Sky Studios to inspire next generation of Northern writing talent
prolificnorth.co.uk – Sunday March 14, 2021
Sky Studios has partnered with writing development agency, New Writing North to inspire the next generation of television writers.
Sky Writes has been created to help “diversify the pool” of scriptwriters and will offer an introduction to writing for television for people from under-represented groups and under-served geographical areas in the North of England.
“We are delighted to be working with Sky Studios on this initiative. The programme is an effective and innovative way of addressing issues that we know make it hugely challenging for underrepresented writers to break into screenwriting,” explained Will Mackie, Senior Programme Manager (Writing and Awards) at New Writing North.
“We know that our region is bursting with talent and through a programme like Sky Writes we’re looking to offer the kind of grassroots development that has the potential to open doors and create meaningful long-term opportunities. We have recruited inspirational and hard-working Programme Producers and Writers in Residence to carry out this work.”
Harrogate Crime Writing Festival set to make summer comeback
examinerlive.co.uk – Friday March 12, 2021
Theakston Old Peculier Crime Writing Festival is set to return to Harrogate this summer.
Harrogate International Festivals confirmed today that plans are in place for the event to run at the Old Swan Hotel from July 22-25.
Organisers hope the festival will be able to go ahead live and are adapting operational plans to ensure this can happen in a safe and covid-secure way.
In a statement on its website, Harrogate International Festivals said: “We are working hard on 2021’s Festival and have ambitions to run a live event in July.
Glasgow Caledonian University opens TV script writing opportunity
glasgowtimes.co.uk – Friday March 12, 2021
A GLASGOW university is on the hunt for experienced writers to help create a climate change drama.
The three year PhD programme at Glasgow Caledonian University will produce a script that will encourage viewers to consider the UN’s Sustainable Development Goals.
Dr Catriona Miller, senior lecturer in MA TV Fiction Writing, said: "Drama has a huge capacity to start conversations."
The prospective script will be inspired by shows like The West Wing and The Thick of It.
Candidates will be expected to produce a dissertation as well as a completed script.
SoA and WGGB launch vanity publishing investigation
thebookseller.com – Saturday March 6, 2021
The Society of Authors (SoA) and the Writers’ Guild of Great Britain (WGGB) have launched a joint investigation into so-called vanity publishing following a sharp rise in complaints.
Unions say members are increasingly contacting them about “hybrid”, “contributory” and “partnership” publishers — more commonly called vanity publishing — which charge authors to release their work.
Issues reported range from aggressive marketing tactics and emotionally manipulative sales approaches to opaque contracts and processes, and services that fall short of expectations. Unions say the fees charged are typically four or five figures, often with the authors surrendering a wide range of rights and control over their work.
Both organisations say they are concerned about exploitative practices and are beginning an investigation with a survey on the financial and contractual impact for writers. The survey, which runs until 25th April, aims to form a picture of the experiences, both positive and negative, of authors who have been approached by or worked with these publishers.
Interested in writing short stories? Here's your chance to have your work featured on RTÉ
derrynow.com – Tuesday March 2, 2021
The RTÉ Short Story Competition 2021 in honour of Francis MacManus is now open for entries, the broadcaster announced today.
Writers have until Friday, May 7 to submit their short story to the competition, which will be judged by writers Lisa McInerney, Declan Hughes and Lucy Caldwell.
Since its inception 35 years ago, the RTÉ Short Story Competition has been a critically important launchpad for new and emerging writers in Ireland.
Festivals 2021: Theakston Old Peculier Crime Writing Festival gets green light with programme from Ian Rankin
thescottishsun.co.uk – Saturday February 27, 2021
BOOK lovers have been given something to cheer about this week after the announcement Theakston Old Peculier Crime Writing Festival WILL go ahead this year.
And Scottish fans will have an extra interest this year - with the programme being put together by Tartan Noir legend Ian Rankin.
Bosses behind the world-famous event in Harrogate have taken the decision to go ahead with the 2021 fest after last year's event was axed because of Covid.
And literature buffs can't wait to get to see their favourite writers in the flesh - with over 80% of early ticket bookers for the 2020 Festival having already transferred their tickets.
SMU’s Dallas Literary Festival Goes Virtual
prestonhollowpeople.com – Wednesday February 24, 2021
The theme of the Dallas Literary Festival, hosted by SMU, is a fitting one for the times — turbulence.
The free, virtual program will be from March 26-28. For the full schedule and to register, visit dallasliteraryfestival.org.
The event begins at 5:30 p.m. March 26, with Alice Johnson, author of After Life: My Journey from Incarceration to Freedom in a keynote conversation with Mitchell Jackson, author of Survival Math. March 27-28 will be devoted to panels, readings and author interviews featuring New York Times columnist and author of The Devil You Know: A Black Power Manifesto Charles M. Blow, the first Native American Poet Laureate of the U.S. and author of the memoir Crazy Brave Joy Harjo, Pulitzer Prize in poetry winner and author of Leadbelly and Olio Tyehimba Jess, the author of Where Reasons End and Must I Go Yiyun Li, and the author of the Pulitzer Prize-winning biography Sontag: Her Life and Work Ben Moser.
Lit Agent Brooks Sherman Leaves Agency, Dropped by Authors
publishersweekly.com – Sunday February 21, 2021
Literary agent Brooks Sherman is no longer affiliated with Janklow & Nesbit Associates, where he has worked since 2017. He has also recently been dropped by a number of his clients, most prominently Angie Thomas, whose bestselling YA novel The Hate U Give has been added to school curricula around the country and was made into a film that grossed $35 million at the box office—and whose sale, at auction for a rumored six figures, cemented Sherman as a major player in the children's publishing world.
“We have parted ways,” Thomas told PW yesterday by telephone from her home in Jackson, Miss., confirming that the break took place within the past week. She declined to disclose why she parted ways with Sherman or who initiated the split, but Sherman told PW in an email that Thomas fired him, adding, “It was an honor to have an opportunity to work with her for the past five years.”
Creative Writing M.F.A. Student Launches Literary Magazine
news.uark.edu – Wednesday February 17, 2021
Samantha Campbell, a first-year M.F.A. student in fiction writing in the U of A Program in Creative Writing and Translation in the Fulbright College of Arts and Sciences has co-founded Black Moon Magazine, an online literary arts journal featuring fiction and poetry.
According to its mission statement, Black Moon Magazine "dedicates itself to the discovered intersections of mixed-medium, art, and diversity."
Why your favorite magazines are morphing into books
edition.cnn.com – Saturday February 13, 2021
Shopping in the pandemic often means buying supplies for working, cooking and exercising at home. But consumers are also looking for ways to pass the time, and for some, that means picking up a magazine while they're out and about.
Those who braved a drug store, supermarket or newsstand this past month may have seen in the magazine section copies of Better Homes & Gardens' "Secrets of Getting Organized," Delish's "Keto Comfort Foods" and Time's collector's edition on the Korean pop band, BTS.
But these are not traditional magazines. They are what some in the media industry call "bookazines" — a blend of books and magazines — and in recent years, they have become more crucial to publishers' success.
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