ABA launches new website as authors, booksellers and publishers adapt to business under lockdown
Australia’s booksellers, publishers, authors and industry bodies are seeking new and different ways to connect with readers during the Covid-19 restrictions.
ABA launches new Love Your Bookshop site
The Australian Booksellers Association (ABA) has launched a new Love Your Bookshop website to promote the activities of all bricks and mortar bookshops in ‘these unprecedented and challenging times’.
The website includes a listing of online bookshop events; a ‘find a bookshop’ search function listing stores’ contact details as well as current delivery and pick-up arrangements; and a listing of other online author events such as literary festivals and publisher offerings.
‘The aim of this website is to help the reading public to continue buying from local businesses over the coming months,’ said the ABA in a statement. All bookshops are encouraged to register via the website.
YA authors create Oz Authors Online
After book launches began to be cancelled, authors Wai Chim, Anna Whateley, Danielle Binks, Shivaun Plozza, A B Endacott and Jin Wang established Oz Authors Online.
According to the website, the group ‘reached out to members of the community and were greeted with overwhelming support and assistance, which enabled Oz Authors Online to quickly establish itself and offer authors a way to digitally interact with the community’.
The site is run by volunteers with ‘a desire to support Australian authors and the wider Australian literary landscape – to make sure we all come out the other side of this, together’. It is primarily focused on providing a way to launch and celebrate books for those authors whose ‘real life’ launches have been cancelled but ‘who have physical copies of their books available with Australian retailers’ by highlighting upcoming digital book launches and livestreaming them on YouTube.
‘Our focus is particularly on authors working in Youth Literature areas, as OzAuthors Online is working in partnership with LoveOzYA, and there is a desire to focus on connecting with young people at this time; those who are already tapped into many online communities, letting them reach out to other kids and teens going through pandemic, together.’
Text donates $1 from each book to the Royal Melbourne Hospital
Text Publishing has announced a new initiative whereby the publisher will donate $1 from each book sold to the Royal Melbourne Hospital, one of five global WHO Collaborating Centres for Research on Influenza.
‘All you have to do is email a photo of your receipt or forward the online receipt to books@textpublishing.com.au—and we will donate $1 to the Royal Melbourne Hospital Foundation for every Text title on it,’ says Text’s website.
The fundraising initiative will last until 31 May at which point Text will tally the results and send the funds to the hospital.
Readings supports authors whose launches were cancelled
Readings is offering 10% off the books that would have launched at their shops this week (plus a few from earlier in March), in order to support writers whose events were cancelled.
WellRead to run its first virtual event
Online book subscription service WellRead has launched curated packs featuring the works of authors who were supposed to be appearing at this year’s Sydney Writers’ Festival, including a pack that features Australian debut authors exclusively. WellRead will also run its first online event with Vivian Pham, the author of its April selection, The Coconut Children (Vintage).
Category: Local news
