25 February 2022 The Society of Authors condemns the illegal invasion of the sovereign state of Ukraine. We join our European colleagues in declaring solidarity with the Ukrainian people and our fellow Ukrainian writers and translators. We stand with all Ukrainian people, and in particular with Ukrainian writers, illustrators, translators, journalists, and others whose lives…
07 February 2022 Dear Donna Ferguson, Re: How to save money on buying books – or get them for free We have recently been directed to your article ‘How to save money on buying books – or get them for free’ and would like to raise our concerns regarding your recommendations. In particular, through…
Launched by author Vikki Patis, Book Fuel is an online auction to raise money for National Energy Action, a charity which works to end fuel poverty in the UK. It is estimated that around 4 million homes are in fuel poverty in the UK. On top of increased food bank use, the reduction of cheaper…
10 February 2022 The literary translator wins for the third time at the Society of Authors’ annual Translation Prizes for a ‘flawless’ translation from Swedish. Newcomer Jackie Smith wins the TA First Translation Prize for a debut translation. Eight literary translators shared a total prize fund worth almost £19,000 today (Thursday 10 February) at the…
Part of the BBC Audio Drama Awards. Awarding £3,000 for the best original script by a writer new to radio, this year’s Imison Award shortlistees are The Chronicles of Wild Hollow by Harvey Badger, Angus Maxwell, and Christian Powlesland; The Lemonade Lads by Faebian Averies; Welcome to Medpatch by Kev Core; and Yellow Lips by…
19 January 2022 Society of Authors responds to announcement #SaveOurBooks On Tuesday 18 January 2022, the Intellectual Property Office (IPO) announced that it will, for now, not proceed with changes to the UK’s current laws on copyright exhaustion. In 2021, the Society of Authors campaigned alongside publishers, agents and booksellers in the Save Our Books…
12 January 2022 Announcing Sarah Enany as the winner of the 2021 Saif Ghobash Banipal Prize for Arabic Literary Translation. ‘A unanimous choice for the excellence and readability of both its original and translated versions’ The winner of the 2021 Saif Ghobash Banipal Prize for Arabic Literary Translation is Sarah Enany for her translation of The…
Our local groups have provided a well-needed source of support and connection over the course of the pandemic. Why not start 2022 by joining your own? A third of SoA members now have a group in their area, as more members have set up new local groups over the past year. ‘During the pandemic…
23 December 2021 A look ahead at the issues that will define much of our work over the next twelve months. In 2020, we focused our efforts almost exclusively on the impact of Covid-19. But in 2021, as the health crisis faded at times to an enduring background noise, we were able to put more…
22 December 2021 The fifth round of our Authors in the Health Crisis survey is now open. Illustration © Antonio Rodriguez We are again asking for your help to press the case for financial support for authors and freelance creative professionals, as well as for better educational materials, public libraries and our Authors Contingency Fund. Following four previous instalments…
7 December 2021 2021 ALCS Educational Writers’ Award #EWA21 #ALCSAwards “SOMETIMES I FEEL…” by SARAH MAYCOCK wins the UK’s sole award for creative educational writing The winner of the 2021 ALCS Educational Writers’ Award is Sometimes I Feel: A Menagerie of Feelings Big and Small, written and illustrated by Sarah Maycock. The 2021 judges praised…
UPDATE 29 November 2021: The National Library of New Zealand (NLNZ) announced today that it has paused its plans to donate these volumes to the Internet Archive for digitising and sharing online. National Librarian Te Pouhuaki Rachel Esson said, ‘We are taking some time to look at all available options that align with our collection…
