Andrew Hewson: The Quiet Architect of Other People’s Greatness
firstwriter.com – Wednesday February 11, 2026
When a figure like Andrew Hewson dies, the literary world tends to reach for familiar phrases – veteran agent, industry stalwart, champion of writers. All true, of course, but insufficient. Hewson, who died aged 83, was something rarer: a man who built a life’s work out of elevating other people’s voices while never clamouring for attention himself.
A Career That Began With a Curtain Call
Hewson’s path into publishing was anything but linear. He began not in an office but in a theatre foyer, working front‑of‑house at the Newcastle Playhouse. That early proximity to performance – watching audiences arrive expectant and leave transformed – seems, in retrospect, like the perfect apprenticeship for a future literary agent.
In 1969, he was hired by John Johnson, a man whose family ties to Dame Celia Johnson gave the agency a certain theatrical glamour. Hewson’s early responsibilities were a blend of the practical and the whimsical: nurturing American publishing links, expanding the playwright list, and – charmingly – unfurling the Union Jack on Royal birthdays outside the Albemarle Street office.
New Publisher Listing: Heloise Press Ltd
firstwriter.com – Tuesday February 10, 2026
Publishes stylistically innovative literary fiction with a focus on intimate, visceral and powerful narratives. Champions worldwide female talent and brings together emerging and established women’s voices from the UK and abroad. Seeks manuscripts in English that align with its editorial line, including book reviews and sample pages from authors, as well as pitches and sample translations from translators who have discovered distinctive international work. Accepts stories marked by striking content and literary sophistication, with an emphasis on women’s experiences and global perspectives.
The Final Chapter of Haunt Publishing: How a Small Press Illuminated the Dark
firstwriter.com – Friday February 6, 2026
For a publisher devoted to shadows, Haunt Publishing’s story ends not with a scream but with a quiet, heartfelt farewell. After eight years championing Gothic, horror, and dark fiction, the Scottish indie press will close its doors on 1 June 2026, returning all rights to its authors and offering a final clearance sale as it winds down operations.
This closure marks the end of one of the UK’s most distinctive small presses—one that carved out a space for underrepresented voices in a genre often dominated by the mainstream.
A Mission Built on Unease, Empathy, and Representation
Founded in 2018 by Rebecca Wojturska, Haunt Publishing emerged with a clear purpose: to spotlight global and marginalised voices in Gothic and horror literature. From its earliest days, the press positioned itself as author-led, paying double the industry-standard royalty rate and compensating writers for events – an unusually generous model in small-press publishing.
Opportunity: Volunteer as a Judge for The Queen’s Commonwealth Writing Competition
royalcwsociety.org – Friday February 6, 2026
As we enter an exciting new chapter of the Royal Commonwealth Society’s flagship youth initiative, we are delighted to announce that applications to volunteer as a judge for The Queen’s Commonwealth Writing Competition are now open!
This year is a particularly exciting time to get involved with the competition. The change in name from The Queen’s Commonwealth Essay Competition to The Queen’s Commonwealth Writing Competition, reflects a broader, more inclusive approach to written expression, embracing creativity in all its forms while continuing to champion the power of young voices across the Commonwealth.
As part of this evolution, the competition’s structure has been redesigned to encourage greater participation and ensure stronger regional representation. The competition will be open to all Commonwealth nationals or residents under 18, bringing participants together within a single age category. In addition to one overall winner, the competition will now recognise one winner from each of the five regions of the Commonwealth, ensuring that excellence in writing is celebrated across all regions.
New Literary Agent Listing: Ashley Lopez
firstwriter.com – Friday February 6, 2026
Represents literary and book club fiction, grounded speculative, horror, thrillers, narrative and practical nonfiction, as well as select poetry and YA. Send queries by email. Include the word “query” as well as the project’s title in the subject line. Include the first 10 pages of your manuscript (or for a nonfiction proposal, the synopsis and either a detailed chapter outline or a sample chapter) in the body of the email below your query letter. No attachments. If no response within 4-6 weeks, assume rejection.
