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Know your publishing – A writer’s guide into the world of book publishing

I remember when I had completed writing my book. Two hundred pages of awesomeness, I had told myself. Finding a publisher won't take long for a book like this, I am sure. How I hate to admit how wrong I was. Writing a book is only the first step to the many, many more that follow, the second of which is finding the right publisher. I looked up a bunch of publishing houses online and promptly sent them an email, attaching carefully every single file they had asked for in their submission guidelines. Within a week, I received emails from at least half a dozen publishers, who were interested in taking my book in and turning it around into a shiny,...

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Creativity flowing through the lochs

The move took an unexpectedly long time but along with spring is coming abundance of energy and new work as our Bombadil team is working at bringing our many new titles by very talented young authors. Some books have been ready for a while, and can now finally be released. We believe that these beautiful and awe-inspiring surroundings are perfect for our equally inspiring and fascinating quality books. As you can see from this picture, our location is difficult to match - the same as the new books soon to be published. We will be inviting you to read new books by authors in Scotland, England, the US, South Africa, Sweden and India, to mention but a few. Our author...

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Each story is a life…

"I was ten years old when I decided I wanted to write. At that time, it had just been a pet project. You see, I was bored of goblins and orcs and the regular monsters in the fantasy universe. So, I decided I would create a new monster­­­ so, my story started with the monster instead of the hero. At that time, I knew I wasn’t particularly good but I had started to enjoy it so much that it didn’t really matter. It was only four years and ten drafts later that I realized that writing was the most important thing in my life. When I was young, we went to my ancestral village each year during the festive season...

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Thank you for your patience – we are almost there

Sorry that it has been so quiet for a while. I have been working behind the scenes, and so many amazing things are happening. I wish I could tell you all, but hopefully, I will be able to make an announcement next week. The future for Bombadil is bright and beautiful, and we are almost there. Thank you all for being so patient. Soon I will be joined by more people, two already starting in two weeks, with more to follow, and then we will be able to bring everything up to date. and give you all the attention you deserve. Thank you so much for being patient. I know many of you wish I would get back faster, and...

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Apple and Amazon – dog fight and bad influences on the market

There was this blog from the Bookseller, which I am going to copy in total, as they say it so much better than I could. I am a mac user and I often order books through Amazon, but, as an independent publisher, it makes me upset to see how they try and control the market. Most interesting is that they are fighting over ebooks, when they soon will be last year's black. There are so many better options, especially for the kids that write for Bombadil and the many kids that value our brand. Trial and marginalisation (Submitted by Philip Jones) The Apple e-book price fixing case is a curious side-show for an industry that is already looking beyond the...

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Dreams and reality

There is a brilliant video called The happy List. It is about all the little things that we dream about, about reality, about how many prefer to live in a pretend world. It also raises interesting questions about what happiness is. I know reality is important, but I am in a world where, to some extent, the imagination becomes reality, and thus happiness is imagination. You read a book, you enter a wonderful world of make-believe, a world of thoughts and ideas and action. A pretend world where we can chose the topic, and forget about the world for a while. Saying that, some book topics are not wonderful and neither are they make-believe, but even with the worst of...

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Books sales up in times of recession

It has long been known that more books are sold in times of financial difficulties than when times are good. One reason is that people spend more time at home, another is the link between studying and bad times. I know that literature is not always seen as education, and though some, like Fifty Shades of Grey, which has added greatly to the increase in book sales in 2012, is not really considered standard educational literature, then books as such, not to mention reading, exemplify learning. According to this morning's briefing in the Bookseller total book sales in digital and physical formats grew 4% in 2012 to a total of £3.3bn. That overall growth contrasts with a 2% dip recorded the...

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It does pay off to be a publisher – at least for some

Last Sunday, the Sunday Times Rich List placed Waterstones' owner Alexander Mamut as the highest-ranking trade figure. Mr Mamut is placed 54th on the list, with a fortune of £1,483m according to the newspaper supplement; however, his riches are not all down to Waterstones, but due to his substantial Russian assets in property, construction and oil fields. However, there are several authors on the list, as well as other publishers. Viscount Cowdray and the Pearson family are in joint 224th place, down from a joint 164th place last year. The supplement has discounted their estimated fortune by £100m, and put the family stake in the Pearson media group, Penguin's parent-company, as being worth "only" £150m, below the 3% declarable limit....

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Has publishing become the territory of geeks?

I am quite a gadget fan and love gadget shops. Almost as much as book shops. I also love geeks. I know that the word geeks used to have an unpleasant connotation, and I think I may be a bit of a hipster liking geeks before it because a positive things. But geeks are just fun. Geeks, and please correct me if I am wrong, was negative and for the inept. Now it is more positive, though main, I think for those involved in the work of gaming and computers. Recently, it seems, however, that geeks have "infiltrated" the world of publishing. Publishers have become hip and although there has always been a following, it tended to be, in my...

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London Book Fair

The London Book Fair started yesterday 15th April 2013 in Earl's Court and will last until tomorrow, Wednesday. Today Michael Krüger was awarded the London Book Fair Lifetime Achievement Award.  Michael Krüger has published no less than 16 Nobel laureates for literature, so he really is an amazing man. Congratulations! The London Book fair started in 1971 as a librarian's trade show (SPEX Small and Specialist Publishers' Exhibition) and has over the years evolved into one of the most prestigious events in publishing.  

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