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Larrikin House acquires two junior fantasy series 

Tuesday, 14 November 2023
Larrikin House has acquired world rights to two junior fantasy fiction series from Louise Park and collaborators—the Boy vs Beast series (co-written with Susannah McFarlane, writing as Mac Park), which...

Nielsen reports consistent Black Friday sales boost 

Monday, 13 November 2023
Nielsen BookData has reported a five-year trend of increasing print book sales during the annual Black Friday retail promotion in Australia. Since 2017, volume sales in the Australian book market...

Phillips wins 2023 Bragg Prize

Monday, 13 November 2023
Nicky Phillips has won the 2023 UNSW Press Bragg Prize for Science Writing for her essay ‘Trials of the heart’. In the winning essay, Phillips ‘illuminates the scientific evidence presented...

Upswell acquires Jones poetry book 

Thursday, 9 November 2023
Upswell Publishing has acquired world rights to The Empty Grandstand, the first book of poetry by Aotearoa New Zealand author Lloyd Jones. ‘Lloyd Jones was seven years old the first...

Cathro to leave Campion in 2024 

Monday, 6 November 2023
Campion Education managing director James Cathro will leave his position in late 2024, after over 25 years with the company. In a statement, Cathro said: ‘After more than two decades...

Woollahra Digital Literary Award shortlists announced

Monday, 6 November 2023
The shortlists for the 2023 Woollahra Digital Literary Award have been announced. The shortlisted works in each category are: Fiction  'The Life of a Folk Devil' (Michael Mohammed Ahmad, Meanjin)...

Danger Awards 2023 winners announced

Friday, 3 November 2023
The winners of the 2023 Danger Awards have been announced at the BAD Sydney Crime Writers Festival. Novelist Chris Hammer, who took out the award for best crime fiction, has...

Sawyer wins 2023 Richell Prize 

Logo for the Richell Prize, featuring a swooping bird Thursday, 2 November 2023
Alex Sawyer is the 2023 winner of the Richell Prize for Emerging Writers for the manuscript ‘Rat Daniels’, Hachette Australia has announced. Sawyer is a clinical psychologist, volunteer firefighter and...

Hobart named a UNESCO City of Literature

Thursday, 2 November 2023
The United Nations’ cultural arm UNESCO has named Hobart a City of Literature. The Hobart City of Literature Working Group (HCLWG) was formed in January 2023 to present the bid...

Australian Reading Hour to end

Thursday, 2 November 2023
Australia Reads will retire its annual Australian Reading Hour event in favour of 'a practical, unified, and year-round approach to advocating for reading in Australia'. In a statement, Australia Reads...

Ottley wins at World Fantasy Awards

Tuesday, 31 October 2023
Australian author, visual artist and composer Matt Ottley has been recognised in the category of special award—professional in the 2023 World Fantasy Awards for his book The Tree of Ecstasy...

Lim, Sworder on 2024 IBBY Honour List

A combined image of the covers of Tiger Daughter and My Strange Shrinking Parents Tuesday, 31 October 2023
IBBY Australia has announced its 2024 selection for the biennial IBBY Honour List: for writing, Rebecca Lim’s Tiger Daughter (A&U, 2021), and for illustration, Zeno Sworder’s My Strange Shrinking Parents...

Shaw sells US and Canada rights to Adam novel 

Monday, 30 October 2023
Martin Shaw from Shaw Literary has sold North American rights to Aotearoa New Zealand author Pip Adam's latest novel, Audition. Audition was acquired in the US by Coffee House Press...

HarperCollins acquires Almond debut novel 

Author photo of Alexandra Almond Monday, 30 October 2023
HarperCollins has acquired ANZ rights to Alexandra Almond's debut fantasy novel, titled Thoroughly Disenchanted, via Abigail Nathan at Alex Adsett Literary. Described by the agent as a ‘cosy fantasy’, Thoroughly...

HarperCollins acquires debut crime novel The Wolf Tree 

Thursday, 26 October 2023
HarperCollins has acquired UK and Commonwealth rights (excluding Canada) to Laura McCluskey’s debut novel The Wolf Tree in a two-book deal. HarperCollins fiction publisher Anna Valdinger and HarperCollins UK publisher,...

Crawford wins inaugural Walker Books Manuscript Prize

An author photograph of Ange Crawford Thursday, 26 October 2023
Melbourne-based writer Ange Crawford has won the inaugural Walker Books Manuscript Prize for her YA novel, How to Be Normal. The shortlist was judged by authors Sally Murphy, Jared Thomas...

Master, Liang, Lien win 2023 Readings Prizes

Wednesday, 25 October 2023
Readings has announced Maryam Master, Ann Liang, and Tracey Lien as the 2023 winners of the Readings Prizes at an event at Readings Emporium, Melbourne, on 25 October. The winning...

HarperCollins acquires Fedler novel 

Author photograph of Joanne Fedler Tuesday, 24 October 2023
HarperCollins has acquired ANZ rights to The Whale’s Last Song, a novel from Joanne Fedler, via Lou Johnson of Key People Literary Management. In this novel, described by the publisher...

Carbis shortlisted for international poetry award

Tuesday, 24 October 2023
The poetry collection I Have Decided to Remain Vertical (Puncher & Wattmann) by Melbourne poet and creative writing teacher Gayelene Carbis has been shortlisted for the Welsh-based Poetry Book Awards. The shortlist...

Ultimo acquires Wolhuter novel 

Tuesday, 24 October 2023
Ultimo Press has acquired Louise Wolhuter’s novel Shadows of Winter Robins. The novel follows Winter Robins, a young child from the north of England who’s sent to live in Western...

SPN Book of the Year shortlist announced

Monday, 23 October 2023
The Small Press Network has announced the shortlist for the 2023 Book of the Year (BOTY) award. The shortlisted titles are: Against Disappearance: Essays on memory (ed by Leah Jing...

Skovron wins 2023 Patrick White Award

Monday, 23 October 2023
Victoria-based author Alex Skovron is the winner of this year’s $20,000 Patrick White Award. The award recognises Skovron’s achievements as a poet and fiction writer. Born in Poland, Skovron lived briefly...

Jones, Mellor win Historical Novel Prize

Friday, 20 October 2023
Gail Jones has won the $50,000 ARA Historical Novel Prize in the adult category for Salonika Burning (Text), while Amelia Mellor has won the $30,000 children and young adult (CYA) category...

Rural and regional writers’ festival programs announced

Thursday, 19 October 2023
Several rural and regional writers’ festivals have announced details about their upcoming events. Blue Mountains Writers' Festival The Blue Mountains Writers’ Festival, presented by Varuna, the National Writers’ House, will...