HarperCollins audio sales up 18%, overall sales up 6%
booksandpublishing.com.au – Tuesday August 13, 2024
HarperCollins parent company News Corp has announced its fourth quarter and annual results.
The company reported that its book publishing division saw sales rise 6% for the 2024 fiscal year to US$2.09 billion (A$3.18b), while EBITDA (earnings before interest, taxes, depreciation, and amortisation) rose 61%, to US$269 million ($A409.48m). ‘The publisher had a particular strong fourth quarter, with sales soaring 15% and earnings skyrocketing 256%, marking [its] best fourth quarter since 2018,’ reported Publishers Weekly (PW).
New horror publisher Black Crow Books to launch next year
thebookseller.com – Friday August 9, 2024
Black Crow Books, a new horror-dedicated publisher, is set to launch in 2025 with Jamie-Lee Nardone, director of Black Crow PR, and Matt Holland, founder of The Broken Binding, at the helm.
The new independent publisher will initially publish four books a year, including an anthology of "the very best" horror fiction of the year.
The other side of the business will focus on creating exclusive and limited editions of new and backlist titles and will launch a quarterly book box of horror fiction.
The Broken Binding bookshop to launch its own science fiction and fantasy publisher
thebookseller.com – Friday August 9, 2024
The Broken Binding, the independent online bookshop and special edition subscription box, is set to launch The Broken Binding Press in 2025.
The Broken Binding Press will be dedicated to science fiction and fantasy, focusing on "core" genre fiction including the latest works by Ryan Cahill and Richard Swan. The new publisher will work with Angry Robot who will support with sales and distribution.
"Angry Robot has built a strong relationship over the past few years with Matt and his team at The Broken Binding, and we are excited to support his plans to expand into publishing, with our parent company Watkins Media providing sales and distribution for his trade books", said Vicky Hartley, deputy managing director of Watkins Media. "We have always been impressed by Matt’s passion, creativity and ability to spot books and authors that the science fiction and fantasy community will love, and we can’t wait to help get this launch list out into the market."
#Merky Books opens submissions for fifth annual New Writers’ Prize
thebookseller.com – Tuesday August 6, 2024
Penguin Random House UK (PRH UK) and Stormzy’s #Merky Books imprint has opened submissions for the fifth annual New Writers’ Prize for "young, under-represented and unpublished writers" from the UK and ROI.
The prize is open to un-agented fiction writers between 18 and 35, whether they have a full manuscript or an idea to submit. According to the organisers, the team is looking for "the next Yomi Adegoke, R F Kuang and Nana Kwame Adjei-Brenyah".
The winner of the competition will get a publishing contract with the imprint, and all shortlisted writers will be invited to #Merky Books’ Writers’ Camp, which includes writing workshops, panel talks, editorial one-to-ones and opportunities to meet the team.
PRH Partners With the James Baldwin Family to Launch New Creative Writing Award for Fiction
global.penguinrandomhouse.com – Tuesday August 6, 2024
Penguin Random House has partnered with James Baldwin family to launch The James Baldwin Award for Fiction, a creative writing award for fiction for public high school students, in honor of the 100th birthday of the literary legend and civil rights champion. The award will recognize a student for an original literary composition in English for fiction with a first-place prize of $10,000.
The James Baldwin Award for Fiction is one of six creative writing awards given by Penguin Random House as part of their signature Creative Writing Awards (CWA) program. Other categories include the Freedom of Expression Award; the Amanda Gorman Award for Poetry; the Michelle Obama Award for Memoir; the Maya Angelou Award for Spoken Word; and the NYC Entrant Award.
Since 1993, the Penguin Random House Creative Writing Awards have awarded more than $2.9 million dollars to public high school students for their original compositions. In partnership with nonprofit We Need Diverse Books, the program empowers and celebrates hundreds of young writers each year and underscores Penguin Random House’s commitment supporting the next generation of readers and authors and amplifying diverse voices and stories. Creative Writing Award winners have gone on to become professional and award-winning authors.
