Features | Books+Publishing

Authors survey: Indie publishing, satisfaction up; income ‘remains challenging’

Wednesday, 30 November 2022
Macquarie researchers Jan Zwar, Paul Crosby and David Throsby have released the findings of the team’s National Survey of Australian Book Authors, following on from a similar 2015 survey and...

Elfy Scott recommends

Tuesday, 29 November 2022
Gina Rushton’s The Most Important Job in the World (Macmillan) is a remarkable book (and I’m not just saying this because she was one of the brilliant journalists who I...

Elfy Scott on ‘The One Thing We’ve Never Spoken About’

Tuesday, 29 November 2022
Known for her accessible reporting on complicated issues, journalist and presenter Elfy Scott investigates complex mental health conditions in her debut book The One Thing We've Never Spoken About (Pantera,...

Books in the media this weekend, 26–27 November

Friday, 25 November 2022
A round-up of the books being reviewed and mentioned in key media this coming weekend. National The Saturday Paper Chokepoint Capitalism (Rebecca Giblin & Cory Doctorow, Scribe) The God of No...

Christmas predictions 2023: Amplify Bookstore

Wednesday, 23 November 2022
In the lead-up to Christmas, the busiest time of year on the bookselling calendar, Books+Publishing is asking booksellers across the country to predict their biggest sellers and surprise sellers. In this final...

Books on parade: 2023 children’s and young adult preview

Wednesday, 23 November 2022
From crowd favourites to debut authors, next year brings an exciting list of titles for children and young adult readers, with books on climate change, history and nature taking centre...

Books in the media this weekend, 19–20 November

Friday, 18 November 2022
A round-up of the books being reviewed and mentioned in key media this coming weekend. National The Saturday Paper Liberation Day (George Saunders, Bloomsbury) Salonika Burning (Gail Jones, Text) The...

True story: 2023 nonfiction preview

Wednesday, 16 November 2022
From a multitude of memoirs to deep-dives into sex and gender, from biographies of public figures to guides on coping with an uncertain future, here's a sneak peek at some...

Christmas predictions 2022: Petrarch’s Bookshop

Tuesday, 15 November 2022
In the lead-up to Christmas, the busiest time of year on the bookselling calendar, Books+Publishing is asking booksellers across the country to predict their biggest sellers and surprise sellers. In this instalment,...

National Cultural Policy consultation: literature ‘underdone and overlooked’ for too long

Tuesday, 15 November 2022
As Kate Grenville put it in her submission to the National Cultural Policy consultation, ‘Behind every published writer stands an army of others employed as a result of what they...

Books in the media this weekend, 12–13 November

Friday, 11 November 2022
A round-up of the books being reviewed and mentioned in key media this coming weekend. National The Saturday Paper Dandelions (Thea Lenarduzzi, Fitzcarraldo) The Successor: The high stakes life of...

Novel ideas: 2023 fiction preview

Wednesday, 9 November 2022
A new year brings a jam-packed roster of new releases showcasing the many talents of fiction writers across the country. Acquired in a ‘hotly contested’ auction, Michael Thompson’s How to...

Laura McPhee-Browne on ‘Little Plum’

Wednesday, 9 November 2022
Little Plum (Text, February) is Laura McPhee-Browne's second novel after her 2020 debut Cherry Beach. Reviewer Danielle Bagnato describes Little Plum as a sincere character study of 29-year-old protagaonist Coral, who...

Christmas predictions 2022: The Bookshop Darwin

Tuesday, 8 November 2022
In the lead-up to Christmas, the busiest time of year on the bookselling calendar, Books+Publishing is asking booksellers across the country to predict their biggest sellers and surprise sellers. In this instalment, the team...

Books in the media this weekend, 5–6 November

Friday, 4 November 2022
A round-up of the books being reviewed and mentioned in key media this coming weekend. National The Saturday Paper A Guest at the Feast (Colm Tóibín, Picador) Men I Trust...

Banned books, controversy, WebToon: children’s and YA in the US

Wednesday, 2 November 2022
Agent Danielle Binks of Jacinta Di Mase Management recently visited New York as part of an Australia Council delegation. Previously, she shared her impressions of the US market and in-demand...

Christmas predictions 2022: The Chestnut Tree

Wednesday, 2 November 2022
In the lead-up to Christmas, the busiest time of year on the bookselling calendar, Books+Publishing is asking booksellers across the country to predict their biggest sellers and surprise sellers. In this first instalment for...

Books in the media this weekend, 29–30 October

Friday, 28 October 2022
A round-up of the books being reviewed and mentioned in key media this coming weekend. National The Saturday Paper Iris (Fiona Kelly McGregor, Picador) Lucy by the Sea (Elizabeth Strout,...

Reflections from an Open Book intern: Maya Hodge

Wednesday, 26 October 2022
The Open Book: Australian Publishing Internship is a six-month internship program aimed at increasing cultural diversity in the Australian publishing workforce. Maya Hodge was this year’s Melbourne-based intern; she shares her...

What does the future look like for bookselling?

Friday, 21 October 2022
As the Australian Booksellers Association rebrands to BookPeople and prepares to re-launch its national vouchers scheme, CEO Robbie Egan says the industry is 'criminally under-using data', but argues bookshops won't...

Books in the media this weekend, 22–23 October

Friday, 21 October 2022
A round-up of the books being reviewed and mentioned in key media this coming weekend. National The Saturday Paper Moon Sugar (Angela Meyer, Transit Lounge) The Passenger (Cormac McCarthy, Picador) ...

The numbers boggle: an Australian in New York

Wednesday, 19 October 2022
Agent Danielle Binks of Jacinta di Mase Management recently visited New York as part of the Australia Council's New York Publishers’ Program. Here, she shares her impressions of the US...

Books in the media this weekend, 15–16 October

Friday, 14 October 2022
A round-up of the books being reviewed and mentioned in key media this coming weekend. National The Saturday Paper Hard Labour: Wage theft in the age of inequality (Ben Schneiders,...

Reflections on work and the future: Book industry survey 2022

Wednesday, 12 October 2022
In July 2022 Books+Publishing (B+P) surveyed more than 300 people about their employment in the Australian book industry, following up on similar surveys in 2013 and 2018. This report focuses on the qualitative data collected...