A rather excellent video featuring Jamie Byng, who’ll be appearing at Mountains To Sea in Dun Laoghaire in September

Upwardly mobile | moving in and what not
And he discusses new digs!
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Book Launch: Renegades: Irish Republican Women 1900-1922
Ann was on Pat Kenny yesterday, interesting book this one.
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Moving on
This really should be read, considered, parsed, filed and re-visited by publishers across the globe. It’s message, however unpalatable, is a vital one!
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Gollancz appoints Nash as digital publisher
On a very selfish level I admire Gollancz as a publisher, if only because they publish some of the finest sci-fi and fantasy.
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Miriam O’Callaghan and Mercier Press title
And why wouldn’t they? (I commissioned Moxie while working at Mercier Press)
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Sell, Socialise and Survive at the Frankfurt Book Fair
Good advice on Frankfurt. IPN will be there so don’t be afraid to send us your stories and releases!
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Edinburgh
Nice note on Edinburgh from Laura!
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Waterstone’s to open bar and restaurants
I think this makes sense, but don’t quote me on it!
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Samsung launches e-reader with W H Smith
When will the ebook and ereading bug bite home here? 
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PW Select: A Quarterly Service for Self-Published Authors to Launch in December
Publishers Weekly will launch a quarterly magazine in December focusing on announcements and reviews of self-published titles. However, listed self-published titles will come at a fee of $149 to the author and reviews will only be on selected titles.
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Publicity for Mercier Press titles
Three of Mercier Press titles were reviewed in national papers at the weekend.
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Reivew: Rules for a Perfect Life by Niamh Greene
IN Rules for a Perfect Life, each of the 27 chapters, like those in some self-help manuals, is headed by a maxim, which will, if followed, apparently change your life for the better.
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Tales of the Burren, and other places
A nice list of new local history titles
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Ireland’s desperadoes of the veld
Masked Raiders: Irish Banditry in Southern Africa, 1880-1899, By Charles van Onselen
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Book Club: Tenderwire by Claire Kilroy
An interesting move this!
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Review: Jumping in Puddles by Claire Allan
The Balamory lookalike seaside village of Rathinch may look postcard-perfect to summer visitors. But for locals who live there all year, it is a place of squinting windows, a hotbed of righteous gossip.
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John Blake has signed a deal with Prizeman & Kinsella client and Showbiz editor for Irish Sun newspaper, Jennifer O’Brien for an authorised biography of ‘Jedward’, John and Edward Grimes, the former x-factor contestents.

The journalist will have ‘full access to their manic schedule in the run up to the festive season’ according to her agent Yvonne Kinsella.

The book will trace their route from birth to superstardom with exclusive material featuring judges Simon Cowell, Cheryl Cole and Danni Minogue.

According to Kinsella the book will help ‘us understand just what celebrity judge Louis Walsh saw in the two lads who got booed off the stage from day one, only to become overnight sensations securing advertising deals, a number one album in Ireland, their own fashion line, a single due for release in the UK and Ireland for Christmas and a panto role.’

The book will be released in time for christmas and will coincide with the duo’s tur which starts in November.

Maverick House, the independent non-fiction Irish Publisher with operations in Europe and Asia, is to launch a new imprint later this year called Book Republic.

According to the company the ’boutique’ imprint ‘will specialise in quality short print runs and special editions’ and making ‘the experience of writing and the process of publishing more accessible, while maintaining high levels of quality and professionalism.’

Book Republic will seek submissions and will provide services to authors including self-publishing and short-run publishing.

Jennifer Thompson and Editor at Marverick said, ‘We [Maverick House] will enter into traditional contracts with authors whereby we pay for publication, but the books will not be sold through a traditional retail method. It’s the normal publishing process, but it involves small print runs. At times, we may also enter into profit sharing contracts which gives us greater flexibility to meet our own requirements and the requirements of our authors. Book Republic aims to offer new authors the opportunity to get published and kick-start their writing careers.’

Print on demand will be part of the company’s model and, in certain cases, an author/company subsidy may be involved.

Book Republic will be publishing two titles in September and aims to publish 2-3 each month thereafter.

Although it is not yet clear if the company plans to offer publishing packages, Book Republic bears a strong resemblance to Thomas Nelson’s WestBow Press and Harlequin’s Dellarte Press.

Maverick House’ MD, Jean Harrington, is currently President of Publishing Ireland, the Irish book publishers trade association.

One of Little Island’s crop of writers will take part in a reading in Dubray’s Blackrock store on Wednesday 4 August at 6pm.

Local Author Kevin Stevens will read from This Ain’t No Video Game, Kid!.

He will be joined by some young performers from Dublin theatre groups reading from New Town Soul by Dermot Bolger which is based in the suburb.

The event is free and the publishers want as many people to come as possible to attend so RSVP!

Great article by Sinead Gleeson on last lines in the Irish Times on Saturday!

When I was 16 I read a novel I absolutely loved, and I can still remember the shimmering pleasure its last line gave. From Dickens’s Great Expectations : “I took her hand in mine, and we went out of the ruined place; and, as the morning mists had risen long ago when I first left the forge, so, the evening mists were rising now, and in all the broad expanse of tranquil light they showed to me, I saw no shadow of another parting from her.”

Some novel ways to end on a high – The Irish Times – Sat, Jul 10, 2010.

Five Americans and one British author have made the shortlist for the 2010 Frank O’Connor Short Story Award.

David Constantine is the only non-US writer to make the cut. He is joined on the list by Robin Black, Belle Boggs, TC Boyle, Ron Rash and Laura van den Berg.

The judges for the 2010 competition are Nadine O’Regan, Diana Reich and Mary Morrisy.

The competition, which is organised by the Munster Literature Centre and funded by Cork City Council, is in its sixth year and has a €35,000 prize fund and is the richest short story prize in the world.

The winner will be revealed in September at the Frank O’Connor short story festival in O’Connor’s home town of Cork.

The Full Shortlist
If I Loved You, I Would Tell You This (Picador UK, 2010) by Robin Black
Mattaponi Queen (Graywolf Press, 2010) by Belle Boggs
Wild Child (Bloomsbury, 2010) by TC Boyle
The Shieling (Comma Press, 2009) by David Constantine
Burning Bright (HarperCollins, 2010) by Ron Rash
What the World Will Look Like When All the Water Leaves Us (Dzanc Books, 2009) by Laura van den Berg

Day jobs and writers (4)
I think this is a great series, one to read!
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Luke Johnson Agrees With Me
Some Thoughts On bookshops that somepeople didn’t like!
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Amazon Start Taking Pre-orders on New Kindle DX
A fancy new Kindle DX
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Salmon Poetry presents the Galway Launch of ‘Where’s Katie?’ by Elaine Feeney & ‘Invitation to a Sacrifice’ by Dave Lordan
Salmon Poetry invites you to celebrate the publication of two new collections of poetry
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Darren Shan Q&A
Nice Q&A with Darren Shan
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Old stories prove new hits as Binchy takes top spot
Maeve is doing well in the UK as well as in Ireland!
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Food blogger, pop singer and amateur chef, Donal Skehan has signed a two book deal with HarperCollins.

The first book, Kitchen Hero, will be released in March 2011.

‘It’s about other people becomeung kitchen heroes,’ said Skehan. He also said that he, ‘will be doing all photography this time!’

Skehan’s first book, Good Mood Food* was published by Mercier Press in 2009.

The commissioning Harper Collins was Editorial Director, Jenny Heller.

*Declaration of Interest: The editor of Irish Publishing News, Eoin Purcell, commissioned Donal’s first book while working at Mercier Press.