Events – Publishing By Degrees

London Book Fair: A First Impression

A publishing student talks about her experience tackling #LBF18

#NapierBigRead book launch on 1 March

As you might have seen, the #NapierBigRead is well and truly underway and we are ramping up activity in the lead-up to our book launch on:

World Book Day – Thursday 1 March.

Copies of Detective McLevy’s Casebook will be available for all students and staff across the whole university!

More details can be found on our website: www.napierbigread.com, where you will see information on our recent activity, including an event at the National Records Office, a presence at the ALIEN conference, and even a mention on the BBC.

Our most recent endeavour, the #bookstohomeless initiative, is also proving to be a great success. See the video below for more details.

All books are going to the Edinburgh charity, www.streetreads.org.

Thanks to all of you who have donated your books!

We have a very special event planned for our book launch on
Thursday 1 March (World Book Day) – so please watch out for further details.

Publishing 6×6

On 26^th October 2017, The Society of Young Publishers Scotland and The University of Edinburgh’s publishing society, PublishEd, held an evening with six speakers from six publishing companies. The aim of the evening was to provide a six-minute insight into each speaker’s role within the publishing industry.

The first speaker was Rosie Howie from educational publisher, Bright Red. Rosie explained her role as an editor throughout the processes of book production. Her useful tips were to do structural editing first in terms of formatting and style before the first draft of the final typescript is ready for a detailed copyedit. She stressed the importance of peer reviewing the author’s work, particularly in educational publishing, and in working through changes with the author to get the best results for an educational book. The next stage is where copyediting takes place before being sent to production for typesetting. Another tip I learned was that up to five proofreads of the manuscript should be carried out before signing it off as error-free and sending it to production – signing your name against poorly proofread copies is not good for your reputation as an editor! It was extremely helpful to hear the daily tasks and challenges of the editor and the importance of their overarching role within a publishing house.

The second speaker was Laura Jones, a production freelancer and one half of The List 100′s number one publisher, 404 Ink. Laura opened up the idea of production as a possible career option which before now, no one had really explained to me. She described her role in producing and designing the books for 404 Ink and the benefits – and challenges – of working as a freelancer. It was very insightful to hear how someone in my position just a few years ago has become so successful in creating her own company, and the enthusiasm she has for her role within the publishing industry was inspiring. Laura also very helpfully explained that you don’t always have to know what aspect of publishing you want to work in from the outset and that this can often be determined from trialling different areas within a smaller publishing house to discover your strengths, which was very encouraging.

Jamie Norman, campaigns assistant for Canongate, was the third speaker of the evening. Jamie discussed the importance of pitching to the marketing and publicity of a book and of having a strong hook to your pitch to really capture and hold your buyer’s attention. A useful tip I learned from Jamie was how to tailor emails to the outlet or brand that you are trying to reach and to keep email pitches succinct, leading with the most relevant information for maximum effect. Jamie discussed some of his best tried and tested marketing techniques; competitions with unique prizes saved for publication week, extensive social media campaigns for top titles, and physical advertisements which, although expensive, can be invaluable with the right design. Most importantly, I learned how crucial it is to be prolific in your marketing.

Speaker number four was Vikki Reilly from the sales team in Birlinn. Vikki really opened up the option of sales to me as a career choice in a way no one had really done before. Her passion for sales and bookshops was infectious. She described her role as being at the centre of everything, liaising with people of all departments because she was in the position of having the most market knowledge through working with book buyers on a daily basis – and spending most of her time in bookshops. She also explained her responsibilities in organising and running promotional events, traveling, and working with non-traditional outlets like whisky shops. The variety in this role was really appealing to me and was something I had never really considered before but will definitely think about now. Another top tip from Vikki; just try new things and don’t be afraid to make a fool of yourself!

The fifth speaker of the night was Janne Moller who has the very interesting job of travelling the world and selling rights for Black and White Publishing. Her key role is in selling translation, audio, and large print rights which means she has to know as many commissioning editors and publisher’s lists as possible to know who to sell to. She has the exciting role of travelling to major book fairs around the world and liaising with new people from all countries. She also described the challenging aspects of her job such as back-to-back meetings with literary agents and commissioning editors. One thing I learned from Janne was about the use of literary agents who are a type of sub-agent some publishers may utilise to sell their books in other territories much more easily. Another was literary scouts who know their clients (publishers) very well and can pick out books they would want to publish to save publishers time. It was interesting to find out about these sub-roles in publishing which I had never been introduced to before, as well as the extensive role rights managers have to play within a publishing company.

