TT. O. wins Patrick White Literary Award, Hughes to leave Affirm, Pan Mac to move distribution to TDLC
In local news this week, Martin Hughes will leave Affirm Press, amid other staff changes; Left Bank Literary will dissolve in December; the Australia Institute is launching its own publishing imprint, to be overseen by managing editor Alice Grundy; and Pan Macmillan ANZ is moving its Australian and Aotearoa New Zealand distribution from Alliance Distribution Services to The Distribution and Logistics Company.
In other news, a study on consumer behaviour by the European and International Booksellers Federation has included Australia among several territories surveyed for the report, suggesting a slightly lower than average percentage of Australians buy and read books, compared to the average across the 19 territories included in the study.
In awards news, Victoria-based poet, publisher and editor π.ο. (Pi-O) won the 2024 Patrick White Literary Award; Bronwyn Bancroft won the 2024 Lady Cutler Award; Yirga Gelaw Woldeyes won the 2024 City of Fremantle Hungerford Award for his manuscript የተስፋ ፈተና / Trials of Hope; Personal Score: Sport, Culture, Identity by local author Ellen van Neerven (UQP) is among the titles longlisted for the American Library Association’s Andrew Carnegie Medals for Excellence in Fiction and Nonfiction; the Walkley Foundation has announced the finalists for Walkley Book Award; the winners of the 2024 YABBAs (Young Australians Best Book Awards) have been announced; and QBD has announced its 2024 Book of the Year winners.
In news from the UK, Bloomsbury has reported revenue growth for the six months to the end of August, amid soaring sales for Sarah J Maas; A City on Mars (Kelly & Zach Weinersmith, Particular Books) won the 2024 Royal Society Trivedi Science Book Prize; and a coalition of trade bodies have signed a statement on AI training, alongside thousands of creators worldwide.
And in acquisitions this week: UQP acquired world rights to Dead Ends, a ‘darkly funny and sexy’ mystery novel by Samantha Byres, via literary agent Jane Novak; and Hardie Grant acquired world rights to Sarah Wilson’s new book, Walk the World Bigger, under its Hardie Grant Explore imprint.
And in industry-related news, Campaign Brief reported on Booktopia’s new national advertising campaign.
Category: This week’s news
