Scribe Publications: News

CAL/Scribe Fiction Prize Party

2010-03-09T14:57:28Z

On Thursday 18 February, Melbourne's literary community gathered at The Wheeler Centre to celebrate the announcement of the winner of the CAL/Scribe Fiction Prize. The winner was Maris Morton for her manuscript, A Darker Music. Maris Morton has received a$12,000 book contract from Scribe and A Darker Music will be published in October 2010.

Henry Rosenbloom, Scribe Founder and Publisher

The crowd at The Wheeler Centre

Aviva Tuffield, Scribe Fiction Acquisitions Editor and the winner of the CAL/Scribe Fiction Prize, Maris Morton.

Congratulations to Cate Kennedy

2010-03-09T11:22:41Z

Cate Kennedy has been shortlisted for the 2010 Barbara Jefferis Award for her first novel, The World Beneath. For details of the shortlist announcement click here.

The Australian Society of Authors administers the Barbara Jefferis Award, awarded each year for the best novel written by an Australian author that depicts women and girls in a positive way or otherwise empowers the status of women and girls in society.

Melbourne launch of So Greek

2010-02-25T16:48:46Z

On Sunday 21 February at Readings bookstore in Hawthorn, Anrew Robb MP, launched Niki Savva's political memoir: So Greek: confessions of a conservative leftie.

A large crowd gathered for the launch

Andrew Robb launches So Greek

Niki Savva and Senator Mitch Fifield

You can read Andrew Robb's launch speech here: Download

The launch of Our Father Who Wasn't There in Melbourne

2010-02-23T16:51:40Z

On Wednesday 17 February at Readings bookstore in Carlton, Kevin Brophy launched David Carlin's moving memoir: Our Father Who Wasn't There

Kevin Brophy launches Our Father Who Wasn't There

David Carlin signs copies of his book

The winner of the CAL Scribe Fiction Prize is... drumroll please ...

2010-02-19T14:14:20Z

Scribe is thrilled to announce that the winner of the inaugural CAL Scribe Fiction Prize is:

Maris Morton for her manuscript, A Darker Music, a mystery that uncovers the buried secrets of a family who own a merino sheep station in Western Australia.

The winner was officially announced on February 18 at the newly opened Wheeler Centre for Books, Writing and Ideas in Melbourne. Maris Morton will receive $12,000 and a book contract from Scribe.

Maris Morton was born in 1938 and A Darker Music will be her first published book. She currently lives in Uki in rural NSW but has worked in various jobs around Australia including as an English teacher, shearers’ cook, shed hand, artist, art restorer and director of an art gallery.

Maris said of the win: ‘Winning the CAL Scribe Prize has made what seemed to be an impossible dream come true. I'm still pinching myself. Winning has given me an added incentive to go on doing what I love best: telling stories!’

It was a very tight contest in the end — almost a dead heat between the three shortlisted works — but after much wrangling and negotiation the three judges agreed that Maris Morton’s work was the standout. The judges were Kerryn Goldsworthy, Mark Rubbo, and Aviva Tuffield. Of the winning manuscript, judge Mark Rubbo said: ‘It has a strong narrative and personally I found it was an extremely satisfying read.’

Both Meg Mundell’s Black Glass and Jane Sullivan’s Little People were highly commended and will be considered for publication.

The CAL Scribe Fiction Prize for writers over 35 attracted 534 entrants, with the eldest born in 1919 (90 years old), while 22 entrants were born in the 1920s and 64 in the 1930s. The standard was very high and it was a tough task to narrow the longlist down to just three manuscripts and then to choose a winner. Aviva Tuffield, Fiction Acquisitions Editor at Scribe, says: ‘The judging process was quite lengthy and the judges admired all of the ten longlisted manuscripts.’

The Scribe Fiction Prize will be run again this year, with entries opening in a couple of months. Watch our website for more details.

Niki Savva in Sydney

2010-02-17T16:20:06Z

Niki Savva, author of So Greek: confessions of a conservative leftiewill be in conversation with Lateline Presenter and author, Leigh Sales.

