News

Lucy Christopher has won this year’s Branford Boase award for her novel Stolen published by Chicken House. The award recognises debut writers and their editors.

In Stolen 16 year-old Gemma relives her kidnapping from Bangkok airport while on holiday. She is taken to the desolate Australian Outback and Stolen is written as a letter to her captor. The book was edited by Imogen Cooper.

Christopher’s second book Fly Away has already been published by Chicken House and she is currently writing a thriller for YA readers. Chicken House has now won the award three times.

Carousel, The Guide to Children’s Books is currently accepting articles (1,200 words) and book reviews (150 words).

The magazine is published three times a year and is aimed at parents, teachers and librarians, plus anyone interested in the world of children’s books. The reviews cover books for all children, from babies to young adults. Articles in the Spring issue include a profile on Lucy Cousins, a feature on the Newcastle-based Seven Stories centre and a debate on books for boys.

Interested writers should contact editor David Blanch in the first instance to discuss their ideas. For contact details visit www.carouselguide.co.uk

A debut author is celebrating after his self-published book has been shortlisted for the Sheffield Children’s Book Award 2010. Secrets of Hightower by Martin Naylor has been shortlisted in the ‘shorter novel’ section of the national competition, alongside books by well-known writers Mark Haddon and Michael Morpurgo.

Martin will sign copies of the book for anyone who request one from his website www.secretsofhightower.org

A story about a modern-day Oliver Twist has won the second Diverse Voices award. The winning author is Tom Avery, a teacher from Birmingham. His story Too Much Trouble is a contemporary adventure story about two immigrant brothers who fall in with a gang of pickpockets when their family abandons them.

The Award was founded jointly by Frances Lincoln Ltd and Seven Stories, in memory of Frances Lincoln (1945-2001) to encourage and promote diversity in children’s fiction. The prize of £1,500, plus the option for Janetta Otter-Barry at Frances Lincoln Children’s Books to publish the novel, is awarded to the best manuscript for 8 to 12-year-olds that celebrates diversity in the widest possible sense. The 2009 winner Takeshita Demons by Cristy Burne is now available.

For entry forms for the 2011 Award (closing date 25th February 2011) email diversevoices@sevenstories.org.uk

Bridge House Publishing is currently looking for submissions for a variety of short story anthologies.

Bridge House is an independent publishing house that specialises in fiction which is just that little bit different. They published 100 Stories for Haiti in which several of our authors found success and are currently looking for short stories for infants, uplifting stories for a children’s hospice charity book, angel stories and cross-over fiction for a science fiction anthology.

“We are particularly keen to promote new writers,” says Gill James, Bridge House editor. “We believe that our approach is friendly and supportive and we want to encourage those who may not have been published previously.”

If you are interested in submitting a story to Bridge House please refer to their submissions page at www.bridgehousepublishing.co.uk.

Top That Publishing is launching its first range of picture books this summer. The company – previously known for its novelty books – will publish five paperback titles in June and expects to grow this to twelve titles in 2011.

The picture books will be published in paperback and titles include Hiku(about a small penguin), Baby Bear and the Big Wide World, Toucan Toucan’t, Said Kitty to the Cat and Cub’s First Winter. The 2011 list is still being finalised and the publisher is open to submissions.

Our 2010 competition is now open for entries.

The 2010 theme is Beginnings & Endings. What we are looking for is the opening 500 words to a story and the closing 500 words. What this should mean is that writers will be required to have some idea as to where their story is going from start to finish.

First prize is £100, a free critique, a copy of Louise Jordan’s book How to Write for Children & Get Published, plus the opportunity for the winner to have their entry put forward to an agent or publisher.

For full details of the competition and an entry form please click on the link below. The closing date is end August 2010. Good luck!

Entry_Form.doc

Janet Foxley’s Muncle Trogg, about a fairytale community living in a volcano hidden from human beings, is the winner of the 2010 Times/Chicken House prize for an unpublished children’s author. The book will be published by Chicken House in 2011.

The annual Times/Chicken House competition has uncovered some amazing new authors since its inception in 2008 and is a fantastic opportunity for new children’s writers where platforms to be heard are few and far between.

Competition guidelines are to write a novel of no more than 80,000 words for 9 – 16 year-olds. This year’s deadline is 29th October. For full submission guidelines and Chicken House publisher, Barry Cunningham’s, top tips visit doublecluck.com/submissions.

Kate Wilson, former m.d. of Scholastic UK, has created her own children’s publishing company called Nosy Crow. She is launching the company with former Macmillan colleage Camilla Reid, who was editorial director of Campbell Books.

The company will follow a traditional publishing model with books for all ages 0 – 14 years, but will also include a digital publishing division creating apps for iPhones and other devices. Three apps will be published later this year.

Small Blue Thing will be Nosy Crow’s launch title in January 2011. The company are looking to publish about fifteen books next year and about twenty five the following year.

“We are on the look out for exciting new probjects,” says admin manager, Imogen Blundell. “If you’ve got an idea send it in. If your file size isn’t too large please email submissions. If your file sizes are large, or you just prefer to do it that way, you can send them in via post. Please send full text/concept if it’s a novelty/picture book/app idea, plus copies of any supporting visual material. For longer work of fiction or non-fiction, a short synopsis plus the first chapter will suffice. Don’t forget to include a s.a.e.”

For more details visit www.nosycrow.com

Three independent publishers are currently looking for new authors.

Piccadilly Press is focusing on commissioning new picture books, teenage fiction and teenage non-fiction.

Non-fiction publisher Tick Tock is to launch a fiction list in May 2010. Publisher Melissa Fairley said that the new fiction list would focus on distinct series and individual titles rather than mass market series.

And brand new children’s publisher Phoneix Yard Books is looking for fiction for children from three to thirteen. They are particularly interested in licensed characters and character-based fiction from six to nine, especially if it appeals to boys. They are also interested in graphic/comic style formats for a similar age group.

Please click on the links below for submission guidelines. Read carefully and follow to the letter! Both TickTock and Piccadilly have specifically asked that authors do not contact them direct for guidelines.

Piccadilly_Press_Submission_Guidelines.doc

TickTock_Fiction_Submission_Guidelines.doc

For Phoenix Yard Books submission guidelines visit the submissions page of their website at www.phoenixyardbooks.com