“One of the last true immersive experiences”: QBD CEO Nick Croydon on the future of books
Wednesday, 1 July 2026
In this speech, delivered at the QBD conference in June, QBD CEO Nick Croydon makes the case for the future of books, as the bookselling chain celebrates 150 years in...
Jamir Nazir wins 2026 Commonwealth Short Story Prize for “The Serpent in the Grove”
Wednesday, 1 July 2026
Trinidadian writer Jamir Nazir has won the 2026 Commonwealth Short Story Prize for “The Serpent in the Grove”, the story of an impoverished Trinidadian farmer struggling to support his young...
Transit Lounge acquires Jenny Ackland’s “NORA”
Wednesday, 1 July 2026
Transit Lounge has acquired world rights to NORA, the fourth novel by author and podcaster Jenny Ackland, via the Jane Novak Literary Agency. Ackland, who lived and worked in Osaka...
John A Scott on “The Boy Who Loved Dolls”
Tuesday, 30 June 2026
John A Scott’s latest novel, The Boy Who Loved Dolls (Puncher & Wattman, September), is a literary mystery that blends surrealism, film theory, myth and psychological suspense. Books+Publishing reviewer Alex...
John A Scott recommends
Tuesday, 30 June 2026
I read increasingly less these days. My concentration isn’t what it used to be – and neither are my eyes. Having said that, early in 2025 I received a call...
Blake, Doust leave Simon & Schuster in publishing team reorganisation
Tuesday, 30 June 2026
At Simon & Schuster Australia (S&S), executive publishing director for adult publishing Cate Blake and Affirm Press commercial publisher Kelly Doust are leaving the business as part of a reorganisation...
More than 250 UK publishers opt in to collective AI licensing scheme
Tuesday, 30 June 2026
Over 250 UK publishers have opted in to the Publishers’ Licensing Services (PLS) scheme for collective AI licensing, reported the Bookseller. Launched at London Book Fair and developed with the...
McDonald appointed State Library Victoria CEO
Tuesday, 30 June 2026
The State Library Victoria (SLV) has appointed Vicki McDonald as CEO “following an extensive global search”. McDonald joins SLV following a 10-year tenure as the state librarian and CEO of...
Festival of Dangerous Ideas announces 2026 program
Tuesday, 30 June 2026
Festival of Dangerous Ideas will be held from 20 to 30 August 2026 at Carriageworks, Sydney, with a program that asks audiences “to confront the complex, urgent and uncomfortable ideas...
Create NSW announces details of new NSW literary fellowship program
Tuesday, 30 June 2026
Create NSW and Writing NSW have officially launched a new literary fellowship program that will offer 10 fellowships of $50,000 each. The $500,000 funding for the Stories Matter: NSW Literary...
Allen & Unwin acquires Lamble brothers’ “One More Step”
Tuesday, 30 June 2026
Allen & Unwin has acquired ANZ rights to One More Step: The Art of Never Giving Up by Lachlan and Stefan Lamble, known collectively as the “Lambros”, from Chris Giannopoulos...
Adam Sharp announced as 2026 Hedberg Writer-in-Residence
Monday, 29 June 2026
Nonfiction author, journalist and academic Adam Sharp has been named the 2026 Hedberg Writer-in-Residence at the University of Tasmania. Sharp receives a $32,500 stipend to cover three months of accommodation...
Upswell acquires Declan Fry’s “Fantasy Ransom”
Monday, 29 June 2026
Upswell Publishing has acquired world rights to Fantasy Ransom, the debut novel by Declan Fry, via Jenny Darling at Jenny Darling & Associates. Set against a backdrop of political unrest...
Blak & Bright announces first speakers for 2026 festival
Monday, 29 June 2026
Blak & Bright Writers Festival will run in Naarm/Melbourne from 3 to 6 September 2026. Guests so far announced for the festival include TV presenter and former AFL player Tony...
Karen Bartlett, Ben Lerner win 2026 Orwell Prizes
Monday, 29 June 2026
Karen Bartlett’s The Escape from Kabul (Duckworth Books) has won the 2026 Orwell Prize for Political Writing, while Ben Lerner’s Transcription (Granta) has won the Orwell Prize for Political Fiction,...
