Tourist trap: Luke Horton on ‘The Fogging’
20 May 2020
Luke Horton's debut novel The Fogging (Scribe, July) follows two Australian academics as their relationship breaks down while on holiday in Bali. Reviewer David Little described The Fogging as 'a...
Making connections: Cath Moore on ‘Metal Fish, Falling Snow’
13 May 2020
Cath Moore's debut YA novel Metal Fish, Falling Snow (Text, July) is an 'astonishingly original, heartfelt and funny' exploration of self-acceptance, identity and belonging, says reviewer Jacqui Davies. She spoke to...
Browsing online: how has book buying changed during the pandemic?
11 May 2020
Isolation, lockdown and the closure of physical bookstores have resulted in a massive spike in online retail. Books+Publishing investigates what book buying looks like during Covid-19 and asks whether the...
Will Covid-19 permanently change the book industry?
29 April 2020
As booksellers and publishers innovate their businesses in response to the Covid-19 lockdown, Books+Publishing's columnist Veronica Sullivan looks at which of their measures are only temporary, and which may be...
In our nature: Robbie Arnott on ‘The Rain Heron’
1 April 2020
The Rain Heron (Text, June), Robbie Arnott's follow-up to his 2018 debut Flames, blurs the line between reality and myth as its isolated protagonist is drawn to a soldier on...
Ten rules for successful remote working
1 April 2020
Pantera Press CEO Alison Green has extensive experience in working from home. Here, she shares her 10 rules for WFH success in a time of social distancing, explaining that ‘it's...
CYL may be gone but YA can still thrive through grassroots advocacy
25 March 2020
In her first op-ed as Junior columnist for 2020, Adele Walsh investigates the vacuum left by the shuttering of the Centre for Youth Literature last year, and what can be...
Australian bookshops respond to Covid-19
18 March 2020
Australian booksellers, like many retailers, are facing a big challenge right now. At this stage some shops have moved to online only, but many stores remain open and are trying...
‘Knowing your worth’: The UK publication highlighting female leadership in publishing
4 March 2020
The FLIP is a monthly newsletter that publishes interviews with women who are leading the way in the UK book industry. Andrea Hanke spoke with co-founder Ella Horne about the...
The elephant in the room: Chris Flynn on ‘Mammoth’
28 February 2020
Chris Flynn’s third novel Mammoth (UQP, May) handles an ambitious conceit and makes it work, according to reviewer Brad Jefferies. Narrated by the fossil of a 13,000-year-old mammoth, the novel...
The bookseller’s dilemma: What bookstores won’t stock
26 February 2020
As conversations proliferate about cultural appropriation in literature, debates about whether—and how—bookstores should stock controversial books have been renewed. In her first column for 2020, Books+Publishing's new columnist Veronica Sullivan...
Why are booksellers leaving Leading Edge?
26 February 2020
A number of Australia’s most prominent independent booksellers are leaving Leading Edge Books in favour of a new buying group set up by the Australian Booksellers Association. Sarah Farquharson reports....
How did international book markets perform in 2019?
19 February 2020
Representatives from trade publications in the UK, Germany, France, Spain, Italy, Sweden and China have shared insights with Books+Publishing on how their respective markets fared in 2019. Across the regions,...
Fullers Bookshop celebrates 100 years of Hobart bookselling
12 February 2020
This year marks the 100-year anniversary of Fullers Bookshop in Hobart, which was opened by Bill Fuller, his wife Frances and Jim Boa on 16 February 1920. The shop was...
Making readers for life: Ursula Dubosarsky on her plans as Australian Children’s Laureate
12 February 2020
Prolific children’s author Ursula Dubosarsky has been chosen as the Australian Children’s Laureate. She spoke with Sarah Farquharson about her plans for her two-year term as laureate. What are you...
‘Changes start small’: Behind the union push at PRH
5 February 2020
Elena Gomez was part of a core team of editorial and publicity staff at Penguin Random House Australia (PRH) who initiated collective bargaining with their employer last year, resulting in...
‘Books that matter and books that sell’: Industry predictions for 2020
30 January 2020
A rise in books tackling climate change and sustainability, personal development and wellbeing titles, and ‘uplifting’ fiction and nonfiction are all predicted by senior figures from across the book trade. Books+Publishing...
Pre-Christmas bestsellers: children’s book sales not enough to counter weak adult fiction and nonfiction sales
22 January 2020
Despite a Bluey-led boost to children’s book sales, the value of the Australian book market fell by over four percent, year-on-year, in the 10-week pre-Christmas period, with weaker adult fiction...
#AuthorsForFireys raises hundreds of thousands for bushfire relief
15 January 2020
The #AuthorsForFireys campaign closed on the evening of Saturday 11 January, raising an estimated hundreds of thousands of dollars for bushfire relief across the nation, according to reports from the...
What we’ll be reading in 2020
11 December 2019
Books+Publishing editors Sarah Farquharson and Kelsey Oldham share the books they're most looking forward to reading in 2020. Sarah Farquharson: Like many others, I was beside myself to learn that...
Book bites: Starting 2020 on the right note
11 December 2019
Mischa Parkee, teacher and children’s specialist at Sydney’s Better Read Than Dead, shares her top children's picks for the new year. What better way to bring in the new year...
To market, to market: Jane Curry on marketing
4 December 2019
Ventura Press publisher Jane Curry argues that despite the dominance of multinational publishers, there are still opportunities for small presses to flourish—and sell plenty of copies. This is my final...
Christmas predictions: Tim Gott from Devonport Bookshop
29 November 2019
In the lead-up to Christmas, the busiest time of year on the bookselling calendar, Books+Publishing is asking booksellers across the country to predict their biggest sellers and surprise sellers. In this first instalment for...
Stiff competition: Pandiella, Saras, Palmisano on their challenges and successes
27 November 2019
Book marketers face many challenges. How can you experiment with new trends within a limited budget and how do you find new readers when there’s so much competition for people’s...
Christmas predictions: Nat Latter from Rabble Books & Games in Perth
22 November 2019
In the lead-up to Christmas, the busiest time of year on the bookselling calendar, Books+Publishing is asking booksellers across the country to predict their biggest sellers and surprise sellers. In this instalment, Nat...
China ‘most active’ international market for Oz kids publishers: Insights from the China Shanghai International Children’s Book Fair
20 November 2019
A delegation of Australian publishers and agents attended this year’s China Shanghai International Children’s Book Fair (CCBF), which ran from 15–17 November. Wenona Byrne, Australia Council’s director of literature, reports...
Marketing to the gatekeepers: Karys McEwen on marketing books for young people
20 November 2019
In her final column for Junior, Karys McEwen explores what works (and what doesn’t) when marketing children’s literature to the people actually purchasing books—adults. When it comes to marketing literature to...
Christmas predictions: Sean Guy from the Bookshop Darwin
15 November 2019
In the lead-up to Christmas, the busiest time of year on the bookselling calendar, Books+Publishing is asking booksellers across the country to predict their biggest sellers and surprise sellers. In this first instalment...
New decade, new nonfiction: 2020 nonfiction preview
13 November 2019
New books by Bruce Pascoe, Julia Baird, Melissa Davey and Miranda Tapsell are among next year’s most anticipated releases. Sarah Farquharson rounds up the best locally authored nonfiction to look...
Not taking cues from Melbourne and Sydney: Sisonke Msimang on Perth Festival’s Literature & Ideas program
13 November 2019
Earlier this year writer Sisonke Msimang was appointed curator of Perth Festival's 2020 Literature & Ideas program, which will include events with local authors Bruce Pascoe, Melissa Lucashenko and Charlotte...
