Publishing Industry

Traditional publishing doesn’t exactly have a reputation for being fast-paced, but the onslaught of AI (artificial intelligence) tools, ‘scandals’ and borderline (and over-the-line!) misuse m...

If you’re environmentally conscious, don’t work in online relisting. The wastefulness will terrify you. As just one example, Amazon destroys millions of items of unsold stock (including books) ...

Over the last decade, buying books online has become commonplace thanks to big-name stores. And we’re not just talking about that online-only store, either. For any reader who’s trying not to d...

I often get to the end of a novel and think Now I know where it’s going, I’d love to read it again. But, as a book blogger reading around 150 contemporary novels a year, I rarely do. But short ...

Why Should I Read Translated Works? If you agree that reading diverse benefits your brain, you’re probably open to reading novels in translation. If language affects thought, there can’t be a b...

One of my favourite animated series was, and still is, The Mysterious Cities of Gold. It aired on the BBC in the very late eighties and it has always been a huge comfort and inspiration to me. Ther...

Literacy ought to be a topic of concern for any author, since – obviously – it goes straight to the heart of what we do, but even we don’t appreciate quite how much it has become a matter...

“The importance of diversity in books”, “diverse characters – tokenism or important?” and my personal favourite, “is diversity really that important?” Every time I see a convention pa...

Recently, the ‘Big 5’ publisher Simon & Schuster signed a deal reported to be worth $250,000. So far, no worries. But when the author of their acquisition is a (very loud) mouthpiece for th...

It’s nice to have the opportunity of pulling back the curtain and seeing the people behind the screens. This doesn’t always mean interviewing the folks here at IQ, though. You may not know this...

Just over a year ago I was on the brink of achieving a lifetime’s ambition (and let me assure you, it’s been a long life), ready to celebrate the publication of my debut novel yet aware that wh...

When one publisher chooses another. In 2013, I was on holiday in Majorca with my mother and my daughter when I got an offer of publication from Inspired Quill. The Last Time We Saw Marion was my fi...

It’s been a frustrating week for the creative industry. The losses of some incredible talents have left many of us feeling somewhat bereft and sensitive, and then last Friday a weird hashtag emer...