Local news | Books+Publishing

Forbes inducted into ABDA hall of fame

Tuesday, 22 May 2018
Book designer Alison Forbes has been announced as the 2018 inductee into the Australian Book Design Hall of Fame. Forbes was the first full-time independent book designer in Australia, with...

Transit Lounge sells rights to Rawson’s ‘From the Wreck’ to Picador UK

Tuesday, 22 May 2018
Melbourne-based independent publisher Transit Lounge has sold world English-language rights (ex-ANZ) to Jane Rawson's 2017 novel From the Wreck. Picador UK associate publisher Ravi Mirchandani acquired rights to the literary speculative-fiction...

‘Just Another Week in Suburbia’ optioned for TV

Monday, 21 May 2018
Melbourne-based writer Les Zig’s literary novel Just Another Week in Suburbia (Pantera) has been optioned for film by Australian production company Truce Films. Zig signed the deal last month with...

‘Netflix for books’ launches in Australia

Monday, 21 May 2018
A new ebook and audiobook membership service has launched in Australia, after launching in the UK last November. Using a membership-based model, Bookchoice allows users to download up to eight...

Porter wins inaugural Michael Gifkins Prize

Monday, 21 May 2018
Auckland-based writer Ruby Porter has won the inaugural Michael Gifkins Prize for an unpublished novel for her novel Attraction. Chosen from a shortlist of three, Attraction centres on an unnamed...

MWF reveals Weinstein journalist Ronan Farrow as first guest

Friday, 18 May 2018
Melbourne Writers Festival (MWF) has announced that investigative journalist Ronan Farrow—whose reporting on allegations against Harvey Weinstein was central to the momentum of the #MeToo movement—will appear at this year’s...

Affirm’s Varuna Mentorship Award made more accessible for low-income earners

Friday, 18 May 2018
Affirm Press has announced changes to its mentorship program with Varuna the National Writers House, in order to make the award more accessible for low-income earners. This year, entrants with...

Magarey Medal 2018 shortlist announced

Friday, 18 May 2018
The Association for the Study of Australian Literature (ASAL) and the Australian Historical Association (AHA) have announced the shortlist for the 2018 Magarey Medal for Biography. The shortlisted titles are:...

Rose resigns from PRH

Thursday, 17 May 2018
Penguin Random House senior literary editor Meredith Rose has resigned from the company, following the departure of PRH Literary publishing director Ben Ball earlier this week. Rose confirmed her resignation...

Cowley awarded Order of New Zealand

Thursday, 17 May 2018
Children's author Joy Cowley has been awarded the Order of New Zealand, which recognises outstanding service to the state and people of the country. Described as one of New Zealand’s...

Authors create #SelfPubIsHere campaign to amplify self-publisher voices

Thursday, 17 May 2018
A number of self-published Australian authors, including Dionne Lister, A B Patterson and Lisa Fleetwood have pledged their support for a campaign to have self-publishing recognised and included in Australian...

2018 VIPs program explores crime genre, alternative formats

Wednesday, 16 May 2018
The Australia Council for the Arts ran the 2018 Visiting International Publishers (VIPs) program from 2-4 May, alongside the Sydney Writers’ Festival. Twelve international publishers attended the program, which included...

Ball departs PRH

Wednesday, 16 May 2018
Penguin Random House Australia (PRH) announced yesterday that PRH Literary publishing director Ben Ball has departed the company, as of Tuesday, 15 May. PRH said in a statement, ‘A review...

PRH acquires new Gordon picture book for 2019, world rights sold to Dial

Wednesday, 16 May 2018
Penguin Random House (PRH) has acquired Australian and New Zealand rights to a new picture book by Gus Gordon titled I Am Alice. The book is described as ‘an exquisite...

EWF 2018 program launched

Wednesday, 16 May 2018
The Emerging Writers’ Festival (EWF) has announced its 2018 program, which runs from 19-29 June in venues across Melbourne’s CBD and surrounding suburbs. Timmah Ball, Tony Birch and Neil Morris...

Adam wins 2018 New Zealand Book Award for fiction

Wednesday, 16 May 2018
Wellington writer Pip Adam has won the NZ$50,000 (A$45,930) Acorn Foundation Fiction Prize at the Ockham New Zealand Book Awards for her novel The New Animals (Victoria University Press). Judges...

SWF 2018: ticket sales down but box office third-highest in festival history; Lee tops bestsellers

Wednesday, 16 May 2018
This year’s Sydney Writers’ Festival (SWF) recorded 51,362 ticketed sales worth over $1.28 million—down on last year's earnings but still the third-highest box office earnings in the organisation’s history. The...

A&U to publish Winx book

Tuesday, 15 May 2018
Allen & Unwin will publish a book about world number one racehorse Winx in late October 2018. Gold Walkley winner Andrew Rule will author the official biography, Winx: Greatest of...

‘The Dry’ wins crime book of the year at British Book Awards

Tuesday, 15 May 2018
Jane Harper’s The Dry (Pan) has won the crime and thriller book of the year award at the British Book Awards. Harper said, ‘I’m absolutely thrilled that The Dry has...

‘Voiceworks’ to expand with online component in late-2018

Tuesday, 15 May 2018
Voiceworks has announced it will begin commissioning and publishing original online content later this year. Voiceworks editor Mira Schlosberg said the new digital publishing arm will publish interactive fiction, animated comics,...