Simon & Schuster employee denies he stole bestseller manuscripts
bbc.co.uk – Saturday January 8, 2022
An employee of publishers Simon & Schuster has pleaded not guilty to charges in New York that he posed as literary editors and agents to steal hundreds of authors' unpublished work.
Filippo Bernardini, 29, was arrested at JFK airport and is charged with wire fraud and aggravated identity theft.
Legal documents allege he registered more than 160 fake online domains.
Judge Robert Lehrburger rejected a request for him to be detained, setting bail at $300,000 (£221,000).
Matt Willey and Dan Crowe Launch 'INQUE' Magazine
hypebeast.com – Thursday January 6, 2022
INQUE is a new literary publication that describes itself as “A magazine without genre.” Founded by Matt Willey and Dan Crowe, the annual title brings together a star-studded list of contributors who provide global writing and extraordinary art, design and photography.
Based in Brooklyn, Willey is an English graphic designer who served as the longtime art director of The New York Times Magazine and was recently appointed to the title of partner at Pentagram. Crowe is the founder and editor-in-chief of magazines, Zembla and PORT — both of which he worked extensively with Willey on over the years.
Seymour joins Johnson & Alcock from Andrew Nurnberg Associates
thebookseller.com – Thursday January 6, 2022
Charlotte Seymour has left Andrew Nurnberg Associates to join Johnson & Alcock as a literary agent, as part of a strategic expansion of the agency.
Seymour was named a Bookseller Rising Star in 2021 and has worked for six years at Andrew Nurnberg building a list of authors of literary and commercial fiction, as well as narrative non-fiction. Before that she worked as a literary scout at Eccles Fisher Associates.
The Great Love Inspired Author Search
harlequin.submittable.com – Wednesday January 5, 2022
The Great Love Inspired Author Search is back!
The Love Inspired editors are thrilled to announce that we're bringing back The Great Love Inspired Author Search. Love Inspired and Love Inspired Suspense are on the hunt for some fabulous new authors, and we want you! If you think you’ve got the chops to wow us with your inspirational contemporary romance or romantic suspense ideas, we encourage you to pitch it to us!
For this pitch opportunity, the Love Inspired editors are once again on the lookout for fresh talent. We invite you to show us that you’re the total package in these two stages:
Yeovil Literary Prize entries now open
chardandilminsternews.co.uk – Monday January 3, 2022
An annual competition that raises money to support young people in the Chard and Ilminster area training for careers in the performing and creative arts has been launched.
The Yeovil Community Arts Association has also announced a new category in its 2022 international literary prize writing competition, which opened on Saturday (January 1).
Now in its 19th year, the Yeovil Literary Prize continues to attract more entries each year from accomplished and aspiring wordsmiths from all over the world.
Literary festival launching on Ireland's Spike Island will be dedicated to crime writing
irishpost.com – Sunday January 2, 2022
A NEW literary festival is set to take place on Spike Island in Cork in 2022 - dedicated to the theme of crime writing.
The Spike Island literary festival will hone in on the popular genre with a series of author talks and workshops, giving attendees the chance to learn more about the subject.
Agents and publishers from the industry will be on hand giving advice, and those looking to write a book can get invaluable insights into the writing and publishing world.
The event is set to take place at Spike Island, a perfectly fitting setting given its historic past.
The island was used as an island prison on four separate occasions over the last 400 years, with the last prison incarnation that opened in 1985 only closing its doors in 2004.
Inaugural Cheshire Novel Prize launches
thebookseller.com – Friday December 31, 2021
A new writing award, the Cheshire Novel Prize, launches featuring judges such as Juliet Mushens and feedback guaranteed for every entry.
Editorial consultant Sara Cox founded the prize — which includes £1,500 for the winner and a £500 runner up prize — to help unrepresented authors. The judging panel includes Mushens (pictured), of Mushens Entertainment, Penguin Michael Joseph editorial director Clio Cornish, along with Moyette Gibbons, communications manager at Black Girl Writers (which will sponsor five black women writers from low-income backgrounds to enter the Cheshire Novel Prize). Other panelists include RCW’s Honor Spreckley, editor Sally O-J and writer Awais Khan.
Aspen Words Announces New SF/F Writing Workshop
locusmag.com – Tuesday December 21, 2021
Aspen Words, a longstanding literary program of the Aspen Institute, has announced the addition of a new Sci-Fi/Fantasy Writing Workshop, led by author Fonda Lee, expanding their current workshop offerings into genre literature.
The workshop is sponsored by the General Motors’ Future Fiction Collective, which “aims to decolonize the sci-fi/fantasy genre by increasing the diversity of authors and readers in STEM based literature.” They will provide 10 scholarships for writers to participate in the workshop with a focus of “including underrepresented groups and creating a diverse class.”
Strange and Janson-Smith join Gleam Futures
thebookseller.com – Wednesday December 15, 2021
Adam Strange has joined Gleam Futures as head of publishing while Oscar Janson-Smith has been appointed as literary agent.
Strange (pictured above) arrives at the titles division of the talent management and influencer marketing company after three years running publishing consultancy Strange Media. Before this, he spent 12 years as publisher of the Sphere non-fiction list at Little, Brown, where he worked with a wide variety of authors including Gwyneth Paltrow, Rafael Nadal, Billy Connolly, Val McDermid, Richard Herring and Kevin Pietersen, and with brands ranging from Candy Crush to "The Great British Bake Off".
In his new role, Strange will represent the publishing activities of the agency’s roster of more than 50 entertainment and digital-first talent, as well as working with new authors from emerging and untapped genres who use digital and social media to build narratives and grow audiences.
Charlie Campbell agency renamed Greyhound as Edenborough joins
thebookseller.com – Thursday December 9, 2021
Charlie Campbell Literary Agents will be renamed Greyhound Literary, with Sam Edenborough joining the organisation at the beginning of January 2022 as director and co-owner.
Edenborough (pictured) is leaving The Intercontinental Literary Agency (ILA), where he has been a director and agent. Over the past 20 years he helped to develop the agency’s broad roster of client agencies and publishers, selling rights for a wide range of English-language authors, including prize-winners and global bestsellers.
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