Features | Books+Publishing

Satire as celebration: Andrew Morgan on ‘Good on Paper’

Wednesday, 1 May 2013
In his debut novel Good on Paper (Hunter Publishers), Andrew Morgan has a lot of fun sending up the Australian publishing scene—but he’s keeping his source material close to his...

Self-published YA author Darrell Pitt on striking a deal with Text

Wednesday, 24 April 2013
Self-published YA author Darrell Pitt recently signed an eight-book publishing deal with Text. He reflects on his path to publication. It was a combination of hard work, perseverance and luck...

Editing across borders: Abigail Nathan on the highlights of the National Editors Conference

Wednesday, 17 April 2013
From 10-12 April, the Society of Editors (WA) was host to the sixth IPEd National Editors Conference in Fremantle. As ever, this was a marvellous opportunity for editors of all...

A sporting chance: Nicole Hayes on ‘The Whole of My World’

Tuesday, 9 April 2013
In reviewer Carody Culver’s words, Nicole Hayes’ debut YA novel The Whole of My World (Woolshed Press) ‘combines the heady world of AFL with a healthy dose of teenage angst...

Away with the faeries: Allyse Near on ‘Fairytales for Wilde Girls’

Tuesday, 9 April 2013
In her review of Fairytales for Wilde Girls (Random House), Bec Kavanagh describes Allyse Near’s literary debut as ‘a cobbled path leading deep into a forest, where the reader is...

On tour: Meet the author Raina Telgemeier

Monday, 8 April 2013
Graphic novelist Raina Telgemeier is a guest of the Centre for Youth Literature’s Reading Matters conference in Melbourne in May. Her autobiographical book Smile (Scholastic) was an international bestseller, and...

Booksellers respond to Indie, Stella and Miles Franklin awards

Friday, 5 April 2013
Over the past few weeks the winners of the Indie Awards, the shortlist for the Stella Prize and the longlist for the Miles Franklin Literary Award have all been announced....

On tour: Meet the author Carlos Ruiz Zafón

Friday, 5 April 2013
Spanish novelist Carlos Ruiz Zafón is visiting Australia and New Zealand in May. His first novel for adults The Shadow of the Wind was an international bestseller, as was its prequel...

Alex Adsett: Keeping up with contracts

Friday, 5 April 2013
Alex Adsett highlights new developments in publishing contracts, and where publishers and authors need to be wary. It has been interesting to watch the changes in the publishing industry playing...

In the aftermath: Kate Hendrick on ‘The Accident’

Friday, 5 April 2013
Kate Hendrick’s The Accident (Text, July) alternates between the perspectives of three characters who have lived through tragedy. The author spoke to Meredith Lewin. (Read the review here.) The Accident was shortlisted for...

Dreamtime tales: The collaboration of ‘More Stories from the Billabong’

Friday, 5 April 2013
Author James Vance Marshall and illustrator Francis Firebrace collaborated on More Stories from the Billabong (Walker Books, August). They spoke to Thuy On. (Read the review of More Stories from the Billabong here.) This...

Adaptation anticipation: Markus Zusak and Melina Marchetta on book-to-film adaptations

Friday, 5 April 2013
Forthcoming film adaptations of Markus Zusak’s The Book Thief and Melina Marchetta’s On the Jellicoe Road are already attracting pre-production buzz. Andrew Wrathall spoke to the authors. ‘Had someone told...

War stories: Lyn White on the ‘Through My Eyes’ series

Friday, 5 April 2013
Lyn White is the editor of ‘Through My Eyes’, a new fiction series for readers aged 11-14 that explores war through the eyes of children. She spoke to Meredith Lewin....

On tour: Meet the author Libba Bray

Friday, 5 April 2013
Libba Bray is a guest of the Centre for Youth Literature’s Reading Matters conference in Melbourne in May. Her latest book is The Diviners (A&U). What would you put on a...

Shelf talk: Fantastic fiction

Friday, 5 April 2013
We’re starting to get into convention and expo season, which makes it a good time to be looking at the state of sci-fi and fantasy sections. ID: The Second Machine...

Shelf talk: Classic comics

Friday, 5 April 2013
As MasterChef and My Kitchen Rules continue to dominate on TV, imagine a future where chefs rule the town like crime lords and people literally kill for a seat at...

Shelf talk: Strictly business

Friday, 5 April 2013
Will the decade we’re living in be known as the digital age? Only time will tell and, in the meantime, there’s a good range of business books to guide our...

Words as weapons: Max Barry on ‘Lexicon’

Friday, 5 April 2013
In Max Barry’s action-packed Lexicon (Mulholland, July), only one man survives a deadly attack on Broken Hill. The author spoke to Angela Meyer. (Read the review of Lexicon here.) Lexicon’s strong central concept...

North Melbourne exposure: Chris Saliba talks about North Melbourne Books

Friday, 5 April 2013
One year ago Chris Saliba and his partner, longtime bookseller Chris Hubbard, opened North Melbourne Books. Its bold red walls, generous supply of literary classics and cosy children’s section have been welcomed...

Editor’s picks: May 2013 and beyond

Friday, 5 April 2013
Andrea Hanke’s editor’s picks include a time-travelling serial killer and a modern-day divided Berlin. Going Deutsch Two German novels recently translated into English look promising, and make it easier to...

Your store: Melbourne booksellers bind together

Friday, 5 April 2013
In 2011 Embiggen Books owner Warren Bonett decided to relocate his store from Noosaville to Melbourne. His latest project, which is being run in conjunction with the Australian Booksellers Association...

Your store: Napkins a new format

Friday, 5 April 2013
Several Brisbane booksellers have also shown their collaborative side by participating in a recent flash fiction napkin project. Launched on Valentine’s Day, the project saw napkins bearing 300-word micro stories...

Jane’s advice: Jane Caro on bookselling and marketing

Friday, 5 April 2013
As a regular commentator on TV programs such as ABC’s Gruen Planet and the Drum, Channel 9’s Mornings and Channel 7’s Weekend Sunrise, Jane Caro has made a career out...

Talkback: determining the price of ebooks

Friday, 5 April 2013
How do you determine the price of your ebooks and do you ever run promotional discounts? Books+Publishing asked three publishers. Phoebe Wynne, digital manager, Black Inc. We determine our ebook...

On tour: Meet the author Hugh Howey

Friday, 5 April 2013
American author Hugh Howey is visiting Australia in April. His latest book is Shift (Century), the prequel to Wool. What would you put on a shelf-talker for your book? ‘Help! Don’t let them...

The ebook experience: pricing and marketing

Friday, 5 April 2013
Last year, Ruth Jelley interviewed several Australian fiction publishers—one large multinational, one medium-sized independent and one small independent—about their digital publishing programs. In this edited extract from her master’s thesis,...

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