Lastly, Mairi Oliver took the opportunity to discuss the issues of diversity within bookselling. Mairi works for the radical and diverse bookshop, Lighthouse Books in Edinburgh. She discussed the importance of her role as a bridge between the publisher and customer and the need to know your books and customers really well to get the right books to the people who’ll love them most. As a diverse bookseller, she expanded on the necessity for publishers to rethink their lists in order for minority groups to be given a larger platform within the book industry for their voices to be heard. She spoke about the need for publishers to include more women in their lists and argued for more female writers to be put forward for literary awards. It was genuinely uplifting to hear someone so passionate and dedicated about these necessary changes within the industry promoting them to fellow publishers and publishing students who are in the privileged position to make them.

Overall, the evening was completely inspiring for me, a new publishing student, in broadening my understanding of the different roles within the industry from a bunch of excited, enthusiastic, and extremely friendly people and instilled in me that same enthusiasm for a future career alongside them in the publishing industry. I’ll definitely be going to more events hosted by PublishEd and the SYP!

Images: Hannah McGeechan

Napier Big Read: Participating in a Promotional Event

At the beginning of this trimester, all Publishing students were offered the opportunity to participate in the Big Read initiative.

The Big Read was launched in 2015 at Kingston University, as a scheme that aimed at increasing student engagement and initiating conversations through a shared reading experience. Every arriving student received a free copy of Nick Hornby’s About a Boy, and the project sparked very positive reactions from both the staff and students. Edinburgh Napier University joined the Big Read initiative last year, promoting Matt Haig’s The Humans.

For this year’s Big Read, we decided to do something a little different to Kingston, and our project puts students at the centre. We are using Detective McLevy’s Casebook, a collection of short stories by a 19^th-century Edinburgh detective James McLevy, said to be the inspiration for Arthur Conan Doyle’s Sherlock Holmes. The Publishing staff and students at Edinburgh Napier University produced this special edition back in 2012, tying it in with the 125^th Sherlock Holmes Anniversary and launching it at the first ever Bloody Scotland, Scotland’s International Crime Writing Festival. So, even from the choice of the book, #NapierBigRead is truly student focussed.

I knew immediately that I wanted to participate in the Big Read project. As a fan of Sherlock Holmes and detective fiction in general, I was fascinated by the book itself, and delighted at the prospect of being involved in a real-life promotional campaign. As part of the events team I still have a lot to organise before the book’s official launch, but last Monday I had the opportunity to participate in an off-campus event which proved to be a brilliant hands-on marketing experience. Continue reading “Napier Big Read: Participating in a Promotional Event”

Spotlight: She is Fierce Magazine

Edinburgh Napier alumni, Hannah Taylor founded She is Fierce magazine as an inspirational publication for creative young girls, who were looking for an alternative to current teen magazines. Instead of focusing on boys, celebrities or trends, Hannah uses it as a platform for championing creative women who can inspire and encourage her readers. Featuring interviews with women forging amazing and innovative careers for themselves, tutorials on how to get crafty in the kitchen or with your sewing kit, and artwork and writing from multiple contributors, She is Fierce is so much more than just a magazine.

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Every issue has a resident illustrator who creates a number of images throughout, including the cover, which gives each publication a very coherent aesthetic. She also openly invites anyone to contribute their writing whether it be poetry, a short story or a non-fiction piece, giving a platform to anyone who is talented and creative and looking to get their work published somewhere. Every issue is packed full of inspirational women doing incredible things, and I know that as a teenager, I would have loved a magazine like this with women in it that I could look up to and admire.

Hannah has also managed to create a real sense of community around She is Fierce. With her open submissions and call for work, every weekly email is a lovely reminder of the work she is doing and the numerous ways to get involved. I love the fact that she is doing something different and making an amazing publication for young girls at a time when it is especially difficult to grow up and be a teen.

