Awards wrap-up
8 August 2019
In the US, a number of self-published authors were winners at the Romance Writers of America’s (RWA) annual RITA Awards, which recognise excellence in romance novels and novellas. Among the...
Self-publishing scam targets local authors
8 August 2019
The Australian Society of Authors (ASA) is warning local authors about an email campaign from self-publishing company EC Publishing, which offers to exhibit the recipients' titles at the 2019 Miami...
BWF 2019 program announced; first authors for MWF named
9 July 2019
The program has been announced for the 2019 Brisbane Writers Festival (BWF), which runs from 5–8 September. Over 160 writers will appear at the festival, which in recognition of the...
Program released for Emerging Writers’ Festival 2019
3 June 2019
The program has been announced for this year’s Emerging Writers’ Festival, which runs in Melbourne from 19–29 June. The festival includes the National Writers’ Conference, which is billed as Australia’s...
Awards wrap-up
3 June 2019
The winners of several Australian and New Zealand unpublished manuscript awards have been announced over the past month. Perth-based writer Rebecca Higgie was named the winner of the inaugural Fogarty...
John Reed Books offers bookseller distribution to ASA members
30 April 2019
John Reed Books will provide sales and distribution for new print books by Australian Society of Authors (ASA) members, under an agreement negotiated by the distributor and the ASA. The...
New Macquarie Uni research to examine Aus rights sales
1 March 2019
The Copyright Agency’s Cultural Fund and the Australia Council for the Arts will contribute $30,000 each to a new Macquarie University study examining the international rights sales and export of...
ASA advises authors to send takedown notices to Internet Archive
1 March 2019
The Australian Society of Authors (ASA) has condemned the activities of the Internet Archive’s Open Library in its unlicensed lending of scanned copies of physical books and is advising authors to...
Amazon unblocks Oz shoppers from US store
29 November 2018
Australian consumers are now able to purchase and ship items from Amazon’s international website, according to a statement from Amazon. The retailer suspended shipping to Australian addresses from its international website...
SPN Independent Publishing Conference 2018 program: publishing in the age of Trump, podcasts, disability awareness
30 October 2018
The Small Press Network (SPN) has announced the full program for its 2018 Independent Publishing Conference, which will run at the Wheeler Centre in Melbourne from 22-24 November. The three-day...
WA Tourism grants help visitor centre self-publish
30 October 2018
The Dryandra Country Visitor Centre in Western Australia has revealed refurbishments and technology updates, including a newly self-published guidebook, after receiving two grants worth nearly $90,000, reports the West Australian....
Reading the audience: the LoveOzYA readership survey
26 September 2018
In 2017, the LoveOzYA committee conducted a survey into the reading habits of the Australian YA community. Committee chair Stacey Malacari reports on the survey’s findings. The LoveOzYA movement was...
Amazon to merge CreateSpace and KDP
31 August 2018
Amazon has announced that its print-on-demand platforms CreateSpace and Kindle Direct Publishing (KDP) will merge, reports the Digital Reader. The announcement follows staff layoffs at CreateSpace in March and the closure of...
Dennis Jones & Associates enters liquidation; industry groups respond
31 August 2018
Melbourne-based book distributor Dennis Jones & Associates has ceased trading and has entered voluntary liquidation, with 1300 creditors, including a secured creditor, and approximately 500 debtors involved, reports Books+Publishing. Dennis...
Small Press Network announces staff changes
30 July 2018
The Small Press Network (SPN) has announced the appointment of Tim Coronel as general manager. Coronel, who was previously communications manager for SPN, takes over from Matthia Dempsey, who has...
ASA seeks author feedback for campaign to extend PLR/ELR to digital books
30 July 2018
The Australian Society of Authors (ASA) has appealed to authors, including self-published authors, for information to help it campaign the government to extend the current Public and Educational Lending Rights...
Bookings open for inaugural Indie Publishing Forums
27 July 2018
Bookings are now open for the inaugural Indie Publishing Forums, a series of events aimed at small publishers, self-publishers, aspiring writers, established authors, students of publishing and creative writing, and those...
Amazon launches Prime in Australia
27 June 2018
Amazon has launched its subscription service Prime on the company’s Australian website, offering users free delivery and subscription access to ebooks, videos and games. The service will include free ‘expedited...
EWF 2018 program launched
25 May 2018
The Emerging Writers’ Festival (EWF) has announced its 2018 program, which runs from 19-29 June in venues across Melbourne’s CBD and surrounding suburbs. Timmah Ball, Tony Birch and Neil Morris...
Self-publishers among 2018 RWA ‘Ruby’ award finalists and Ngaio Marsh 2018 longlist
25 May 2018
Five self-published books are among the finalists for the Romance Writers of Australia (RWA) Romantic Book of the Year Award, also known as ‘the Ruby’. Ruining Miss Wrotham by Emily Larkin...
Authors create #SelfPubIsHere campaign to amplify self-publisher voices
17 May 2018
A number of self-published Australian authors, including Dionne Lister, A B Patterson and Lisa Fleetwood have pledged their support for a campaign to have self-publishing recognised and included in Australian...
Subbed In Chapbook Prize expands in 2018
26 April 2018
Sydney-based literary organisation Subbed In is expanding its Chapbook Prize—previously open to NSW residents only—to writers across Australia. Launched last year, the Subbed In Chapbook Prize aims to support emerging...
2018 Australian/Vogel Literary Award winner announced; Entries open for 2019 Award
26 April 2018
Emily O’Grady’s The Yellow House, a story about ‘the legacies of violence and the possibilities of redemption’, set in semi-rural Queensland, has won the 2018 Australian/Vogel's Literary Award. The winner was...
Digital deposit service for publishers to be launched in 2019
23 March 2018
National edeposit (NED), an online service for the deposit, archiving, management, discovery and delivery of published electronic material across Australia, will be launched in early 2019. The service is a...
SWF 2018 program announced
23 March 2018
The program has been announced for this year’s Sydney Writers’ Festival (SWF), which runs from 30 April to 6 May. Sixty international guests and 400 Australian writers, academics and public...
Lending rights title claims closing soon
22 February 2018
Australian book publishers or creators—including self-publishers—can be compensated for the loss of income through the free multiple use of their work in Australian public and educational lending libraries through the...
Adelaide Writers’ Week 2018 program announced
22 February 2018
The full program for Adelaide Writers’ Week, which runs from 3-8 March, has been announced. This year’s festival is dedicated to children’s author Mem Fox, who will be in conversation...
Full program announced for 2018 Perth Writers Week
24 January 2018
The full program has been announced for the 2018 Perth Festival Writers Week, which runs from 19-25 February. Events at the festival include the pairing of 'literary giants' Kim Scott...
‘Australian Self-Publisher’ reader survey results
19 January 2018
When the Australian Self-Publisher newsletter was launched in November 2017, we put together a reader survey to obtain a snapshot of our audience and to ask for feedback on the...
Twenty-six writers and organisations among latest OzCo grants recipients
17 January 2018
Twenty-six writers and literary organisations are among the 196 recipients of the latest round of Australia Council funding grants, worth a total of $6.4m. Fifteen writers and groups received arts...
