Trainspotting author on track for world's most prestigious crime writing festival
express.co.uk – Thursday January 30, 2025
Irvine Welsh is among special guests revealed for the Theakston Old Peculier Crime Writing Festival 2025
Irvine Welsh has been revealed as one of the special guests at the world’s most prestigious celebration of crime writing this summer.
The Trainspotting author joins the likes of Lee and Andrew Child, Val McDermid, Kate Atkinson and Mark Billingham at the Theakston Old Peculier Crime Writing Festival, supported by the Express, in Harrogate.
Welsh will be making his first appearance at the festival, held at the Old Swan Hotel where crime queen Agatha Christie hid out following her ‘disappearance’ in 1926, to talk about Resolution, the final instalment in his Crime trilogy, now a hit TV series, starring Dougray Scott. This year’s event, which runs from July 17 to 20 in the North Yorkshire spa town, is curated by bestselling Slow Horses creator Mick Herron.
He said: “This year’s Special Guests are an incredible mixture of global bestsellers, familiar friends and writers new to Theakston Old Peculier Crime Writing Festival, who together guarantee a weekend of thrills, wit and revelations.
Nationwide ‘Words for a cause’ writing competition launched ‘to amplify care workers’ voices’
carehomeprofessional.com – Thursday January 30, 2025
Through creative writing and direct communication, the charity is aiming to highlight the value of care work, address the challenges in the sector, and inspire meaningful change
The Care Workers’ Charity has announced the launch of its “Words for a Cause” Month, taking place throughout March 2025. The charity said this initiative aims to highlight the invaluable contributions of care workers by encouraging storytelling.
A spokesperson for the charity said: “Care workers play an essential role in our communities, offering compassion, support, and dignity to those who need it most. Yet, their voices are often unheard, and their challenges remain underappreciated. That’s why we’ve created Words for a Cause Month – a dedicated time to use the power of words to amplify the voices of care workers and advocate for the recognition they deserve.
“This month-long initiative is about storytelling, advocacy, and action. Through creative writing and direct communication, we aim to highlight the value of care work, address the challenges in the sector, and inspire meaningful change.”
FairyLoot and Transworld launch new fantasy publishing imprint
thebookseller.com – Monday January 27, 2025
The book subscription service FairyLoot and Transworld are launching a new fantasy publishing imprint, the name and logo of which will be announced at the London Book Fair in March.
Debuting in autumn 2025, the fantasy imprint will discover and publish "bold new voices" that "push the boundaries of fiction". It will feature a select number of jointly curated projects, and all titles will be published in physical format across the trade and digitally in audiobook and e-book.
The mission of the new venture is "to forge new paths in publishing and storytelling". Placing a strong emphasis on author relationships, its aim will be to provide authors with creative support to bring their books to life. There will also be a focus on building an engaged community of readers, whose creative energy and feedback will be "channelled into the imprint’s DNA".
Writers' Handbook 2025 now available as an ebook
firstwriter.com – Saturday January 25, 2025
Following last month's release of the print edition of firstwriter.com's 2025 edition of its Writers' Handbook, the digital editions are now also available from various outlets around the world. These include:
New Media Writing Prize open for entries
bournemouth.ac.uk – Saturday January 25, 2025
The 2024/5 New Media Writing Prize is now open for entries, with cash prizes for the best in interactive digital narrative, literature, and journalism.
The NMWP is seeking original works of “born-digital” storytelling (fiction or non-fiction): works created on digital devices, for digital devices. These include hypertexts, participatory films, i-documentaries, Twine stories, transmedia novels, and more.
The competition is free to enter. The main prize of £1000 is sponsored by if:book, with £500 prizes for best journalism (sponsor: FIPP media) and a “people’s choice” category (sponsor: Wonderbox Digital). Winner of the student prize will win a year’s membership from sponsor Writers Online.
Julie Finidori joins Aevitas Creative Management UK
thebookseller.com – Saturday January 25, 2025
French agent Julie Finidori has joined Aevitas Creative Management UK (ACM UK). She will be based in Paris, representing French-language books in France and English-language books internationally. Findori joins ACM UK from her own agency in Paris, where she represented a roster of authors including Pauline Harmange (I Hate Men), Fania Noël (Ten Questions on Black Feminisms), Nora Bouazzouni (Eat the Rich) and Pınar Selek (The Turkish Military Cauldron).