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Her latest venture saw She is Fierce launch their first event, The Noisy Girls Club, and as soon as I saw it online, I knew I had to get a ticket! It was an all-day event, running from 12 noon until 5pm at the incredible Whitespace, Edinburgh. It featured a number of fantastic creatives doing tons of cool stuff. From dance performances, live music and talks to craft workshops and a pop-up shop, there was plenty to do at The Noisy Girls Club and I ended up staying for the whole time. My main interest was on the craft workshops available so I mostly chilled out and got crafty, but the beauty of the event meant that whatever your area of interest, you could dip in and out of workshops or performances.

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First off, I hung out with Birch and Bloom and learned how to make a wonderful woodland wall hanging. Using herbs like lavender and rosemary, along with ivy, pine cones and some flowers, I made a lovely (and beautifully smelling) wall hanging. Then, I did some embroidery at the Wool and the Gang embroidery station. With lots of fun designs and different fabrics, it was easy to be creative and make something cute to take home with me. There was the option, for a wee bit more money, to join a weaving class with Squid Ink Co. which I signed up for. This included all the materials for weaving plus a mini loom to take home. This class was so fun and I loved the relaxation of weaving and being creative.

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Also on offer was printing with Natasha Russell, badge-making with Wild & Kind and design your own tote with Hannah herself. There were even some talks and spoken word from incredibly inspiring women, including Jenni Sparks, Kylie Reid and poetry from Aischa Daughtery. Band, L-Space treated us to some amazing songs and the dance groups performing were incredible!

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The Noisy Girls Club was such an amazing event and I had a lovely day, getting crafty, learning, chatting to fellow Noisy Girls and being inspired by so many kind and wonderful creative people. I can’t wait for the next event, so I would recommend keeping your eyes peeled on social media to hear about what Hannah and She is Fierce get up to in the future. In the meantime, check out the magazine and if you’re a writer, artist, photographer or a generally creative person, get involved!

All images courtesy of She is Fierce and event photos by Neal Gruer www.nealgruerphotography.com

MagFest 2017

MagFest Programme (Photo Credit: Grace Balfour-Harle)

On 15^th September 2017, a group of Edinburgh Napier publishing MSc students were lucky enough to attend MagFest at Central Hall, Edinburgh. MagFest is a Scottish Magazine Festival for professionals (and students) to hear about and appreciate the developments in Scottish Magazine publishing. Organised superbly by PPA Scotland (Professional Publishers Association Scotland), the day was full of guest speakers, workshops and culminated in an interview with self-professed magazine-enthusiast and novelist: Ian Rankin. The theme for this year was ‘heroes of the magazine industry… some of their visions for the future of magazines.’

As well as Ian Rankin, there were many other leading experts in the magazine publishing field speaking throughout the day, including Zillah Byng-Thorne, the Chief Executive of Future PLC, Ruth Mortimer, the director of the Festival of Marketing and an interview with John Brown, the founder of Brown Publishing. These industry-leaders were only too happy to explain their vision for the future of publishing, which can be summed up with the phrase: ‘Be open to the unexpected.’ (Zillah Byng-Thorne)

The organisers of MagFest stayed true to the theme of Visions of the Future, with speakers from four new magazines in Scottish publishing: Boom Saloon, Cable, Marbles and Word-O-Mat. Each of these magazines had a unique point of view, and filled a gap in the market, whether it be by democratising art, discussing taboos like mental health, giving Scotland a voice in international affairs, or by simply making tiny little books filled with beautiful content. Vice Publishing talked about a way forward using technology to maximise the brand of a magazine, and that ‘all that matters is great storytelling’ whatever the medium. The future of magazine publishing remains strong.

However, the PPA Scotland also strived to ensure that although magazine enthusiasts look to the future for inspiration, we must also understand and value the past. A talk from the magazine archivists, Mark Hymen and Tory Turk, from The Hymen Archives, the largest collection of magazines in the world, showed us how magazines ‘were your internet’ and how much of a resource they are still today which we must preserve and protect. The Audience of the Future Panel discussed the tactility of magazines and that children, despite being known as the technology generation, appreciate the feeling of reading a traditional magazine. And Mark Neil showed us how using inspiration from the past can give a fresh take on the future at his talk Cover Versions.

