Decolonising Australian publishing is an ongoing project
Wednesday, 9 December 2020
‘Having First Nations editors in mainstream publishing houses, especially for those that are putting out a lot of work by our mob, it goes without saying. If they’re publishing books...
The sale of S&S to Bertelsmann will create a ‘book behemoth’
Wednesday, 2 December 2020
'There is clearly no market logic to a bid of that size—only anti-market logic. Bertelsmann is not just buying a book publisher, but buying market dominance as a book behemoth...
We need better arguments for the importance of writing
Wednesday, 25 November 2020
'Being a writer in Australia is seen as an esoteric thing at best, certainly not a profession, a hobby maybe, and this is the first time I’ll say it and...
Editing requires time and skill—regardless of market pressures
Wednesday, 18 November 2020
'Despite the high volume of books being produced, and the increasing pressures to produce them as quickly and cheaply as possible—and of course to sell as many as possible—editing itself...
Chowdhury on diversity in the publishing industry
Wednesday, 11 November 2020
‘It is extremely important that mine is not the only voice being solicited when discussing and considering ways to make the Australian publishing landscape more inclusive ... It is even...
‘Literary Plus’ a trend at Frankfurt
Thursday, 5 November 2020
‘People are hunting feel-good, upmarket fiction—defined as either “book club” or “reader’s group” but with great plots. We’ve heard it called a few things but “Literary Plus” seems to fit...
Robotham: the government’s neglect of writers is political
Wednesday, 28 October 2020
'We writers give far more to the economy and society and our culture than we ever take back. We are not looking for patronage or political favours, we are simply...
The arts as a social justice project
Wednesday, 21 October 2020
‘There’s no possible diverse, thriving, funded art sector without a materially just society that acts on issues like decommodifying housing and issuing a universal basic income. Diversity in the arts...
Four years after Dylan, another American wins the Nobel
Wednesday, 14 October 2020
‘You never know what the Swedish Academy is going to do. I didn't think they would go back to America so quickly, but it's really a righteous award, and a...
Egan on Christmas bookselling in 2020
Wednesday, 7 October 2020
'There will be no airfreighting of books into Australia for this Christmas. If it’s not here or in a container on a ship now it’s not going to be available.’—ABA...
The Booker moves its winner’s announcement—to accommodate a book release
Wednesday, 30 September 2020
'We thought it unfortunate that two of the most exciting literary events of the year—the announcement of the winner of the 2020 Booker Prize and the publication of Barack Obama’s...
Rabble takes Rowling off the shelf
Wednesday, 23 September 2020
'Whilst stocking a book isn't an endorsement (good grief, that would be a minefield), and we will always take orders for books that aren't in stock, there are more worthy...
Covid-19 as a ‘positive moment’ for books and reading
Wednesday, 16 September 2020
'We've clearly seen books occupy more time and space with people. The figures are positive versus the same time last year so I feel like books and reading are having...
Increasing diversity in STEM starts with kids books
Wednesday, 9 September 2020
'Stories inspire, challenge and motivate. Real-life stories of success make the dream possible. How many more young readers would be inspired to pursue their STEM dreams if more Australian stories...
Lack of diversity remains an issue within the book industry
Wednesday, 2 September 2020
'How can we expect anything other than a white and middle-class way of looking at the world if the key decision-makers are predominately white and middle-class? Diversity isn’t a trend,...
The Guardian on the coming flood of new releases
Wednesday, 26 August 2020
'The books business can sometimes feel like fast fashion—pile ’em high, move ’em along a couple of weeks later to make space for the next new thing. This speed is...
Ali Cobby Eckermann on the necessity of writing
Wednesday, 19 August 2020
'My decision to share my personal story through literature has been paramount to my emotional and holistic health, the cathartic telling guided by many senior healers and law-holders from my...
Kate Forsyth on the importance of Writing NSW
Wednesday, 12 August 2020
‘I may never have achieved my lifelong dream of being a published writer without Writing NSW. As a young unpublished author, I attended courses, publishing seminars, and literary festivals in...
Bookshops need support during the Covid-19 pandemic
Wednesday, 5 August 2020
'Bookshops are at the heart of our communities, especially in Melbourne, the first and only City of Literature in Australia and the second in the world. Bookshops are also the...
Debuts make up more than half of the 2020 Booker Prize longlist
Wednesday, 29 July 2020
'It is an unusually high proportion [of debuts], and especially surprising to the judges themselves, who had admired many books by more established authors, and regretted having to let them...
Publishers need to release more work in Indigenous languages
Wednesday, 22 July 2020
'Having our languages become normalised and celebrated is going to positively affect our future generations. It will psychologically change them. Having a linguistic connection to the past doesn’t just change...
Representation is essential for arts orgs—even during Covid-19
Wednesday, 15 July 2020
'We acknowledge that Covid-19 continues to make the programming and delivery of events extremely challenging. However, the issue of true representation is the civic and professional responsibility of all arts...
On creating a community free from racism, sexism and discrimination
Wednesday, 8 July 2020
‘I don’t wish to exist in a literary community that relies on a whisper network to warn others. Many have fallen through the cracks. If we all have more courage,...
Heiss on the surge in sales of Indigenous books
Wednesday, 1 July 2020
‘This increase in passion, in the desire to learn, to understand, to be part of the necessary process of change that requires ALL of society’s citizens to participate—that passion is...
Data is integral to promoting the value of books
Wednesday, 24 June 2020
'Data, and reliable credible data, is critical to being able to talk to policy makers and politicians. Particularly when talking about the economic and cultural value of the book industry....
Children’s authors are caretakers—especially when it comes to trans kids
Wednesday, 17 June 2020
'Countless times I have met young trans people who thank me for writing the trans characters that I do. I recognise what’s in their eyes: it is relief. It is...
Organising to protest systemic racism in the publishing industry
Thursday, 11 June 2020
‘Good organising looks like a document that 1100 people worked on together: messily, but semi-democratically. This was publishing people doing what publishing people do: we went through draft after draft...
Dialogue Books publisher Sharmaine Lovegrove on Black Lives Matter
Wednesday, 3 June 2020
‘To those who just woke up to generations of brutal & systemic racism against Black people realising there’s an issue; to those that are virtue signalling you have a shit...
On addressing dark themes in children’s writing
Wednesday, 27 May 2020
‘Kids’ minds are nimble. They quickly and easily bend to unusual styles of writing—even if they haven’t seen them before—and this in turn allows kids to see how they can...
Youth literature programs move online
Wednesday, 20 May 2020
'In the rush to keep so many IRL programs and events alive it feels as if there was more thought placed on the translation to digital than on the programs’...