Before becoming an agent, Julie managed foreign rights at Albin Michel, living all over the world, including Indonesia, Sweden, the United States, Canada and Turkey.
Finidori said: "I’m very happy to be joining such a dynamic and exciting international agency and learning and growing with all my new partners. I’m already amazed by the support and opportunities this collaboration is generating and I feel very lucky to be a part of the Aevitas community."
Sir Ian Rankin announced for key role at crime writing festival
heraldscotland.com – Thursday January 23, 2025
Rebus author Sir Ian Rankin has been announced as a guest programmer for the Bloody Scotland International Crime Writing Festival later this year.
The best-selling novelist has sold more than 35 million books and was awarded a knighthood in 2023 for services to literature and charity, and becomes the first ever guest programmer invited to join the team.
Bloody Scotland will run from September 12 to 14 in Stirling and Sir Ian will join fellow authors Abir Mukherjee, Lin Anderson, Craig Robertson and Gordon J. Brown as part of the programming team.
They will bring a ‘world-class’ line-up of authors and special guests to the festival with the programme to be launched in June this year.
Sir Ian Rankin said: “Bloody Scotland manages to remain the world’s friendliest and most inclusive crime fiction festival while also attracting the biggest and brightest names in the business to the city of Stirling. It’s epic!”
Bournemouth Writing Festival returns this April for weekend of panels, workshops & networking
dorsetbiznews.co.uk – Wednesday January 22, 2025
Tickets are now on sale for the third Bournemouth Writing Festival to be held over the weekend of 25 to 27 April at locations throughout the town centre.
The three days will be packed with around 100 events and activities – some free – to inspire writers of all ages, backgrounds, abilities and experience.
There’ll be walks, talks, panels, workshops, informal networking breakfasts, lunches and dinners, and literary agent one-to-ones.
The popular Writing on the Beach will make its return, along with special evening events from the Outsiders Project and Bourn Jammy.
That’s on top of a poetry hub, free workshops for marginalised members of the community, children’s activities at newly opened co-working space Patch, and an author’s marketplace for local writers.
Closing the festival on Sunday night will be Making Waves – a showcase for new and emerging writers hosted by Arts University Bournemouth.
Bournemouth Writing Festival announces 2025 line-up
buzz.bournemouth.ac.uk – Friday January 17, 2025
Bournemouth Writing Festival have announced their line-up for this year’s festival.
The festival takes place from 25th-27th April 2025 at a range of venues in the area.
It features a range of free and ticketed events, aims to inspire writers to write with practical and hands-on events, workshops, talks, writing activities and networking opportunities.
The three-day festival is a carefully curated selection of self-published, published and writing professionals who share their knowledge and advice to writers of all ages and experience levels.
Amongst the professionals attending, there are best-selling authors like Alex Stone (The Good Patient), BAFTA award-winning playwright and screenwriter John Foster (Emmerdale) and creative collaborator and Curator for Wilkswood Reggae Festival, poet Kim West.
Three Indicted and Internet Domain Seized in $44 Million Nationwide Book Publishing Scam Targeting Elderly Authors
justice.gov – Thursday January 16, 2025
A federal grand jury has charged three people with defrauding elderly authors across the United States of almost $44 million by convincing the victims that publishers and filmmakers wanted to turn their books into blockbusters — but only if they paid some fees first.
According to the indictment, Gemma Traya Austin of Chula Vista was the organizer and registered agent for PageTurner, Press and Media LLC (“PageTurner”), a Chula Vista company that claimed to be a book publishing business. Michael Cris Traya Sordilla and Bryan Navales Tarosa, both of the Philippines, were executives at Innocentrix Philippines, a business process outsourcing company.
The indictment alleges that between September 2017 and December 2024, the defendants used PageTurner to operate a book publishing scam in which the conspirators working for Innocentrix Philippines contacted individual authors through unsolicited calls and emails. As part of the scam, the conspirators falsely represented that PageTurner was a book publishing business that worked with literary agents, major motion picture studios, and popular video streaming services, and that PageTurner acted as a liaison between individuals who sought to publish their books or have their books turned into motion pictures or television series.
As part of the conspiracy, the scammers falsely told victims their works had been selected for acquisition by publishers or movie studios, and fraudulently convinced victims to send PageTurner payments for various services, including pre-payment of taxes and transaction fees, before the victim-author’s work could be published or optioned to studios.
According to statements made by prosecutors in court, the FBI identified more than 800 victims of the scheme who collectively lost more than $44 million.
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