13 July 2020 - What's new
13 July 2020
- ‘People have been washing their hands while reciting 20-second poems and lifting their spirits with longer ones. It's clear from social media that poetry has had an amazing impact during the pandemic, offering solace and inspiration. People have been reading poetry, writing poetry, learning it by heart. It's been a grim time in so many ways, but there's no question; the pick-me-up of poetry has made a powerful and positive difference.' Gyles Brandreth talking in Bookbrunch about his daily Twitter recitals of favourite poems, which have drawn 1.65 million views since March. 'Poetry has had an amazing impact.'
- From our 19-part Inside Publishing series, Subsidiary Rights: 'My first job in publishing was in a subsidiary rights department. I'm ashamed to admit that I accepted the job without having much idea what subsidiary rights were. Many writers may feel just as vague about this part of publishing, so here's a quick breakdown...' and The English Language Publishing World:'Why does the world get divided up into publishing territories? How has this come about? How does it affect authors?'
- The Women Poets' Prize 2020 is open to all women poets of 18 and over resident in the UK and Northern Ireland. There's no entry fee. It is awarded every two years to three women writers who each receive a package combining 'financial aid, creative development, well-being, and pastoral support'. This includes a £1000 bursary. Closing on 14 August.
- Some links: the decline of serious novels about middle-class morals and God, The novel is dead - again. And this time, it's women who have murdered it | Rhiannon Lucy Cosslett | Opinion | The Guardian; in the 15 years since buying that first device, I'd fallen off the e-reading bandwagon, The Case for E-galleys; when the first coronavirus-related erotica appeared on Literotica, in mid-March, the moderators were not sure if it was fit to print, From neighbourly romances to Zoom sex: the boom in lockdown erotica | Books | The Guardian; and 'To some extent it's the role of the publisher to lead in terms of what people are reading', Dana Canedy, the New Head of Simon & Schuster, on Facts, Diversity, and the Future of Publishing | The New Yorker.
- The most recent addition to our range of reports is the Editor's Report Plus, a substantial report which offers chapter-by-chapter commentary on your manuscript, with a helpful blueprint for any further work which is recommended. It gives you the kind of expert advice which is usually only available from an in-house editor, which is why it has quickly become our most popular report.
- More links: the world's first drive-in book launch? Book Launches Get More Creative; 'This is really painful', Editing history: Hong Kong publishers self-censor under new security law - Reuters; the biggest surprise in publishing since the Covid-19 pandemic began roiling the U.S. economy this spring, Print Units Post Surprising Increase in First Half of 2020; and some of the spinout that happens in social media has to do with people being inside a dynamic that allows them to forget that there's another person on the other side of it, Human First: PW Talks with Claudia Rankine.
- From our Endorsements page: 'As a total neophyte as a writer, I have been doing a huge amount of research suddenly as to what services are available to writers, on both sides of the Atlantic, and am amazed that you are able to have someone read a whole book and give a serious critique for just 180 pounds. I think that is incredible value for money, compared to other similar services that appear to be available out there. I hope to be back to you again for more assistance, once I've cleaned up my work! Martin Humphries, Vancouver, BC, Canada.
- Last lot of links: might you work best with solitude or company, silence or noise, high speed internet or technological isolation? Writing: can't you do that anywhere?; an author enjoying an unparalleled moment in the spotlight, Patricia Highsmith: Preying on Our Minds | CrimeReads; sitting down to write, Stop Staring at a Blank Page: 4 (Not So) Silly Writing Tips to Get Words on Paper | Jane Friedman; and using poetry to inspire confidence and creativity in schools, Children's Books - Articles - Authorgraph: Joshua Seigal | BfK No. 243.
- If you are trying to get your work into shape for publication, or for self-publishing, there's thousands of pages of advice and help on the WritersServices website. Advice for Writers
- 'Oh it is only a novel... In short, only some work in which the greatest powers of the mind are displayed, in which the most thorough knowledge of human nature, the happiest delineation of its varieties, the liveliest effusions of wit and humour, are conveyed to the world in the best chosen language.' Jane Austen in our Writers' Quotes.