Byron Writers Festival 2021 cancelled
14 July 2021
The 2021 Byron Writers Festival, scheduled to run 6–8 August, has been cancelled. ‘It is with a heavy heart we have made the decision to cancel Byron Writers Festival 2021,’...
UQP sells ‘The White Girl’ to HarperVia
14 July 2021
UQP has sold world English rights (ex ANZ) for The White Girl by Tony Birch to HarperCollins imprint HarperVia. The deal was handled by UQP rights manager Kate McCormack in...
A&U, Upswell, UQP among Cultural Fund recipients
14 July 2021
The Copyright Agency has announced the 25 successful recipients of a total $818,000 in funding from its Cultural Fund. The resurrected Age Book of the Year Award, Magabala’s Daisy Utemorrah...
Sharp steps down as SWF CEO; Webb, Williams to lead 2022 festival
13 July 2021
Chrissy Sharp has resigned as CEO of Sydney Writers' Festival (SWF) after three years in the role. A statement from the festival said: 'The phenomenal success of the 2021 festival...
Mildenhall announced as Varuna New Zealand residency exchange recipient
13 July 2021
Kate Mildenhall has been announced as the recipient of the inaugural New Zealand residency exchange, an international residency program held by Varuna, the National Writers’ House in collaboration with the...
Taperell appointed Hachette publicity manager
13 July 2021
Kate Taperell has been appointed to the position of publicity manager at Hachette Australia, where she will manage Hachette's publicity team. Taperell started her publicity career at Hachette in 2003...
Griffith Review announces Long and the Short of It competition winners
13 July 2021
Griffith Review has announced the recipients of its inaugural emerging voices writing competition. The four winning writers share in $15,000, courtesy of the Copyright Agency's cultural fund. The winners are:...
Kovats appointed Hachette head of sales
12 July 2021
Lil Kovats has been promoted to head of sales at Hachette Australia, effective immediately. In the role, Kovats will lead the sales team, represent the sales department to the publisher’s...
Text Prize 2021 shortlist announced
12 July 2021
The shortlist for the $10,000 Text Prize for Young Adult and Children’s Writing has been announced. The seven shortlisted manuscripts are: 'Dancing Barefoot’ by Alice Boyle (YA), a story about...
Nour, Barnette awarded Affirm Press Mentorships for Sweatshop Writers
12 July 2021
Affirm Press and Sweatshop have announced the recipients of the second round of the Affirm Press Mentorship for Sweatshop Writers. The recipients of the 2021 mentorships are African American writer...
Bancroft named inaugural SLNSW Aboriginal Creative fellow
9 July 2021
Bundjalung writer and artist Bronwyn Bancroft is the inaugural recipient of Create NSW’s State Library of NSW (SLNSW) NSW Aboriginal Creative Fellowship, worth $30,000. The fellowship supports a First Nations...
Aurealis Awards 2020 winners announced
9 July 2021
The winners of the 2020 Aurealis Awards, presented for science fiction, fantasy and horror writing in Australia, have been announced. The winners are: Best horror novel None Shall Sleep (Ellie...
Online Storytime pilot extended, awarded $30,000 funding
9 July 2021
The Australian Library and Information Association (ALIA) has announced its Online Storytime pilot will be extended by a further 12 months to December 2022, with the Australia Council providing $30,000...
Tablo launches traditional publishing imprint
8 July 2021
Online self-publishing platform Tablo Publishing is launching a new physical book imprint called Tablo Tales, led by Tablo creative director Jemma Birrell. Distributed in Australia and New Zealand by NewSouth,...
West awarded 2021 Reading Australia Fellowship
8 July 2021
The Copyright Agency has named Edwina West, from Sydney’s Oakhill College, as the 2021 Reading Australia Fellow for Teachers of English Literacy. West receives a grant of $15,000, which will...
New owner for the Turning Page Bookshop
7 July 2021
The Turning Page Bookshop, an independent bookshop in the Blue Mountains NSW, has been purchased by Peggy Miedlar. Previous owners Annie Sharkey and Alan Crooks had planned to transform the...
Four Centres Emerging Writers Publishing Program second round announced
7 July 2021
Fremantle Press has announced the Four Centres Emerging Writers Publishing Program has received government funding for a further two years, following a successful pilot program. The initiative between Fremantle Press,...
‘Ginnie & Pinney, Learn & Grow’ series optioned for TV
7 July 2021
Big Sky Publishing’s educational children's series Ginnie & Pinney, Learn & Grow has been optioned for development as a television series by Australian animation studio Moody Street Productions. Created by...
Booktopia restructures marketing team
6 July 2021
Booktopia has restructured its marketing division following recent changes to the business—including its ASX listing and the acquisition of tertiary retailer the Co-op—as well the growth of its Booktopia Publisher...
Griffith Review announces emerging voices competition longlist
6 July 2021
Griffith Review has announced the longlist for its inaugural emerging voices writing competition. The longlisted writers are: Claire Aman Brendan Colley Sonja Dechian Nicholas Duddy Declan Fry Alison Gibbs Lucas...
ACT Book of the Year 2020 shortlist announced
6 July 2021
The shortlist for the 2020 ACT Book of the Year Award has been announced. The shortlisted books are: Acting Like a Girl (Sandra Renew, Recent Work Press) Bodies of Men...
New indie bookshop for Perth’s western suburbs
5 July 2021
Open Book, a new independent bookshop, is opening in Mosman Park, Perth. The shop is situated on the main street of Mosman Park in a space that was previously a...
Centre for Stories announces Maria Pallotta-Chiarolli Fellowship
5 July 2021
Perth's Centre for Stories has announced a new fellowship, the Maria Pallotta-Chiarolli Fellowship for Writers. Open to mid-career writers under the age of 40, the annual fellowship is awarded to...
INSPIRE Writer in Residence initiative recipients 2021
2 July 2021
The recipients of the 2021 INSPIRE Writer in Residence initiative, offered by the National Trust of Western Australia in partnership with the Department of Local Government, Sport and Cultural Industries,...
Overington appointed literary editor at the Australian
2 July 2021
Caroline Overington has been appointed literary editor at the Australian newspaper. Overington is a Walkley Award winning journalist and the author of several books of nonfiction, including Davitt Award-winner Last...
Robotham wins CWA Steel Dagger
2 July 2021
Michael Robotham has won the UK Crime Writers’ Association (CWA) Ian Fleming Steel Dagger award for best thriller for his novel When She Was Good (Hachette). The judges praised Robotham’s...
Regional NSW literary festivals report success, StoryFest becomes biennial
1 July 2021
StoryFest 2021 was held on the South Coast of NSW between 18–20 June. In its second year, the festival invited readers and writers to the Milton-Mollymook-Ulladulla region for a weekend...
‘The Animals in that Country’ shortlisted for Arthur C Clarke Award
1 July 2021
In the UK, The Animals in that Country by Laura Jean McKay (Scribe) has been shortlisted for the Arthur C Clarke Award for science fiction. McKay’s novel, which won the...
Cosslett appointed PANZ president, NZ book sales receive pandemic boost
1 July 2021
The Publishers Association of New Zealand (PANZ) has appointed Graeme Cosslett as president of the PANZ council. Cosslett, who is director of the New Zealand Council for Educational Research (NZCER)...
Dymocks to add 25 stores as part of three-year plan
30 June 2021
Dymocks will launch its own range of non-book items in August this year, and aims to increase the size of the chain by adding 25 stores as part of a...