Upswell acquires Emily Ballou’s “Wait Here”
Thursday, 25 June 2026
Upswell Publishing has acquired world rights to Wait Here, a new volume of poems by Emily Ballou. A writer of poetry, fiction and screenplays, Ballou is the author of the...
Ultimo Press acquires SK Lynch crime novel
Thursday, 25 June 2026
Ultimo Press has acquired ANZ rights to SK Lynch’s novel Something He Did, via Alex Christie of Curtis Brown. Something He Did follows the story of Detective Claudia Russo, who...
Melbourne Kids Book Fest coming to Southgate Precinct
Thursday, 25 June 2026
Mary Martin Bookshop and The Little Bookroom have partnered to host the Melbourne Kids Book Fest on 2 and 3 October 2026 at the Southgate Precinct. The bookshops announced that...
Pink Shorts Press acquires Arantza Garcia Ferrand’s “Cotton-filled”
Thursday, 25 June 2026
Pink Shorts Press has acquired world rights to Cotton-filled, a memoir by Arantza Garcia Ferrand. The publisher describes the work as “an intimate coming-of-age memoir in images and words, inverting the colonial...
Allen & Unwin acquires Gyton Grantley’s “Il Dolce Fiasco”
Thursday, 25 June 2026
Allen & Unwin has acquired world rights to Il Dolce Fiasco by Gyton Grantley from Henrie Stride Management. La Dolce Fiasco tells “the inspiring and very funny story” of Grantley’s...
Wilson tops the charts at Words on the Waves
Thursday, 25 June 2026
Words on the Waves Writers Festival, held on the New South Wales Central Coast from 27 May to 1 June, has reported a 40% increase “in core ticket sales” for...
ANZL responds to “Guardian” top 100 novels with Southern Hemisphere Fiction 100 list
Thursday, 25 June 2026
The Academy of New Zealand Literature Te Whare Mātātuhi o Aotearoa (ANZL), a writer-led initiative developed to support and promote contemporary Aotearoa New Zealand writers, has released a list of...
Fino Books opens in Melbourne
Thursday, 25 June 2026
New bookshop Fino Books opened on 20 June in Melbourne’s Fitzroy North. With a brief of “finding inspiration new and old”, the store is stocking a mix of new and...
Carnegie Medal 2026 winners announced
Thursday, 25 June 2026
In the UK, the winners of this year’s Carnegie Medal for Writing, Carnegie Medal for Illustration and Shadowers’ Choice Medals have been announced. Beth O’Brien won both the Carnegie Medal...
Happy MF shortlist day
Wednesday, 24 June 2026
The Miles Franklin shortlist is out; Text is moving in with Penguin Random House; Sophie Higgins joins the Indigenous Literacy Foundation board; there’s a new edition of the Books Without...
Who is Evercreech? The micro publisher shortlisted for the Miles Franklin with its first book
Wednesday, 24 June 2026
Evercreech Editions is a micro press established in Lutruwita/Tasmania by author, editor, bookseller and writing teacher Adam Ouston, and My Heart at Evening by Konrad Muller, shortlisted for the 2026...
Text Publishing to move into PRH offices
Wednesday, 24 June 2026
Text Publishing will move into the Penguin Random House (PRH) offices from next week. As previously reported, the then independent Melbourne publisher became part of PRH in 2025, but the...
Commonwealth Foundation “satisfied that AI was not used” to write shortlisted stories
Wednesday, 24 June 2026
Following a review sparked by accusations of AI in stories shortlisted for its Commonwealth Short Story Prize, the Commonwealth Foundation has stated that it is “satisfied that AI was not...
Pink Shorts Press acquires Lara Day’s “Abakada”
Wednesday, 24 June 2026
Pink Shorts Press has acquired ANZ rights to Abakada, a memoir by Adelaide author Lara Day. The publisher describes Abakada as “an alphabetical memoir of country hopping and linguistic longing”....
IPEd releases second edition of “Books Without Barriers”
Wednesday, 24 June 2026
The Institute of Professional Editors (IPEd) has released the second edition of accessible publishing guide Books Without Barriers, co-published with the Australian Publishers Association. The free guide provides advice about...
