, net sales increased by 15.3 percent year over year. Within this sub-category, fiction sales grew 21.0 percent and nonfiction decreased by 6.7 percent. Year to date, this sub-category remains relatively flat with a 0.5-percent decrease.
Watson, Little appoints Gabrielle Demblon as foreign rights manager and literary agent
thebookseller.com – Wednesday October 2, 2024
Watson, Little has appointed Gabrielle Demblon as foreign rights manager and literary agent effective 1st October. Demblon succeeds Rachel Richardson, who departed the agency in September to embark on her own venture.
In her new role, Demblon will lead the sale of translation rights for Watson, Little’s roster of authors, while also curating her own list. Demblon joins from Mira Trenchard Literary Scouts (MTLS), where she has worked for the past six years on behalf of a list of international publishers and media clients. Her expertise spans all adult book genres, as well as graphic novels and podcasts, with particular interest in literary fiction, speculative and high-concept narratives, and LGBTQ+ voices. Demblon will work with the assistance of Annie Ku, Rights Assistant, who joined Watson, Little in 2023.
Mother and son Suzi Wooldridge and Cameron Toman launch Synergy Publishing
thebookseller.com – Wednesday October 2, 2024
Suzi Wooldridge, the c.e.o. of Bridge Logos in the US, has set up a lifestyle book publisher, Synergy Publishing, in the UK with her son, Cameron Toman.
Wooldridge took over the helm of Christian publishing company Bridge Logos, which was formerly owned by her parents.
Synergy Publishing’s first title, Invincible Not Invisible by Fiona Lambert, was published in August. The publisher’s spring 2025 season includes titles from Nicky Hambleton-Jones, Andrew Barton and Sharry Cramond.
The Bent Agency's Gemma Cooper launches Gemma Cooper Literary
thebookseller.com – Thursday September 26, 2024
Gemma Cooper, director and literary agent at The Bent Agency UK (TBA), is launching her own agency, Gemma Cooper Literary.
She takes her full list of authors, including Waterstones Children’s Book Prize for Younger Readers winners Robin Stevens and Jessica Townsend, as well as B B Alston and Sibéal Pounder, Carnegie Medal shortlisted author Sophie Anderson, and Waterstones Crime Thriller of the Month author Katy Watson.
Cooper will continue to represent authors from across the world, and sell their work directly into the UK, US and Australia. She will be working with Rich Lit Rights for foreign rights.
Les Nouveaux Editeurs announces creation of first publishing house
thebookseller.com – Wednesday September 25, 2024
Les Nouveaux Editeurs, the freestanding group of publishers launched by ex-Hachette Livre chief Arnaud Nourry at the end of May, has announced the creation of its first publishing house.
Called La Tribu, it will specialise in French fiction and non-fiction and will be managed by its founder Julia Pavlowitch. “She is a shareholder” in the company, and will have “full editorial independence", Nourry said in a statement.
Pavlowitch has spent 12 years as an editor for independent publishers, Les Arènes, L’Iconoclaste and Phébus. She plans to release about 15 titles a year in what she describes as a “personal project that brings together all the conditions for encouraging literary creation”.
BBC 500 Words creative writing competition returns for children across the UK
bbc.com – Wednesday September 25, 2024
The UK’s most successful writing competition for children, BBC 500 Words, opens today (Tuesday 24 September).
The competition, which is supported by BBC Teach, encourages children of all abilities to dive deep into their imagination and write the story they would love to read in 500 words or less, without fear of spelling, grammar or punctuation errors.
Open to ages 5-7 years and 8-11 years, the competition is being launched by Children’s Laureate and 500 Words judge Frank Cottrell-Boyce, with a message from Her Majesty The Queen, on The One Show this evening (Tuesday 24 September, BBC One, 7pm).
Frank Cottrell-Boyce says: “The thing I most love about 500 Words is how unpredictable it is. When I open the envelope of stories I never know whether I’m going to laugh, cry or shiver with horror. The best feeling is when a child has put something of themselves into the story. Then it’s like meeting a new person.”
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