Riposte magazine returns as a ‘visceral’ new literary journal
dazeddigital.com – Saturday August 3, 2024
Danielle Pender’s beloved magazine has undergone a ‘super chic’ rebrand, with its latest issue featuring writing from Sheena Patel, Halima Jibril, Charlie Porter and more
When Riposte Magazine first launched in 2013, it quickly cultivated a space for the culturally avid and curious. Independent magazines were blossoming with fresh points of view, fostering communities with each conceptual revolution and zine drop. Ione Gamble’s Polyester was growing, a sparkling ode to having ‘faith in your own bad taste’ and a challenge to what we should both hold close and explode of girlhood. Kieran Yates’ British Values was celebrating the UK’s immigrant communities, while Strike! Magazine was anarchically swinging at the publishing industry, and Mushpit was running all over London to its own mad melody.
“2013 feels like a really long time ago,” says founder Danielle Pender today. “It was before #MeToo, the women’s march, and the Black Lives Matter movement had just started in July of that year. Tumblr was still at its peak, we hadn’t been Girlbossed yet, and Obama was still president.”
Riposte, founded and edited by writer and Watching Women and Girls author Pender, took on societal pressure points for women and the subsequent solidarity borne from them. “We were originally railing against the narrow representation of women in the media and writing features on forgotten women; it feels almost quaint now,” she says. “The magazine evolved and became a lot more progressive. I’m really proud of the women we platformed and the features we published, especially the more political articles and social commentary pieces.”
Duckworth Books buys September Publishing for undisclosed sum
thebookseller.com – Thursday August 1, 2024
September Publishing will become an imprint at Duckworth Books after being sold for an undisclosed sum.
The full team of three will transfer over, including September’s publisher Hannah MacDonald who will continue to lead the list, now as an imprint of Duckworth Books.
Founded by MacDonald in 2014, September has won the Regional Small Press of the Year award twice and been shortlisted every year since the award started. It has a core of upmarket mind-body-spirit publishing and has published five titles with author Sharon Blackie, as well as a wider range of illustrated and narrative non-fiction. September also has publishing relationships with the Van Gogh Museum and English Heritage.
BAFTA Rocliffe new writing competition
cinematography.world – Saturday July 27, 2024
The BAFTA Rocliffe new writing competition is a platform for aspiring screenwriters to have their work showcased and a fantastic opportunity to take their writing career to the next level.
The competition, which runs twice a year, calls submissions for Film, Television Drama, Children, Family & YA Media, and Television Comedy scripts. In 2024, we will be running Television Comedy and Film.
Following a blind judging process, selected script extracts are performed by a professional cast to an audience of producers, development executives, directors, actors and literary agents, aiming to give a platform to emerging writing talent from across the country.
Amanda Harris to leave YMU in 2025 and set up new literary agency
thebookseller.com – Friday July 26, 2024
Literary agent Amanda Harris is leaving YMU to set up her own literary agency. Harris will be leaving the company in early 2025, however she will continue to work with YMU clients on future projects.
Speaking exclusively to The Bookseller, Harris, managing director of Literary, said: "I have had a great time at YMU, and I am thrilled to be continuing my work with YMU clients as I take the next step in my agenting career. I feel very honoured to have launched a bespoke literary business within the company, and to have worked with such a talented team of award-winning agents.
"YMU Literary’s impact on the group, and the UK publishing industry, is reflected in the bestseller charts, national book awards and huge TCM sales figures achieved by our authors and their publishers."
Plans for national writing centre put to government
bbc.co.uk – Wednesday July 24, 2024
Plans to create a national writing centre in the North East have been put to the government.
The Centre for Writing would be based at Bolbec Hall in Westgate Road, Newcastle, and would support community writing and reading initiatives.
New Writing North, the charity behind the plan, said the centre would cost £14m and it was seeking £5m from the government's Cultural Development Fund.
Claire Malcolm, the charity's CEO, said the investment would "help train and develop a new generation of local talent".
"I want young people here to be able to grow up to be publishers, writers and creatives without presuming they need to leave the North East to achieve their ambition," she added.
If approved, the centre would provide support for professional writers and publishing businesses across the north of England.
Get the free newsletter | Submit a news item or article | Get Writers' News for your website
