It was a fascinating session and I came away feeling hopeful and inspired. She also mentioned that these thing go in cycles so genre that are not popular now could very well be back in fashion in a few years time.

On the positive side, Eva said that outstanding manuscript in these genre might still be considered for publication. Genre that publishers aren’t currently seeking are dystopian, paranormal and quirky girl character centered junior fiction.

She also mentioned the Friday Pitch where authors have the opportunity to have their work seen by Allen & Unwin publishing staff. What’s hot in Australian Kid’s PublishingĮva told us that the top three things she is on the look out for are YA memoir, Middle Grade adventure/realism and she also said YA romance is still popular. It was so wonderful to be given insight into their very special author/editor relationship and to hear how Penni’s popular Undine trilogy, Little Bird, Indigo Girls and Only Ever Always came into being.Īllen & Unwin Publisher, Eva Mills talked about how she gave up a successful career in science to follow her passion for children’s books.Įva and Penni (who is also a freelance editor for Allen & Unwin) shared their knowledge and views about current industry trends. The purpose of their sold out session was to highlight the trends, possibilities and challenges of writing for 21st century children.īoth Eva and Penni were very generous sharing their experiences and staying back afterwards to answer questions that they didn’t have time for during the session. As well as laughing, eating good food and chatting about all things writerly, we managed to fit in time to attend some fabulous events at the Melbourne Writers Festival.Īllen and Unwin Publisher Eva Mills, and Author/Editor Penni Russon gave us some great insights into what’s currently happening in Australian children’s publishing. I spent the weekend with my crit buddy and good friend, author, Alison Reynolds. Last weekend I was lucky to be able to do both. Other times it’s by simply listening and being inspired by other creative people. But every now and then I feel the need to recharge. In spite of the ups and downs I LOVE LOVE LOVE being a writer. It’s not just because you wake up at 400am because your character has new plans for their life and wants to share them with you NOW! The process of writing is tiring – spending hours crafting your manuscript, submitting, being rejected, writing more, submitting more – you know how the story goes.

Only Ever Always by Penni Russon