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Vale Jeannine Fowler 

a portrait of Jeannine Fowler Monday, 17 March 2025
Jeannine Fowler, former publicity director at Pan Macmillan Australia, has died. Pan Macmillan publicity and marketing director Tracey Cheetham writes: Pan Macmillan Australia is profoundly saddened to advise of the...

Penguin Literary Prize 2025 shortlist announced

Penguin Literary Prize logo Thursday, 13 March 2025
Penguin Random House Australia (PRH) has announced the shortlist for the 2025 Penguin Literary Prize. The shortlisted manuscripts are: ‘The Fear of Empty Spaces’ by Rachel Bowman (Brisbane, Qld) –...

Fagan wins 2025 Gordon Burn Prize

a portrait of Jenni Fagan Thursday, 13 March 2025
In the UK, Jenni Fagan has won the 2025 Gordon Burn Prize, worth £10,000 (A$20,566), for Ootlin (Hutchinson Heinemann). Selected from a shortlist of five that included Lucia Osborne-Crowley’s The Lasting...

PRH acquires new series by Johns and Mercer 

Rachael Johns, Mercedes Mercier Thursday, 13 March 2025
Penguin Random House Australia (PRH) has acquired world rights to The Number One Insta Detectives Agency and The Love Bomber by co-writers Rachael Johns and Mercedes Mercier. Rights were acquired...

Hussein named 2025 Kat Muscat Fellow

a portrait of Adalya Nash Hussein Thursday, 13 March 2025
Express Media and the Kat Muscat Custodial Committee have announced Adalya Nash Hussein as the 10th and final Kat Muscat Fellow. Selected from a shortlist of three, Hussein is a...

S&S acquires new Matthews fiction 

A photo of Amy Matthews. Wednesday, 12 March 2025
Simon & Schuster Australia (S&S) has acquired world rights to The House on Tinker Street by Amy Matthews in a two-book, six-figure deal via Sarah Younger at Nancy Yost Literary...

S&S acquires Reid memoir 

Wednesday, 12 March 2025
Simon & Schuster Australia (S&S) has acquired ANZ rights to Destination Moon, a memoir by former Formula One aerodynamicist and Lune Croissanterie founder Kate Reid, via Tara Wynne at Curtis...

Australia Reads announces LitUp 

Wednesday, 12 March 2025
Australia Reads has announced LitUp, a new live literature initiative for author events. The program will offer funding and support for 20 communities to host live literature events with writers...

UWA Publishing announces Spiers Prize 

The Spiers Prize logo Wednesday, 12 March 2025
UWA Publishing has announced the establishment of a new national children’s fiction manuscript prize in honour of Australian primary school teacher and philanthropist Gail Spiers. Announced to coincide with UWA...

Transit Lounge acquires Fyfe novel 

Wednesday, 12 March 2025
Transit Lounge has acquired world rights to The Cross Thieves by Alan Fyfe. The Perth-based author’s second novel is ‘tough, poetic and truly beautiful’, said publisher Barry Scott. ‘It is the...

Carnegie 2025 shortlists announced

Wednesday, 12 March 2025
In the UK, the shortlists for the Carnegie Medal for Writing and the Carnegie Medal for Illustration have been announced. The shortlisted titles in each category are: The Carnegie Medal...

Gender pay gaps revealed for book sector 

Tuesday, 11 March 2025
The Australian Government’s Workplace Gender Equality Agency (WGEA) has published data on gender pay gaps for the second year in a row through its Data Explorer, indicating that many large publishing...

Oldfield leaves SWF 

a portrait of Benython Oldfield Tuesday, 11 March 2025
Benython Oldfield has left the Sydney Writers’ Festival (SWF). Oldfield was the SWF media manager for 11 years, and is the co-director of Zeitgeist Agency with Sharon Galant. 'It’s time...

Morton wins 2025 UQP Quentin Bryce Award

a portrait of Rachel Morton Thursday, 6 March 2025
UQP has announced Rachel Morton as the winner of the 2025 UQP Quentin Bryce Award, worth $5000, for her novel The Sun Was Electric Light. The award, which recognises The...

Nero Gold, Audie award winners announced

the book cover for Maurice and Marilyn Thursday, 6 March 2025
In London, Maurice and Maralyn: An Extraordinary True Story of Shipwreck, Survival and Love by Sophie Elmhirst (Vintage), has won the 2024 Nero Gold Prize, worth £30,000 (AU$60,948), reports the...

HarperCollins acquires Nunn novel 

a portrait of Judy Nunn Thursday, 6 March 2025
HarperCollins Publishers Australia has acquired world rights to Pilbara by Judy Nunn, in a deal brokered by publishing director Brigitta Doyle and fiction and nonfiction publisher Roberta Ivers, with Karen...

Australian Book Design Awards 2025 longlists announced

Thursday, 6 March 2025
The longlists for the 2025 Australian Book Design Awards, presented by the Australian Book Designers Association (ABDA), have been announced. The longlisted titles in the first three categories, and the emerging...

Staff wins 2025 Hazel Rowley Literary Fellowship

Wednesday, 5 March 2025
Feminist historian Michelle Staff has been announced as winner of the 2025 Hazel Rowley Literary Fellowship, worth $20,000, at a ceremony at Adelaide Writers’ Week. Staff was awarded the fellowship...

Preliminary data shows 6.5% increase in US book sales

Wednesday, 5 March 2025
In the US, Publishers Weekly (PW) reports that, ‘preliminary data for the full year indicates that publishing industry sales increased 6.5% over 2023’, to US$14.18 billion (A$22.65b). The increase comes despite the...

Books+Publishing reviews gain support from Cultural Fund

books and publishing logo Wednesday, 5 March 2025
In 2025 for the first time, Books+Publishing’s pre-publication reviews program is being supported by the Copyright Agency’s Cultural Fund. This is the ideal time to revisit the reviews, their purpose,...

PRH acquires Laguna novel 

Sofie Laguna. Credit: Rochelle Van de Merwe Wednesday, 5 March 2025
Penguin Random House (PRH) Australia has acquired ANZ rights to The Underworld by Sofie Laguna; PRH publisher Meredith Curnow acquired the rights from Grace Heifetz at A4 Literary. PRH described...