Calls for budding writers to attend Publishing Panel
A CALL to budding authors who want to publish a book or learn about how to make it into print has been made by the University of Chichester.
The annual Publishing Panel – a group of literary experts from global organisations – returns on Wednesday 27 April to answer questions and provide a behind-the-scenes breakdown of the sector. The free event, which has been organised by senior lecturer Karen Stevens of the Department of English and Creative Writing, is open to the public, staff, and students.
It will be held from 6:30pm to 8:30pm in the University’s Mitre Lecture Theatre at its Bishop Otter campus, College Lane, Chichester, PO19 6PE.
The guest speakers include Jenny Savill, a literary agent with Andrew Nurnberg, and Susie Nicklin, an Executive Chair and co-founder of The Marsh Agency. It will also be led by Carrie Plitt, a literary agent with Conville & Walsh, Joel Richardson, publisher with Twenty7 Books, as well as Stefan Tobler, founder and publisher with And Other Stories.
Jenny Savill looks after authors of both fiction and non-fiction. She has built an exciting roster of children’s and young adult authors, and says that she likes to work editorially with authors. Ms Savill is also particularly interested in hearing from writers of both literary and commercial women’s fiction, historical fiction, and memoir.
Susie Nicklin is agent and bookseller, and is passionate about literature from the earth’s imagined corners. She began her career selling translation rights and then became the director of English PEN, where she founded the successful Writers in Translation programme.
For nearly ten years Ms Nicklin was the director of literature at the British Council, working with writers and publishers worldwide, creating global partnerships with Granta magazine, the Hay Festivals, and the Edinburgh International Book Festival. She worked closely with the London Book Fair, enabling more than 500 authors from around the world to take part in events throughout the UK.
Carrie Plitt is building a list of authors of both fiction and non-fiction, and is drawn in by a unique voice and a strong sense of place. She said: “The thing I enjoy most about my job is the process of guiding a book from first draft to final version, and I love working closely with authors and their work.” Ms Plitt also hosts a monthly books podcast-radio show where she interviews up-and-coming and established writers.
Joel Richardson began his career at Quercus Books and has worked in all areas from audiobooks to social media to translated fiction. He is now publisher with Twenty7 Books: a start-up within the internationally renowned Bonnier Publishing publishing debut fiction across a range of genres from high-octane crime thrillers to romances. He said: “The unique angle for Twenty7 Books is that we are seeking out the best new commercial authors and supporting the debuts who might otherwise find it hard to get into the trade.”
Publisher Stefan Tobler founded And Other Stories out of frustration at the great books not receiving recognition in the UK. The company works on the principle that great new books will be heard about and read thanks to the combined intelligence of a number of people: editors, readers, translators, critics, literary promoters, and academics. Stefan is looking for fiction that, he said, is “fresh and young in spirit, that’s going to surprise people. There is a danger that people almost write to prescription, trying to second-guess the market, and we want to avoid that.”
The evening will consist of a panel discussion and a question and answer session, chaired by senior lecturer Karen Stevens, where the audience will have the opportunity to ask about getting published. The Publishing Panel is part of the University’s MA in Creative Writing programme and is free to the public and all staff and students.
To find out more contact Karen Stevens at k.stevens@chi.ac.uk.
Photos taken during last year’s Publishing Panel at the University
