End of the Week Round-up #23
8th April 2022
It’s been a bit of a weird weather week since the last time I wrote a newsletter, all the seasons in a day several times, quite exhausting really, but there has been enough good weather to start visiting the allotment. Even if it was just to grab some leeks and rhubarb!
On the way to work on Sunday and this little fellow swooped in front of me to gather nesting material (spider webs) and wasn’t phased by my presence at all, really started the day off well.
What I’ve been up to this week and other news.
This week has been focussing on the author side of the projects, I was getting the last several Q&A posts sorted and edited and realised I was running out of contributors.
Putting a shout out seemed to be quite successful 😆 and I now have another couple of dozen people wanting to be added to the Q&A sections of the blogs and more coming in each day!
The new Author Q&A this week is for thriller writer, Laure Ban Rensburg, why not read about her books and writing process. If you want to be included please contact me at contact@bigbeardedbookseller.com.
Other news.
Strong Words Magazine is offering a discounted annual subscription for my followers and newsletter subscribers.
The subscription offer is: the whole year for £45 (that's nine issues that retail for £6.95) plus a free back issue. The code for this offer is INDIE22 added when you get to the payment subscription page.
Keep going for a review of Issue 33 and my thoughts on the format.
Recently added bookshops and publishers.
The Black Cat Bookshop (online bookshop)
Caab Publishing (publisher)
Manderley Press (publisher)
Seahorse Bookstore (bookshop)
Submissions and applications.
Knight Errant Press, looking for various genres and themes, closes 01/09/222
Lindisfarne Prize for Crime Fiction, closes 30/06/22
A Pocket Anthology of Addiction and Recovery, Acid Bath Publishing are looking for submissions for. this publication, closes 05/08/22
Truffle Magazine, submissions open for Issue 5, not sure of closing day yet
Young Scot’s Writer of the Year, all genres all media, under 1000 words or five minutes, closes 24/06/22
Upcoming events.
Iceland Noir 2022 – Literary Festival, various Reykjavik, between 16/11/22 and 19/11/22
Literature Matters: RSL 200 – Transatlantic Conversations with Bernardine Evaristo and Brit Bennett, free and online, 6pm 26/04/22
Lyme Crime, Lyme Regis, between 23/06/22 and 25/06/22
Lyra 22 – Bristol Poetry Festival, various venues around Bristol, between 31/03/22 and 14/04/22
Montgomery Literary Festival, various venues around Montgomery, between 10/06/22 and 12/06/22
New and upcoming book releases.
Cinnamon and Salt: Cicchetti in Venice – Emiko Davies – Hardie Grant (14/04/22)
Northerners: A History – Brian Groom – Harper North (14/04/22)
Hedgewitch – Sky McKenna – Welbeck Publishing (14/04/22)
Why Patti Smith Matters – Caryn Rose – Faber (21/04/22)
Orlam – P J Harvey – Picador (28/04/22)
Job links.
Junior Designer with Octopus, closes 14/04/22
PR and Marketing Assistant with Walker Books, closes 10/04/22
Press Officer with Profile Books, closes 20/04/22
Product Assistant with Bloomsbury Publishing, closes 08/04/22
Rights Manager with Hachette, closes 15/04/22
Canbury Press, Publisher Profile
Canbury Press is based in Kingston upon Thames and can be contacted through:
Website: www.canburypress.com
Twitter: @CanburyPress
Instagram: canburypress
Facebook: @canburypress
Telephone: 44 (0) 1892 837171
Canbury Press is a book publisher specialising in contemporary non-fiction. It was founded in 2013 by a former Independent newspaper journalist, Martin Hickman (above).
Our aim is to depict the world as it really is, stripped of spin.
In their own words
When did you start publishing?
2013, when I left The Independent as a reporter
What made you want to start an independent publisher?
To tell important stories, free of any editorial or commercial filters
What genres do you specialise in?
Non-fiction. Politics, environment, health, technology
Where are you based?
Kingston upon Thames, Surrey
Do you have a submission window, if so when?
We are happy to look at submissions all year round
What is your submission procedure?
Email a pitch, chapter structure and some sample chapters (including the first) for a non-fiction book to canburypress@gmail.com. I’m afraid we won’t look at fiction.
Who are you (team photo if possible)?
At the moment it’s a one employee business – me (MD Martin Hickman). But, we are hoping to take on someone in the near future
Background in the book industry?
My first job aged 18 was as a clerk at BCA in London, which used to run book clubs; was a massive company at the time but it closed a few years ago. Twenty years later while a journalist, I wrote a book about phone hacking with Tom Watson MP, Dial M for Murdoch, which was published by Penguin. Apart from that first job and the book, my background in publishing was zilch. I started Canbury with no capital, contacts or experience.
Talk about some of your books if possible?
We specialise in non-fiction that matters. We are proud of all our books, but two titles have left an especially deep impression on readers: Because We Are Bad by Lily Bailey, a jaw-dropping and heart-rending memoir about OCD and Brexit: What the Hell Happens Now? by Ian Dunt, which set out in 2016 just why leaving the EU would be so hard.
Under the Wig by William Clegg QC, his generation’s leading criminal barrister, is not only a great read, it makes a compelling case for properly funding the courts. Our latest title, YouTubers by Chris Stokel-Walker, is the first independent, in-depth (and frankly important) exploration of a website which is bigger than Facebook.
We’ve sold our titles to bigger publishers around the world. For instance, Quercus has just released the paperback ofUnder the Wig.
and future projects/dreams if you can?
We have a pipeline of very exciting books coming in the next 18 months. We have a pithy marvel coming on Brexit (by a well-known author, not Ian), and Generation Rent by Chloe Temperley which takes an eye-opening look at why the housing market in Britain is so screwed.
What’s happening next week?
"You’re only given a little spark of madness. You mustn’t lose it."
I’ve set myself quite a task after that shout out to authors for the Q&A section of the blogs, but that’s what I’m here for!
To add to that though I’m publicly setting myself some goals to help move the blogs forward, each week I’ll at least;
write one new book review
complete an author Q&A post
write a post for an independent bookshop
write a post for an independent publisher
these will be my minimum weekly goals and I’m making them public to help me reach them, otherwise I’ll never get up to date with these projects and always feel a wee bit guilty about working on other projects…
And, as always, if you have any news or offers you would like included in the newsletter please email me at contact@bigbeardedbookseller.com and I’ll get it on ASAP.
A reminder that a paid subscription to this newsletter is only the cost of a large coffee once a month. This helps with lots of things but right now it would help with domain and hosting costs for the various projects.
Thanks to the current number of paid subscribers I’ve been able to get a monthly subscription to The Bookseller. Cheers!
All information is going to continue to be free so this is just a thank you to me for collating and developing it all.
The links to the various projects can be found at:
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