Romance Novels Have A Major Diversity Problem, According To A Study From The Ripped Bodice Bookstore
bustle.com – Saturday October 7, 2017
According to a new study conducted by romance novel bookstore The Ripped Bodice, romance novels have a major diversity problem. Booksellers Leah and Bea Koch examined the catalogs for 20 publishers, and compiled the data in an infographic that alleges that less than 10 percent of the romance novels they published in 2016 were written by authors of color. The study only focused on traditional publishers, and does not include data for self-publishing and other non-traditional publishing methods.
Authors hit out at World Book Day for picking too many celebrity writers
telegraph.co.uk – Tuesday October 3, 2017
Top children's authors have hit out at World Book Day for picking £1 titles by a "clutch of celebrities" for next year's event.
In a post online David Almond, author of Skellig, wrote that "the nation's children are being shortchanged" by the decision to include four celebrity names among the ten chosen books.
Kingsford and Shukla crowd-fund BAME journal and literary agency
thebookseller.com – Friday September 22, 2017
The creators of The Good Immigrant, Nikesh Shukla and Julia Kingsford, are launching a crowd-funding campaign forThe Good Journal - a quarterly literary journal that will showcase UK BAME writers and lay the foundations for a new literary agency to champion under-represented voices.
According to Kingsford, the idea for the journal came about following the response to The Good Immigrant, which published exactly a year ago today (22nd September), and has now sold almost 50,000 copies across all editions to date.
Dutch publishers from Malmesbury open migration themed poetry competition
wiltsglosstandard.co.uk – Saturday September 16, 2017
A PUBLISHER based in Malmesbury has launched a poetry competition this autumn, asking entrants to discuss the topic of migration.
Bernadette Jansen op de Haar, who moved to the UK from the Netherlands in 1983, founded Holland Park Press in 2009 specialising in giving new English-language authors a chance to be published as well as promoting literature from her homeland.
US publishers' audio sales up 29% this year
thebookseller.com – Tuesday September 12, 2017
Downloaded audio revenues in the US rose 29% in the first four months of this year by comparison to the same period in 2016, with April in particular surging to a 34% year-on-year rise, according to the latest figures from the Association of American Publishers (AAP).
40 per cent discount for new film and screenplay contest
firstwriter.com – Tuesday September 12, 2017
The Zodiac International film competition is a brand new online film and screenplay contest using film freeway as the submission platform:
"We want to see your visions, hear your voices and be moved, thrilled, scared and engaged by your storytelling."
New Book for Beginners Looking To Write Saleable Non-Fiction Now Published
prweb.com – Friday September 8, 2017
International book publisher Bennion Kearny is delighted to announce the publication of Write From The Start: The Beginner’s Guide to Writing Professional Non-Fiction by Caroline Foster.
With publishing, web-based, and ‘gig’ opportunities for authors expanding every year, more and more people are looking to forge careers as professional writers. Write From The Start aims to shine a light on the world of nonfiction writing by offering a practical must-read resource for newcomers to the field.
Open call: writers respond to Hurricane Harvey
firstwriter.com – Friday September 8, 2017
From its founding, Gulf Coast has kept its home in Houston, Texas. Its mission to elevate diverse voices from across the globe has always been inspired by the multiplicity and vibrance of the community there. As Houston begins to recover from Hurricane Harvey, Gulf Coast looks to the many artists and writers who have already begun the difficult work of rendering the storm and its aftermath. Gulf Coast wants to provide a platform for these voices. Starting now, they are inviting submissions in response to Harvey. There is no reading fee and accepted work will be published on the Gulf Coast blog.
Call for Submissions from cahoodaloodaling
firstwriter.com – Wednesday September 6, 2017
Issue #24 – Solitude’s Spectrum
“The world breaks everyone, and afterward, some are strong at the broken places.” —Hemingway
Solitude—whether alone on the road in a car, train, motel room, or a forest trail, or even secluded and tucked away in your home, whether it’s a welcomed moment of peacefulness or a lonely state of despair—times of solitude shape us, recharge us, and break us down to our essence. Sometimes we choose to step away from the world. Sometimes the world breaks us and casts us aside. In those moments alone, if we make the choice to continue and create, true artists are born. We cross a border we cannot uncross and heal through our words, finding ourselves—and sometimes finding new selves in the process. As Hemingway said, sometimes we’re strong in those broken places, and sometimes we’re not. Sometimes that jagged broken part affects us forever afterward.
Amazon's Naggar tells publishers to slash e-book prices
thebookseller.com – Tuesday September 5, 2017
Amazon’s publishing chief David Naggar has said publishers should slash their e-book prices to 99p to sell more books. However, publishers have retorted that this move would be “economically unwise” and would damage the whole book supply chain.
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