Fringe Event: Paul getting Lucie to spill all the gossip (Photo Credit: Grace Balfour-Harle)

As well as the day full of speakers, I was lucky enough to attend the Fringe Event the night before, which was an interview of Lucie Cave, the Editor of Heat Magazine conducted by Paul MacNamee, the editor of The Big Issue. As well as spilling a bit of gossip, Lucie illustrated how she used multi-level platforms to maximise the brand of Heat, and how important it is to understand what the readership wants. She also highlighted the importance of following your instinct and turning a challenging task (like an difficult interviewee) to your advantage, and to always engage with your audience.

Overall, MagFest 2017 was a very informative and exciting event for all who attended, especially for the large group of young student publishers who just can’t wait to get started in telling their own story. As Ian Rankin said in his interview: ‘Do your research, but have fun with it.’

Ian Rankin and Barry McIlheney (Photo Credit: Grace Balfour-Harle)

Dyslexia Awareness Week

A reflection upon Dyslexia Awareness Week 2017.

Today we are currently in the last day of Dyslexia Awareness Week whose campaign this year has been #PositiveAboutDyslexia. There is still quite a lot of stigma around dyslexia and those who have it as is highlighted in the BBC Three short ‘Things Not To Say To Someone With Dyslexia’. So many of the common things that are said to people who have dyslexia are either dismissive or negative; things like telling dyslexia people that they ‘need to focus more’ and when someone mentions that they have dyslexia asking them to spell it. (Confession: I did misspell dyslexia at least three times while writing this post).

This week I was lucky enough to be involved in #DyslexiaStory campaign. This was set up between Dekko Comics, where I am currently an intern, and Estendio a company who develop innovative support Apps for people with Dyslexia. I got to be there from the very start, being involved in the initial Skype conversation where we decided on the hashtag and how we wanted people to get involved.

The plan was to take this years #PositiveAboutDyslexia campaign and add to it a little. Allow people to poke a little fun at themselves, or share a proud moment. To share with us their own favourite #DyslexiaStory.

The responses that we got really were a mixed bag, from a man telling us about misspelling his own name on his Higher English exam to a mother proudly sharing her daughter’s success in having her poetry published. One thing that I did enjoy was that the responses were overwhelmingly positive.

As part of Dyslexia Awareness Week I went along to Edinburgh Central Library for a Dyslexia Scotland event which promoted positivity about dyslexia and involved speakers and performers who were dyslexia and sharing their stories. First up was a sixteen year old boy from Aberdeenshire who played some live music and explained that when he was in early primary school he used to hide under desks because he was unable to connect with traditional methods of learning. He now expresses himself through songwriting and playing the guitar.

This was followed by the master of ceremonies for the night, Paul Hugh McNeill who is an ambassador for Dyslexia Scotland. I knew of Paul in advance of the event through Twitter and it was amazing to see just how inspiring a speaker he was in person. He talked about his own experiences of growing up Dyslexic, in the 1980’s and how in primary school he had just been labeled as ‘bad’. It wasn’t until he was twenty-five and decided to go back to full-time education that he realised his Dyslexia wasn’t something that he should be ashamed of, but that there was help available to him.

Paul is a hard worker which has gotten him to where he is today, he talked about how his dyslexia made him work hard, and that without it he wouldn’t be where he is today. He is a fantastic role model for young children, not least because he is an advocate for him, espousing that all a dyslexic child needs is an adult on their side. A parent, a teacher, an auntie or uncle, and if that child doesn’t have any of those people on their side then they will have Paul.

The launch of the new Dyslexia Scotland Website and of the hard work from the Dyslexia Scotland Youth Ambassadors whose enthusiasm made the launch possible was also briefly touched upon.

Finally we got to hear from Margaret Rooke, the author of newly published book Dyslexia is my Superpower (Most of the Time). Margaret herself is not dyslexia, but her daughter is, which made her interested in the learning difficulty. She has interviewed dyslexic people across the country and compiled her interviews into this book which is available for purchase here.

It was quite important to me to be involved in Dyslexia Awareness Week. I think that it’s something that can so easily be overlooked, when coping strategies are in place and you are long since diagnosed. At the Dyslexia Scotland event I spoke to parents whose children had just been diagnosed and were caught the relief of knowing that there was a reason their child was struggling, and the difficult realisation that their kid is in for a hard slog. It was uplifting to be able to share the success stories of other dyslexic people in the room.

So to end this Dyslexia Awareness Week I am going to push myself to continue being #PositiveAboutDyslexia long after the campaign fades.