Latest news from The Bookseller

LATEST NEWS Authors call for better communication with publishers Publishers need to communicate better with authors, pay them more and utilise writers’ skills to market books, but most writers would still choose to be published traditionally, a survey has found. The Do You Love Your Publisher? survey, co-produced by authors Harry Bingham (in the UK) and Jane Friedman (in the US), questioned 812 writers with experience of being traditionally published on areas including publisher satisfaction, agenting and self-publishing; 310 of those questioned were authors based in the UK and Ireland. Faber and Perseus grow partnership Faber has launched a new publishing partnership with the Perseus Books Group in the US, and will now publish in the US directly, beginning in spring 2016. Frostrup returns as host of Bookseller Industry Awards Mariella Frostrup is returning to host The Bookseller Industry Awards for 2015 for a second consecutive year. The BBC Radio 4 "Open Book" presenter, who was hugely popular with the audience at last year’s event, will be back at the helm of this year's ceremony at the Hilton Hotel on Park Lane, London on 11th May.  As well as hosting "Open Book", Frostrup is a regular contributor to the Observer newspaper and was for many years the host of Sky Arts' "Book Show".  S&S change sales and children's staff Simon & Schuster has promoted Gill Richardson to the role of sales director, as Elv Moody steps down from the position of editorial director of children's fiction. Roberto Duran memoir goes for six figures Macmillan has acquired an autobiography by “one of the greatest boxers who ever lived” in a six-figure deal. Roberto Duran, nicknamed Hands of Stone, held four world titles at four different weights and fought boxers including Sugar Ray Leonard, Thomas Hearns and Marvin Hagler. Macmillan signed world rights to I Am Duran direct from Duran in his hometown of Panama City, Panama. Ward joins HarperCollins as fiction art director HarperCollins has hired Claire Ward as fiction art director, joining from Transworld where she has worked for 25 years. Ward, who will begin at HarperCollins in July, has designed covers for titles such as Before I Go to Sleep, The Unlikely Pilgrimage of Harold Fry, The Book Thief and The Girl on the Train. She has worked across several fiction genres, including women's fiction, crime, fantasy and the literary and book club market. ePubDirect relaunches as Vearsa E-book services company ePubDirect has today (8th April) relaunched itself as Vearsa. Eurovision winner Conchita added to LBF roster Austrian pop star and drag performer Conchita Wurst—winner of the 2014 Eurovision Song Contest—heads the final list of authors and celebrities to confirm they will appear at next week’s London Book Fair. 'Business as usual' at Bologna despite 2016 timing concerns Despite a positive atmosphere at this year’s Bologna Children’s Book Fair, publishers have voiced concern about the timing of the 2016 event.  During this year’s fair (30th March–2nd April), the organisers confirmed that next year’s event will take place from 4th April–7th April 2016, only one week before the London Book Fair (12th–14th April). Many within the trade who spoke to The Bookseller said having the fairs so close together would stop companies attending both. Indie Book-ish wins Picador Classics competition Crickhowell bookshop Book-ish has won the Independent Bookseller Picador Classics competition. Booksellers were encouraged to come up with eye-catching campaigns around the recently-launched Picador Classics paperback list. John Murray acquires 'London's year of hell' John Murray has acquired a book about “London’s year of hell” by Rebecca Rideal. Editorial director Mark Richards bought UK and Commonwealth rights to 1666: Plague, War and Hellfire from Donald Winchester at Watson, Little. The year 1666 saw the continuation of the Great Plague, and was also the year in which two major battles in the second Anglo-Dutch war took place. The year’s climax was the Great Fire of London. Search on for best reading group début The Reading Agency is launching a hunt for the début author the UK’s reading groups most want to read and champion in 2015. The search, in partnership with The Booksellers Association, will culminate in the winner being announced on National Reading Group Day on 20th June. Publishers who are members of The Reading Agency’s partnership programme, which brings libraries and publishers together, are invited to nominate recent titles by debut writers which they would like to share with reading groups “to inspire them to discover something different”.