Gleebooks
49 Glebe Point Rd, Glebe

Cost: $10/$7 conc. gleeclub welcome
Book: gleebooks - 9660 2333

Date: 24 March 2010

6.30pm for 7.00pm

Ian Brown wins the 2010 Charles Taylor Prize for Literary Non-Fiction

2010-02-12T10:27:32Z

Canadian journalist Ian Brown has won the 2010 Charles Taylor Prize for Literary Non-Fiction book for his book, The Boy In The Moon: A Father’s Search For His Disabled Son. The CAD$25,000 prize was announced earlier this week in Toronto.

Ian Brown is a journalist for The Globe and Mail and is the anchor of TVOntario’s Human Edge and The View from Here.

The Boy In The Moon: A Father’s Search For His Disabled Son - out in Australia next month - and it follows Brown's son Walker who was born with a genetic mutation so rare that doctors call it an orphan syndrome.

For more information on the Charles Taylor prize click here.

So Greek enters our list at #1; outsells The Brain on weekly Bookscan

2010-02-12T09:50:06Z

This week's Bookscan results show that So Greek: confessions of a conservative leftie has knocked The Brain that Changes Itself by Norman Doige off the number-one spot on the weekly Scribe bestseller list. It’s the first week since September 2008 that a new release has outsold The Brain.

Laurie Oakes launches So Greek

2010-02-12T09:31:32Z

On Wednesday 10 February at Paperchain bookstore in Canberra, Laurie Oakes launched Niki Savva's political memoir: So Greek: confessions of a conservative leftie.

Henry Rosenbloom introduces Laurie Oakes

Niki Savva signs copies of her book

Laurie Oakes, Niki Savva and Andrew Robb MP

You can read Laurie Oakes' launch speech here: Download

Jill Jolliffe at the Northern Territory Library

2010-02-08T11:47:31Z

Jill Jolliffe, author of Balibo will talk about how she has been following the Balibo Five story for 34 years. She has a long association with East Timor and witnessed the first incursions of Indonesian regular troops into East Timor in September 1975, ans how she had to report the death of her five colleagues at Balibo.

Over the years, she has maintained an unwavering commitment to bringing out the truth about what happened to them on that mid-October morning.

Northern Territory Library
Parliament House

Free event – open to the public.
Bookings preferred 1800 019 155

Date: 25 February 2010

5.15pm

'Evil vs Banal' with Michael Goldfarb

2010-02-02T11:17:21Z

In a twenty year career, Michael Goldfarb covered many different conflicts, with different causes — Northern Ireland, Israel/Palestine, Iraq/Kurdistan — but they all had one thing in common: they were civil wars in all but name. In this lecture he will reflect on what the tipping points are that lead a society to civil war and then lead the warriors to genocide at:

Time: 2.00 pm
Date: Friday 19 February
Venue: Forgan Smith Building (Building 1), Lecture Theatre E301, The University of Queensland, St Lucia
Bookings: Free but please RSVP essential
For more information contact Deborah Mayersen at d.mayersen@uq.edu.au

Date: 19 February 2010

2.00 pm, University of Queensland

The Shortlist for the CAL Scribe Fiction Prize is announced

2010-02-01T12:06:21Z

The judges of the CAL Scribe Fiction Prize, Kerryn Goldsworthy, Mark Rubbo and Aviva Tuffield, are thrilled to announce the shortlist for the inaugural prize:

Maris Morton, ‘A Darker Music’
Meg Mundell, ‘Black Glass’
Jane Sullivan, ‘Little People’

The CAL Scribe Fiction Prize for writers over 35 attracted 534 entrants, with the eldest born in 1919 (90 years old), while 22 entrants were born in the 1920s and 64 in the 1930s.

The standard was very high and it was a tough task to narrow the longlist down to just three manuscripts.

Aviva Tuffield, Fiction Acquisitions Editor at Scribe, says: ‘The judging process was quite lengthy and the judges admired all of the longlisted manuscripts. However, after much deliberation, we feel confident of the calibre of the three shortlisted works. Narrowing it down to one winner will be extremely tricky.’

The winner will be announced on Thursday 18 February at the newly opened Wheeler Centre in Melbourne. The winner will receive $12,000 and a book contract from Scribe.

Tuffield added: ‘I do hope that ultimately Scribe will be able to publish more than just the winning book.

