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Library love stories: Romance in the National Library of Australia’s collection

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Author: Alice Quinn (Article reproduced with permission from https://www.nla.gov.au/stories/blog/library-love-stories-romance-national-library-australias-collection#) When it comes to romance writing in Australia, it’s a been a long affair. Romance is one of Australia’s largest and most impressive literary exports, and since the 19th century has been a way for readers to explore tales of intimacy from the innocent to the risqué.   Our collections of these stories ensure the voices of authors who write and read this genre are preserved, so that readers of the future can indulge in and re-examine the love stories under the covers of Australia’s literary history. Mills and Boon, dust …

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DO ROMANCE WRITERS NEED AN AUTHOR BRAND?

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Most think of February as the month for romance, proposals, flowers, chocolates, Hallmark Cards, and overworked cupids. For weeks we’re blinded by flashes of red hearts and roses, as lovers get high on the possibility of romance – especially romance readers. But if you think about how well branded Valentine’s Day is, romance writers prepare months in advance just for this annual event, ensuring they fit the brand of V-day. Branding. It’s a thang. And when it’s done well, readers don’t realise they’re following a brand – like 80% of the people on social media do. Do you think romance …

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Aussie Audiobook Production? Easier than you think! By Amy Soakes.

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Online publishing has thrown open the door for authors everywhere to launch their work to the world, without the need for a traditional publishing deal. This free-flowing market has nurtured authorship in an unprecedented way, and – importantly for us Aussies – removed the ‘tyranny of distance’, allowing direct access to the major markets of the US and UK. And we’ve taken to it like ducks to water, happily splashing around in the same pool of publishing opportunity as our cross-ocean counterparts. But while Aussie authors have ridden waves of publishing success through text, our uptake of audio has languished. …

Tips from and Industry Insider | Don’t Understand High Concept? Don’t Worry

In Creative Writing, Publishing Industry by RWA Blog Coordinator2 Comments

Publishing Trends 2019 Some trends become industry standards. Some die the death they deserve. If, like me, you never did understand exactly what was meant by high concept, raise a glass to its death. It seems that publishers have discovered that while high concept initially excites marketing and sales teams and is easy to pitch to booksellers, it doesn’t necessarily lead to a long sales life. According to Sally Kim (GP Putnam’s Sons / Penguin Random House): ‘For a while it seemed everything had to have a high concept to cut through all the noise. … But those that really …

Tips from and Industry Insider | Why Authors Need a Brand

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Readers don’t buy by publisher*. Nobody goes into a bookshop and asks for the latest Pan McMillan title. Instead, they ask for the new Nora Roberts or, if the series becomes so well known that the character eclipses the author, the most recent Jack Reacher novel. So, even if you’re traditionally published you’re going to need an identifiable brand to distinguish yourself from your competition.

Tips from and Industry Insider | Marketing Strategies for New Releases

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Now that I’m an author as well as a publicist, I know why everybody groans when the word ‘marketing’ comes up. It’s a hungry monster with a never-ending appetite. How do you know what to feed it? And how do you plan meal times so that it doesn’t take up every minute of your writing, leisure and family time? The key is to not give in to demand feeding.