Fantasy news round-up – March 3, 2010

In the US: Kindle books now available on Blackberry

Amazon has released a free Kindle for BlackBerry application that makes the online shop’s electronic books available for reading on the Research in Motion smartphones. The application, available for download online at www.amazon.com/kindlebb lets BlackBerry users access an online bookstore with more than 420,000 digital works.

OverDrive’s most downloaded

OverDrive, the global distributor of eBooks and audiobooks to libraries, today announced the ‘Most Downloaded Books from the Library’ for February 2010. Nicholas Sparks’ "Dear John" moved onto the adult fiction eBook and audiobook top ten lists on the heels of its motion picture adaptation. "The Lightning Thief," also released as a motion picture last month, ended Stephenie Meyer’s long run at the top of the juvenile fiction audiobook list, taking the top spot away from "The Twilight Saga" books. Dan Brown’s "The Lost Symbol" continued its reign at the top of the audiobook and eBook charts for the sixth consecutive month, while digital books by Kathryn Stockett, Dean Koontz, Steven D. Levitt, and Stephen J. Dubner were also among the most downloaded books from the library in February. For the complete lists, visit www.overdrive.com/mostdownloaded

Matthew Goode auditions for Bilbo Baggins role

Watchmen star Matthew Goode is the latest actor to audition for the lead role in the upcoming Lord of the Rings prequel. The British actor, who shot to fame in the 2009 superhero movie, admits he recently auditioned for the coveted role of young Bilbo Baggins in Guillermo del Toro’s two-part epic The Hobbit. Other stars rumoured to be in the running include Daniel Radcliffe, James McAvoy and Tobey Maguire, who recently denied he has been approached to take the part.

JK Rowling forced to yet again defend her creation

Harry Potter author JK Rowling has been added as a defendant to an ongoing lawsuit between the estates of the late children’s author Adrian Jacobs. The suit claims that "JK Rowling copied substantial parts of the work of the late Adrian Jacobs, The Adventures of Willy the Wizard-No 1 Livid Land, and that Bloomsbury in selling the books have infringed the Estate’s copyright." In this new filing, the estate included JK Rowling as a defendant in that suit, after, as the estate claims, "discovering legal cause of action against her within the last six years." Rowling released this statement: "I am saddened that yet another claim has been made that I have taken material from another source to write Harry. The fact is I had never heard of the author or the book before the first accusation by those connected to the author’s estate in 2004; I have certainly never read the book. The claims that are made are not only unfounded but absurd and I am disappointed that I, and my U.K. publisher Bloomsbury, are put in a position to have to defend ourselves."

Twilight Unbound: The Stephenie Meyer Story to be published in hardcover

Last year, Stephenie Meyer became a comic-book star. Bluewater Productions in November released Female Force: Stephenie Meyer, a graphic biography detailing Meyer’s rise from unknown writer to the guiding force behind one of the book industry’s top-selling franchises. This new version will include updates on the success of New Moon, the most recent Twilight film, and a look at Meyer’s future plans for Edward and Bella, the romantic leads of her vampire books. The book will also be stuffed with extras, making it a must-buy for Twilight fans.

6,500 authors opt-out of Google Book settlement
Six and a half thousand authors; living and dead have opted out of the Google Book settlement. The authors had until 28 January to opt out of the revised settlement prior to the ruling last week that would allow Google to digitise many millions of books. However, the judge received over 500 written submissions, forcing him to delay his ruling. Among the big names still alive who’ve said no thanks are Jeffrey Archer, Graham Swift, Monica Ali, Bret Easton Ellis, and Philip Pullman. Ursula K Le Guin, who gained significant author support for her petition calling for "the principle of copyright, which is directly threatened by the settlement, [to] be honoured and upheld in the United States", also opted out.

China Mieville shortlisted for Nebula award

China Miéville’s surreal venture into crime fiction The City and the City has been shortlisted for major American science fiction and fantasy awards the Nebulas. Miéville’s novel, in which a murder case in the decaying European city of Besźel turns out to have connections to another city, existing in the same physical space, was nominated for the best novel prize by the 1,500-plus author members of the Science Fiction and Fantasy Writers of America. The British author, winner of prizes including the Arthur C Clarke and the British Fantasy award, is up against American fantasy writer Jeff VanderMeer’s Finch, set in a city ruled by sentient fungal beings known as "gray caps", and Paolo Bacigalupi’s The Windup Girl, in which the hero Anderson Lake meets an engineered being grown to satisfy the whims of a Kyoto businessman.

The shortlist for the Nebula best novel prize:

The Windup Girl by Paolo Bacigalupi
The Love We Share Without Knowing by Christopher Barzak
Flesh and Fire by Laura Anne Gilman
The City and the City by China Miéville
Boneshaker by Cherie Priest
Finch by Jeff VanderMeer

Kate Wilson sets up children’s publisher, Nosy Crow

Kate Wilson is to set up her own publishing company, Nosy Crow. The company will follow the traditional children’s publishing model with titles for ages naught to 14 years and will also publish apps for iPhones and other devices through its Appiness division. Wilson is launching the company with former Macmillan colleague Camilla Reid who headed up Campbell Books. They previously developed popular formats such as jigsaw books and Buggy Buddies. The first books will be published in January 2011 and Nosy Crow will work with both established names and new talent. Wilson left her job as chief executive of Headline in October after just five months; before that she was group managing director of Scholastic UK and managing director of Macmillan Children’s Books.

Posted: March 3rd, 2010
Author: Lee
Categories: Latest News

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