Local news | Books+Publishing

Inside the Australian and New Zealand book industry

Local news >

Parker-Chan wins two British Fantasy Awards

Tuesday, 27 September 2022
Australian writer Shelley Parker-Chan has won two categories at the 2022 British Fantasy Awards. Parker-Chan took out both best fantasy novel and best newcomer for She Who Became the Sun...

UQP acquires Plozza middle-grade novel

Tuesday, 27 September 2022
UQP has acquired ANZ rights to Meet Me at the Moon Tree, a new middle-grade novel by Shivaun Plozza. Meet Me at the Moon Tree follows 10-year-old Carina grieving the...

PANZ Book Design Awards 2022 winners announced

Monday, 26 September 2022
The winners of the 2022 Publishers Association of New Zealand (PANZ) Book Design Awards have been announced. The winners in each category are: Gerard Reid Award for Best Book Conversātiō...

PRH acquires Kirsten Holocaust memoir

Monday, 26 September 2022
Penguin Random House (PRH) has acquired ANZ rights to US-based Australian author Karen Kirsten’s Holocaust memoir Irena’s Gift, via Chris Bucci and Vanessa Kerr at Aevitas. Irena’s Gift tells the story of...

Booktopia directors resign

Wednesday, 21 September 2022
Four Booktopia directors, including chair Chris Beare, have announced their resignation from the company’s board. Fiona Pak-Poy, Judy Slatyer and Beare will resign from the board at the Booktopia AGM...

Kembrey to step down at UNSW

Wednesday, 21 September 2022
NewSouth Books sales and marketing manager Jane Kembrey has announced her retirement after 25 years at UNSW Press, having started with the organisation in 1997. 'Anyone who has worked with...

Pantera acquires Colley fiction debut in two-book deal

Wednesday, 21 September 2022
Pantera Press has acquired world rights for debut novel The Next Big Thing by writer and comedian James Colley through Creative Representation, in a two-book deal. Pantera said The Next...

City of Fremantle Hungerford Award 2022 shortlist announced

Wednesday, 21 September 2022
The shortlist for the 2022 City of Fremantle Hungerford Award has been announced. The shortlisted manuscripts are: ‘The Slow Patience of the Sea & other stories’, a collection of short...

Ryckmans steps down at CWF

Wednesday, 21 September 2022
Canberra Writers Festival (CWF) has announced artistic director Jeanne Ryckmans is stepping down from the role. Ryckmans, who was appointed to the role in late 2019, said it had been...

A&U acquires Nadesalingam memoir

Tuesday, 20 September 2022
Allen & Unwin (A&U) has acquired world rights to a memoir by Priya Nadesalingam. Following the national interest generated by community supporters over several years in the ‘Home to Biloela’...

ACT Book of the Year 2021 shortlist announced

Tuesday, 20 September 2022
The shortlist for the 2021 ACT Book of the Year, which recognises ‘quality contemporary literary works’ by authors based in the ACT, has been announced. The shortlisted books are: Oil...

Sony acquires ‘Horse’ screen rights

Monday, 19 September 2022
Screen rights to Geraldine Brooks’s most recent novel Horse (Hachette) have been acquired by Sony’s 3000 Pictures ‘in a competitive situation’, according to Deadline. Brooks’ novel tells the story of...

Bublitz sweeps 2022 Ngaio Marsh Awards

Monday, 19 September 2022
New Zealand author Jacqueline Bublitz has won both the Best Novel and Best First Novel categories at the 2022 Ngaio Marsh Awards, for her debut Before You Knew My Name...

MWF 2022: box office ‘comparable’ to previous 10-day festivals

Friday, 16 September 2022
The first in-person Melbourne Writers Festival (MWF) since 2019 wrapped up on Sunday, 11 September following a four-day program comprising 150 events with over 270 guests. Taking place in venues...

Environment Award for Children’s Literature, Karajia Award 2022 winners announced

Friday, 16 September 2022
The Wilderness Society has announced the winners of the 2022 Environment Award for Children’s Literature and the inaugural Karajia Award for First Nations children’s storytelling. The winners in each category...

NT Literary Awards 2022 winners announced

Friday, 16 September 2022
The winners of the 2022 Northern Territory Literary Awards, which celebrate the unpublished work of established and emerging NT writers, have been announced. Winners in seven categories were announced, including:...

Riwoe, Beudel awarded Copyright Agency author fellowships

Thursday, 15 September 2022
The Copyright Agency has awarded $80,000 writing fellowships to Mirandi Riwoe and Saskia Beudel. Riwoe received the Author Fellowship to write her novel A Short History of Longans, a story...

ADS adds Toll, resources; outlines improvements at XL

Thursday, 15 September 2022
Alliance Distribution Services (ADS) has added Toll as a delivery partner alongside its leading freight partner XL Express, which ADS reports it has ‘worked closely with’ on improvements for Christmas...

Cronk debut sells to US

Thursday, 15 September 2022
Sally Bird at Calidris Literary Agency has sold world rights to Australian author Evelyn Cronk’s debut novel Without Question to US publisher Level Best Books, which specialises in contemporary and...

Deakin, Copyright Agency announce $20K children’s author residency

Thursday, 15 September 2022
Deakin University and the Copyright Agency have partnered to create a new residency for children's authors. The Deakin University/Copyright Agency Children’s Writer-in-Residence program offers a $20,000 stipend and a three-month...