Bournemouth Writing Festival to return for fourth edition
greatbritishlife.co.uk – Thursday February 5, 2026
Writers and readers will come together for a packed weekend of talks, workshops and literary events.
The Bournemouth Writing Festival will return for its fourth edition from April 24 to 26, filling venues across the town with more than 100 events and activities.
Dominic Wong, festival director, said: “The Bournemouth Writing Festival is all about making writing feel welcoming and achievable, whether you’re just starting out or ready to take your work to the next level.
“We’re proud to offer a wide-ranging programme that mixes top industry expertise with inclusive and accessible events that bring writers together from across the community and the country.”
Writers Are Getting Banned for Writing Like Humans
ucstrategies.com – Wednesday February 4, 2026
A writer got banned from a platform for using em dashes — a punctuation mark she’d used her entire career — because an AI detector flagged her comment as “too polished.” She appealed, confused. The system took 48 hours to admit its mistake. By then, her comment was buried and her reputation questioned.
ChatGPT just quietly changed how it writes to stop using em dashes — explicitly to dodge detection tools that flagged them as an AI tell. The irony? AI learned to overuse them by scraping human authors’ books in the first place. Now professional writers are being punished for the same formal writing habits that trained the AI. The detectors can’t tell the difference, so they’re banning both.
Your writing style is now evidence against you
Human writers are getting flagged as AI-generated for using correct punctuation. One technical reviewer had their work flagged in December for being “too structured” — the appeal took two days to resolve, but the damage was done. Another writer posted as of this week: “I always use em dashes… Has anyone else experienced this issue? I am genuinely confused.”
AI detectors now treat formal writing — clean grammar, proper punctuation, logical flow — as suspicious. The tools were trained to spot “AI patterns,” but those patterns came from scraped human books in the first place. Research shows detectors struggle with false positives on professional writing that looks “too clean.”
Exciting New Opportunity: The Queen’s Commonwealth Writing Competition Reimagined
royalcwsociety.org – Wednesday February 4, 2026
Calling all young writers across the Commonwealth! The Royal Commonwealth Society is thrilled to announce a major evolution of its iconic youth initiative. Formerly known as the Queen’s Commonwealth Essay Competition, this globally celebrated programme now has a fresh new identity: The Queen’s Commonwealth Writing Competition.
This exciting rebrand signals a broader, more inclusive approach to writing, embracing creativity in all forms. From essays to poetry, storytelling, and beyond, young people under 18 can now share their ideas, experiences, and imagination on a global stage.
A Competition for Every Corner of the Commonwealth
The Queen’s Commonwealth Writing Competition has also redesigned its structure to encourage even wider participation. For the first time, winners will be celebrated not only globally but also regionally. Each of the Commonwealth’s five regions will have a dedicated winner, and drawn from those winners will be an overall competition winner. This ensures that exceptional young voices from every corner of the Commonwealth are recognised.
New Magazine Listing: Propel Magazine
firstwriter.com – Wednesday February 4, 2026
Magazine publishing work by poets based in the UK or Ireland who have not yet released a full‑length poetry collection. Seeks up to six unpublished poems per submission window. Reads all work via an online system and may request audio recordings for accepted poems to support accessibility. Accepts submissions six times a year, during one-month submission windows for each Issue.
Fanfiction’s Total Cultural Victory
defector.com – Tuesday February 3, 2026
In 2012, a self-published author of erotic Twilight fanfiction, whose books had gained a large fan base online, was offered a seven-figure contract by a major American publisher. E. L. James's Fifty Shades of Grey trilogy would become the three bestselling titles of the 2010s in the U.S. (even Fifty Shades Freed, the now mostly forgotten end to the trilogy, outsold The Hunger Games). They would also sell over 150 million copies worldwide across 52 languages.
The impact was immediate: Op-eds were written. Bad prose was excerpted. Stock photos of fluffy handcuffs appeared everywhere. And, amidst all the endless discussions about ethical BDSM and "mommy porn" and what, exactly, women might want, fanfiction had suddenly become highly lucrative. Instead of asking what Fifty Shades meant for women, people should have been asking what it meant for publishing.
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