ABC Books acquires Om memoir
16 April 2021
HarperCollins Australia has acquired ANZ rights to ABC 7.30 reporter Jason Om’s debut memoir All Mixed Up, via Benython Oldfield of Zeitgeist Agency, to be published under the ABC Books...
Folio Books to relocate
16 April 2021
Brisbane’s Folio Books is closing temporarily, due to the planned demolition of the building in which the store is located. The store, which is holding a sale on all stock...
ABA 2021 conference program announced
16 April 2021
The Australian Booksellers Association (ABA) has announced the first guests for its two-day conference, to be held in person and online from 20–22 June at the Wheeler Centre in Melbourne....
Australians, New Zealander shortlisted for 2021 Commonwealth Short Story Prize
15 April 2021
Four Australians and one New Zealander are among the finalists for the 2021 Commonwealth Short Story Prize. The Australian and New Zealand authors shortlisted are: A N King for ‘The...
Jeffrey wins 2020 Anne Elder Award for ‘Dead Bolt’
15 April 2021
Australian Poetry has named Ella Jeffrey as the winner of the 2020 Anne Elder Award for her debut poetry collection Dead Bolt (Puncher & Wattmann). 'Ella Jeffery’s Dead Bolt is an...
‘As Fast as I Can’ wins Readings Children’s Book Prize 2021
15 April 2021
Penny Tangey's middle-grade novel As Fast as I Can (UQP) has won the 2021 Readings Children's Book Prize. Readings bookseller and prize judge Clare Millar writes that the judging panel were...
Pan Mac sells ‘Heartsick’ to US, UK
14 April 2021
Pan Macmillan Australia has sold US and UK rights to debut nonfiction title Heartsick (Jessie Stephens) after ‘a highly contested auction’. US rights were sold to Henry Holt in a...
Program announced for APA BookUp conference
14 April 2021
The program has been announced for the Australian Publishing Association’s BookUp conference, which will run online and in-person in Sydney on Tuesday, 27 April. Hachette UK CEO David Shelley will...
PRH acquires Higgins memoir
14 April 2021
Penguin Random House Australia (PRH) has acquired a memoir by Brittany Higgins. Higgins, whose decision to speak publicly about her alleged rape in a ministerial office was one of the...
Hardie Grant acquires book on Australia–US relations
13 April 2021
Hardie Grant Books has acquired world rights in debut nonfiction work Our Exceptional Friend: Australia's fatal alliance with the United States by Melbourne academic Emma Shortis, via Martin Shaw at...
Booktopia partners with online ed-tech company Zookal
13 April 2021
Booktopia has become the exclusive supplier and fulfilment partner for online education technology company Zookal. Under the terms of the agreement, Booktopia will source, supply and distribute all of Zookal’s...
Magabala sells Janson’s ‘Benevolence’ to HarperVia
13 April 2021
Magabala Books has sold US and UK rights in Benevolence by Julie Janson to HarperCollins imprint HarperVia, in a deal negotiated by Natasha Solomun at The Rights Hive. ‘Benevolence is...
ABIA 2021 shortlists announced
12 April 2021
The shortlists for the 2021 Australian Book Industry Awards (ABIA) have been announced. The titles in each category are: General fiction book of the year The Dictionary of Lost Words...
Clifford moves to Ultimo with third crime novel
12 April 2021
Ultimo Press has acquired ANZ rights to Aoife Clifford's third novel When We Fall, via Clare Forster at Curtis Brown. Set in the the small Australian coastal town of Merritt, When...
Varuna 2021 First Nations Fellowships announced
12 April 2021
The recipients of the Varuna First Nations Fellowships for 2021 have been announced. The writers and their projects are: Krista Dunstan for her YA work ‘Noble Intentions’ Lisa Fuller for...
Clunes Booktown returns with month-long festival
9 April 2021
The town of Clunes in regional Victoria has announced the program for Turn the Page, a new ‘month-long celebration of the book’ to take place over three weekends in May....
ABIA Rising Stars 2021 shortlist announced
9 April 2021
The shortlist for the Australian Book Industry Awards (ABIA) 2021 Rising Star of the Year Award has been announced. The Rising Star Award is given to an emerging talent in...
Black Inc. acquires Plibersek biography
8 April 2021
Black Inc. has acquired world rights to a biography of Tanya Plibersek to be written by Margaret Simons, via Lyn Tranter at Australian Literary Management. ‘This book will tell the...
Rowe named New York Public Library Cullman Center fellow
8 April 2021
Australian writer Josephine Rowe has been named one of the 2021–2022 fellows of New York Public Library's Dorothy and Lewis B Cullman Center for Scholars and Writers. Rowe is one...
Romei steps down as literary editor
7 April 2021
The Australian newspaper’s literary editor Stephen Romei has left the role, with his last column published in the newspaper on Saturday, 3 April. ‘I have decided to step back from...
APA, writers festivals receive RISE funding
7 April 2021
The Australian Publishers Association (APA) will receive $566,000 in funding from the federal government’s Restart Investment to Sustain and Expand (RISE) fund, as announced in the latest round of RISE...
Australian Book Design Awards 2021 shortlists announced
6 April 2021
The shortlists for the Australian Book Design Awards, presented by the Australian Book Designers Association (ABDA), have been announced. Shortlisted titles in some of the categories are: Best Designed Commercial...
Bridgeman’s ‘The Subjugate’ to be adapted for TV
6 April 2021
Perth science fiction author Amanda Bridgeman's novel The Subjugate (Watkins) will be adapted into a dystopian crime thriller series by independent production companies Aquarius Films and Anonymous Content. The development...
Aurealis Awards 2020 finalists announced
6 April 2021
The finalists for the 2020 Aurealis Awards, presented for science fiction, fantasy and horror writing in Australia, have been announced. The finalists are: Best horror novel Soul Survivor (Daniel de...
Evans, Chun, Dabarera win Australian Picture Book Illustrator Awards
1 April 2021
The Society of Children’s Book Writers and Illustrators (SCBWI) has announced the winners of the inaugural Australian Picture Book Illustrator Awards. The winners in each category are: Established Illustrator Award...
NEWC awarded $50k Create NSW grant
1 April 2021
The New England Writers’ Centre (NEWC) has been awarded a $50,000 grant from Create NSW under its Arts Restart program. The funding is for NEWC's The Inside Story project, which...
JobKeeper wraps up; mixed reactions from indie booksellers, publishers
31 March 2021
The federal government’s JobKeeper wage subsidy scheme came to an end on Sunday, 28 March. In a survey conducted last year, Books+Publishing found none of the multinational publishers who responded...
New writing prize for Western Sydney
31 March 2021
WestWords and WestLit Libraries have announced a new writing competition for Western Sydney residents. With a prize pool of over $10,000, supported by Create NSW as part of Arts Restart,...
CBCA 2021 Book of the Year shortlists announced
30 March 2021
The Children’s Book Council of Australia (CBCA) has announced its 2021 Book of the Year shortlists. The shortlisted books in each category are: Older readers The End of the World...
Finnigan awarded inaugural Māori and Pasifika Publishing Scholarship
30 March 2021
Luke Finnigan has been awarded the inaugural Māori and Pasifika Publishing Scholarship. The scholarship, created by a collaboration between Whitireia Community Polytechnic Ltd and Penguin Random House New Zealand (PRH...