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New publisher Vitagraph launches literary journal

Monday, 22 April 2024
New independent publishing house Vitagraph Publishing has launched Written Off, a new literary journal dedicated to Australian literature. Vitagraph said Written Off will highlight the work of writers with broad...

Ferris receives inaugural Meanjin InPlace residency

Monday, 22 April 2024
Literary journal Meanjin has announced Ella Ferris as the inaugural recipient of the Meanjin InPlace residency. Ferris is a Taribelang writer, actor, theatre maker and poet, who now lives on...

Michael Gifkins Prize 2024 longlist announced

Monday, 22 April 2024
Text Publishing and the New Zealand Society of Authors Te Puni Kaituhi O Aotearoa (PEN NZ Inc) have announced the longlist for the 2024 Michael Gifkins Prize for an unpublished...

Student-run Elephant Page Publishing launches at Curtin Uni 

Thursday, 18 April 2024
A new student press, Elephant Page Publishing, has been established at Curtin University in Perth (Boorloo), Western Australia. Curtin University’s professional writing and publishing senior lecturer Per Henningsgaard is serving...

Pantera acquires Sursok memoir 

Photograph of Tammin Sursok Wednesday, 17 April 2024
Pantera has acquired world rights to an as-yet-untitled memoir from Tammin Sursok. Among many other roles—including producing, directing, writing, music, media appearances, and entrepreneurship—Sursok is known as an actor who...

BookPeople 2024 Book of the Year shortlists announced

Book people logo Wednesday, 17 April 2024
BookPeople has announced the shortlists for its Book of the Year awards. The shortlists for each category are: Adult fiction Lola in the Mirror (Trent Dalton, Fourth Estate) Green Dot (Madeleine Gray,...

black&write! Writing Fellowships shortlist announced 

Tuesday, 16 April 2024
The State Library of Queensland (SLQ) has announced the shortlist for this year’s black&write! Writing Fellowships. The six shortlisted writers are: Skye Cusack, for the young adult novel ‘The Dangers...

Affirm acquires Ferguson ‘feminist manifesto’ 

Tuesday, 16 April 2024
Affirm Press has acquired world rights to an as-yet-untitled second nonfiction book from Hannah Ferguson. Described by the publisher as a ‘no-bullshit, no-frills guide to your twenties’, Ferguson’s 'new feminist...

BookPeople 2024 conference program announced

Book people logo Thursday, 11 April 2024
BookPeople has announced the program for its 100th anniversary conference and trade exhibition, to be held at Pullman Melbourne on the Park on 14 to 17 June. Yuwaalaraay storyteller and...

UQP acquires Bigna middle-grade verse novel 

Thursday, 11 April 2024
The University of Queensland Press (UQP) has acquired world rights to debut author Sandy Bigna’s middle-grade verse novel Little Bones, in a two-book deal via Danielle Binks of Jacinta di...

Hazard to leave Hachette 

Thursday, 11 April 2024
Hachette Australia and New Zealand has announced group publishing director Fiona Hazard is leaving the role ‘to pursue other opportunities’. Hazard joined Hodder Headline in 1999 as publishing manager before...

BookPeople Book of the Year longlists announced

Thursday, 11 April 2024
BookPeople has announced the longlists for its Book of the Year awards. The longlists for each category are: Adult fiction Lola in the Mirror (Trent Dalton, Fourth Estate) Green Dot...

PRH acquires Clark romantasy duology 

Thursday, 11 April 2024
Penguin Random House (PRH) Australia has acquired rights to a romantasy duology from Tasmanian debut author Sophie Clark, as part of a global PRH co-publishing deal with Knopf in the...

Catton shortlisted for 2024 Carol Shields Prize for Fiction

Cover of Birnam Wood by Eleanor Catton Wednesday, 10 April 2024
Eleanor Catton has been shortlisted for the 2024 Carol Shields Prize for Fiction, worth US$150,000 (A$226,245). The full list of shortlisted titles includes: Birnam Wood (Eleanor Catton, Granta) Daughter (Claudia...

Ambrose joins HarperCollins 

Photograph of Sophie Ambrose Wednesday, 10 April 2024
HarperCollins Australia has appointed Sophie Ambrose to the role of publisher, commissioning nonfiction for the ABC Books and HarperCollins imprints. Ambrose replaces Georgia Frances King, who will leave HarperCollins on...

Huia wins 2024 Bologna Prize, Oceania region

Wednesday, 10 April 2024
Huia Publishers, based in Aotearoa New Zealand, is the 2024 Oceania winner of the Bologna Prize (BOP) for the Best Children’s Publisher of the Year. The Māori-owned independent publisher has...

ILF wins Astrid Lindgren Memorial Award 2024

Wednesday, 10 April 2024
The Indigenous Literacy Foundation (ILF) has won the 2024 Astrid Lindgren Memorial Award (ALMA), worth five million Swedish kronor (A$710,000). The ILF was announced as the winner at a live...

Hachette acquires Farnham memoir 

Tuesday, 9 April 2024
Hachette Australia has acquired world rights to The Voice Inside, a memoir by John Farnham. The book is written in partnership with Poppy Stockell, director of 2023 Farnham biopic Finding...

NYWF called off for 2024 

Monday, 8 April 2024
The National Young Writers’ Festival, held annually in Newcastle, NSW, will not go ahead this year. Organisers said they are pausing its annual programming to ‘plan, reassess and re-design the...

Affirm acquires rights to Welgemoed cookbook 

Photograph of Duncan Welgemoed Monday, 8 April 2024
Affirm Press has acquired world rights to Cooking with Fire by chef and founder of Adelaide restaurant Africola, Duncan Welgemoed. Welgemoed, who was born in South Africa, was head chef...

UWAP acquires On’s third poetry collection 

Thursday, 4 April 2024
UWA Publishing (UWAP) has acquired world rights to Essence, Thuy On’s third collection of poetry. On said the collection is titled Essence ‘because essentially that’s what poetry is about, stripping...