Here is the full longlist:

George Dunford - A Butterfly Goodbye
Angus Gaunt - Under the Ha-Ha
Leah Kaminsky - The Waiting Room
Jonathan Marshall - A Life of Fire
Maris Morton A Darker Music
Meg Mundell - Black Glass
Andrew Nette - Last Chances
Jane Sullivan - Little People
Niki Tulk - Shadows and Wings
Jen Webb - The Idea of Gravity

Who Are We and How Did We Get Here? with Michael Goldfarb

2010-01-29T15:28:19Z

Philosopher AC Grayling and journalist Michael Goldfarb examine our place in the world. Looking at issues of identity — from religious faith to political movements — they consider some of the big moments that have impacted western society.

Time: 3.30–4.30 pm, Monday 1 March
Venue: Octagon Theatre, UWA
To book: Visit the Perth Writers Festival website

Date: 1 March 2010

Perth Writers Festival

Reluctant Heroes with Lenny Bartulin

2010-01-29T15:26:36Z

A bookshop owner and an accidentprone tomboy with a talent for seeing auras put a new twist on crime fiction sleuths in Lenny Bartulin and Marianne Delacourt's latest mysteries. From reading books to reading auras, these two great authors discuss the creation of eccentric crime characters. Chair: John Harman

Time: 5.00–6.00 pm, Sunday 28 February
Venue: Dolphin Theatre, UWA
To book: Visit the Perth Writers Festival website

Date: 28 February 2010

Perth Writers Festival

In the Shadows with David Finkel

2010-01-29T15:25:21Z

In their latest books David Finkel and William Dalrymple keep their narrative voices in the shadows and the focus firmly on the extraordinary lives of their subjects. Part reportage, part travelogue, both books are brilliant character studies that tell universal tales. They consider the role of the author in these stories. Chair: Geraldine Mellet

Time: 3.30–4.30 pm, Sunday 28 February
Venue: The University Club Theatre, UWA
To book: Visit the Perth Writers Festival website

Date: 28 February 2010

Perth Writers Festival

Breaking the Rules with David Carlin

2010-01-29T15:24:04Z

The new books by David Carlin, Robert Gray and Evelyn Juers challenge traditional understandings of memoir and biography. They talk about breaking the rules in pursuit of good storytelling. Chair: Antonio Casella

Time: 11.00 am–12.00 noon, Sunday 28 February
Venue: Undercroft, UWA
To book: Visit the Perth Writers Festival website

Date: 28 February 2010

Perth Writers Festival

Pulp Fiction with Lenny Bartulin

2010-01-29T15:22:08Z

The new novels of KA Bedford, Lenny Bartulin and Adrian McKinty have a Chandleresque air to them. They look at the legacy of noir fiction and its effect on their writing with Chair Grant Stone.

Time: 2.00–3.00 pm, Saturday 27 February
Venue: Undercroft, UWA
To book: Visit the Perth Writers Festival website

Date: 27 February 2010

Perth Writers Festival

Beneath the Veneer with David Carlin

2010-01-29T15:20:57Z

Some of the most interesting characters are flawed, with families and relationships providing a goldmine of material. David Carlin, Emily Maguire and Wendy James explore the emotional landscape of human behaviour. Chair: Angela Meyer

Time: 2.00–3.00 pm, Saturday 27 February
Venue: Dophin Theatre, UWA
To book: Visit Perth Writers Festival website

Date: 27 February 2010

Perth Writers Festival

Exile & Emancipation with Michael Goldfarb

2010-01-29T15:19:22Z

Biographer Evelyn Juers has written an extraordinary biography of Heinrich Mann and Nelly Kroeger's exile to the US. Michael Goldfarb has investigated how the liberation of Europe's Jews impacted Western society. They examine the interplay of exile and emancipation with creativity and intellectual life.

Time: Saturday 27 February, 12.30–1.30 pm
Venue: The University Club Theatre, UWA
To book: Visit the Perth Writers Festival website

Date: 27 February 2010

Perth Writers Festival

From the Vault with Michael Goldfarb

2010-01-29T15:18:02Z

Anthony Buckley and Michael Goldfarb have written two engrossing cultural histories that explore fascinating periods of change in Australia and Europe. They give us an insight into the journey they travelled in writing and researching their books.

Time: Saturday 27 February, 9.30–10.30 am
Venue: Undercroft, UWA
To book: Visit Perth Writers Festival website

Date: 27 February 2010

Perth Writers Festival