In Depth | The Bookseller

What did World Book Night do for us?

Publication Date: Fri, 04/11/2011 - 15:52

Giving away one million books in the teeth of the recession was either an inspired event capable of showing what pan-industry initiatives can do to help get us through these troubled times, or a hare-brained scheme sure to deliver a hammer blow to the high street. At least, those were the conflicting views that were flying around the trade...

Flagship Feature | Home | In Depth | World Book Night
In depth: self-publishing

Publication Date: Fri, 28/10/2011 - 14:56

Self-publishing has had a bad reputation. And if authors feel nervous confessing they have dabbled—or even considered pursuing this path—choosing to research and write about it is doubly disreputable. Nevertheless, that is what I have done in writing a guide to self-publishing, The Naked Author.

There is weight...

Flagship Feature | Home | In Depth | Kindle Direct | Lulu.com | Matador | self-publishing | Smashwords
In depth: independent retailers

Publication Date: Mon, 24/10/2011 - 11:43

For independent bookshops, to borrow a line from Charles Dickens, these are both the best of times and the worst of times.

Rarely can there have been as much passion for the work of good independents as there is now. Authors have been lavish in their praise for what they see as "proper" booksellers; newspapers like the ...

Flagship Feature | Home | In Depth | Independents | Retail

The Booker business

Publication Date: Mon, 17/10/2011 - 12:36

After our brief Indian summer it now truly feels like autumn—the leaves are turning, the nights are drawing in and there is a Man Booker Prize controversy in the air [this feature was written before the announcement of The Literature Prize]. This year's bleating from the literary punditocracy is that the 2011 prize has lost its...

Flagship Feature | Home | In Depth | Man Booker Prize for Fiction | Prizes

Harry Potter profile: David Heyman

Publication Date: Mon, 17/10/2011 - 11:00

The Harry Potter phenomenon needs no introduction . . . and David Heyman, the producer behind the eight film adaptations of J K Rowling's bestselling series, the last of which hit cinemas in July (and, at close to $1.5bn worldwide, went on to become the third highest-grossing film of all time behind "Titanic” and "Avatar...

film | Flagship Feature | harry potter | Home | In Depth | Media

In depth: estate publishing

Publication Date: Mon, 10/10/2011 - 10:14

Peter Rabbit has had to pack up his blue blazer and move warren—media rights company Chorion, which owns a range of heritage properties and literary estates, including everyone's favourite bunny, has been forced to sell off its assets after Waheed Alli, the company's former chairman and Labour peer, failed to find a new...

agatha christie | estate publishing | Flagship Feature | Home | In Depth | Winnie the Pooh

Welsh publishing: in depth

Publication Date: Tue, 04/10/2011 - 12:21

Although the Welsh publishing community is fairly close knit, most of the publishers themselves actually only meet face-to-face once a year many miles from home at the Frankfurt Book Fair Welsh collective stand. "We all know each other, are pretty friendly, talk a lot and share tips," says Hazel Cushion, m.d. of Accent Press. "...

Accent Press | Crown House | Flagship Feature | Gomer Press | Honno | In Depth | Seren | University of Wales Press | Wales

Welsh publishing: the charts

Publication Date: Tue, 04/10/2011 - 11:00

Nielsen BookScan breaks down book sales throughout the UK roughly along the lines of the old television regions. Welsh sales, therefore, are part of Wales and the West—the West meaning Bristol and parts of Somerset, Dorset, Wiltshire and Gloucestershire.

Though we cannot strip out Wales, it makes up the majority of the region...

Flagship Feature | In Depth | Welsh publishing

Digital focus: sounds or silence?

Publication Date: Wed, 21/09/2011 - 12:45

Paul Cameron admits that the official launch of Booktrack—a company that is for the moment heavily linked to the Apple ecosystem—might have benefited from a bit better timing. "We launched about 12 hours before Steve Jobs resigned," he says with a laugh. "We were lucky; we did get a lot of press. But had it...

Booktrack | digital | Flagship Feature | In Depth

Digital focus: measuring the Amazon

Publication Date: Wed, 21/09/2011 - 10:37

There are many pertinent questions that need answering in the digital books market. Here are just a few: What is the actual size of the overall e-book sector? What is the hard data telling us about the trends that are emerging? Which genres are up and which are down? The best answer to those questions may be with another: who the hell knows...

amazon | digital | Flagship Feature | In Depth