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S&S acquires Aston’s ‘The Chairman’s Lounge’ 

An author photograph of Joe Aston Tuesday, 23 January 2024
Simon & Schuster (S&S) Australia has acquired world rights to The Chairman’s Lounge, an ‘explosive work of narrative nonfiction’ with 'fresh interviews and revelations' about Qantas’s handling of the Covid-19...

First Nations Storytelling funding recipients announced 

Creative Australia logo Tuesday, 23 January 2024
Creative Australia has announced the recipients of its Elevate: First Nations Storytelling (Literature) career development funding. The six successful applicants to share almost $60,000 through the program are: Tisha Perrurle...

Newbery, Caldecott, Printz 2024 winners announced

Tuesday, 23 January 2024
In the US, the American Library Association (ALA) has announced the winners of its Youth Media Awards, including the Newbery and Caldecott medals and the Printz award, reports Publishers Weekly (PW). Dave...

Atria sends influencer on ‘ultimate world cruise’

Monday, 22 January 2024
In the US, Atria Books has explained its decision to sponsor non-reader Marc Sebastian to travel the Antarctica leg of an 'ultimate world cruise', after some BookTok users criticised the...

Australian Romance Readers Awards 2023 finalists announced

Friday, 19 January 2024
The finalists for the 2023 Australian Romance Readers Awards have been announced. Ten authors have been shortlisted for the favourite Australian romance author category. They are: Alissa Callen Amy Andrews...

ANZ authors among 2024 Dublin Literary Award longlistees

Friday, 19 January 2024
Several books by Australian and Aotearoa New Zealand authors have been longlisted for the €100,000 (A$166,000) International Dublin Literary Award, the world’s most valuable annual prize for a single work...

Strong Christmas boosts 2023 book sales 

Cover of Lola in the Mirror Thursday, 18 January 2024
While book sales for the year overall were down on 2022 figures, 2023 finished strong, with Christmas sales up overall according to Nielsen BookScan figures. According to Nielsen, Australian sales...

DANZ Children’s Book Award longlists announced

DANZ logo Thursday, 18 January 2024
The longlists for the inaugural DANZ (Diversity in Australia and Aotearoa New Zealand) Children’s Book Award have been announced. The longlisted titles in each category are: Picture books Echo (Lisa...

New organisation to ‘certify’ fair AI

Thursday, 18 January 2024
In the US, the Association of American Publishers is among those supporting a new nonprofit organisation called Fairly Trained that aims to ‘certify fair training data use’ in generative AI,...

Roberts to leave Scribe 

Photograph of Cora Roberts Thursday, 18 January 2024
Scribe Publications has announced Cora Roberts is leaving her role as publicity director after more than 12 years at the company. Scribe publisher and CEO Henry Rosenbloom said: ‘Cora has been...

Audible to cut staff

Wednesday, 17 January 2024
Audible CEO Bob Carrigan, in a memo to staff, said that Audible is cutting its workforce, reports Publishers Weekly (PW). PW said the cuts are believed to be about 5%...

Explainer: Why did the costs of printing a book go up? 

Picutre of paper rolls on machines at a Norske Skog mill Wednesday, 17 January 2024
In 2022 when Books+Publishing reported on the increasing costs of print in Australia, IVE Group CEO Cliff Brigstocke said he had 'never witnessed such a challenging set of circumstances’ in...

HarperCollins acquires Dalgarno novel 

Photograph of Paul Dalgarno in front of a wooden fence Wednesday, 17 January 2024
HarperCollins has acquired ANZ rights to The Travelling Library by Paul Dalgarno, in a deal brokered by Martin Shaw of Shaw Literary. The Travelling Library is 'a tender coming-of-age story...

Küster appointed as director of CSIRO Publishing 

Photograph of Arend Kuster in front of greenery Wednesday, 17 January 2024
Arend Küster has been appointed as director of CSIRO Publishing. Previously in the role the director, academic affairs at Springer Nature, Küster had focused on building strategic relationships with government...

Australian book market down 2.1% in value 

Wednesday, 17 January 2024
The book market was down in Australia by 2.1% in value and 1.7% in volume, according to figures from Nielsen BookData's BookScan service. Nielsen's 2023 snapshot, covering 1 January to...

Indie Book Awards 2024 shortlists announced

logo for the Indie Book Awards Wednesday, 17 January 2024
The shortlists for the 2024 Indie Book Awards, presented by Leading Edge Books, have been announced. The titles shortlisted in each category are: Fiction Lola in the Mirror (Trent Dalton, Fourth...

Gougoulis to depart Text 

Tuesday, 16 January 2024
Alaina Gougoulis is departing her role as senior editor at Text Publishing, after almost 15 years at the company. Said Gougoulis: ‘I’ve worked at Text for nearly fifteen years, so...

Bookshop in Kerang to close

Tuesday, 16 January 2024
The Little Blue Book Shop in Kerang, Victoria, has announced that it will close at the end of March. Bookseller Amanda Day told Books+Publishing: ‘The business was doing okay until...

Pearl Prize finalists announced

Tuesday, 16 January 2024
Midsumma Festival has announced the 15 finalists for its inaugural Pearl Prize. The prize accepted entries of short pieces of unpublished prose and/or poetry from LGBTIQA+ writers and their allies...

Allen-Paisant wins 2023 T S Eliot Prize

The book cover of Jason Allen-Paisant's Self-Portrait as Othello Tuesday, 16 January 2024
In the UK, Jason Allen-Paisant has won the 2023 T S Eliot Prize, worth £25,000 (A$47,773), for his collection Self-Portrait as Othello (Carcanet Press), reports the Bookseller. Self-Portrait as Othello...

S&S announces staff restructure, new appointments 

Monday, 15 January 2024
Simon & Schuster (S&S) Australia has announced several staff changes, including the creation of several new roles, in a restructure following the resignation of international and client product director Caitlin...

Harper launches YA imprint

Harper Fire logo Monday, 15 January 2024
In the UK, HarperCollins Children’s Books (HCCB) is launching a new YA imprint, Harper Fire, reports the Bookseller. HarperCollins said the new imprint would be a chance to 'publish standout,...

2024 Hazel Rowley Literary Fellowship shortlist announced

the logo for Writers Victoria Thursday, 11 January 2024
Writers Victoria has announced the shortlist for the 2024 Hazel Rowley Literary Fellowship. The shortlist includes nine writers: Carolyn Dowley (WA), ‘for a biography of Sadie Canning, a Wongutha woman,...