The Baillie Gifford Prize for Non-Fiction Announces 2026 Longlist

An interesting list they picked.

 Panzer made a stop at The Baillie Gifford Prize site. There he found the longlist for the 2026 prize had been posted. 

 

The Baillie Gifford Prize for Non-Fiction is for the best nonfiction book published in English in the U.K. The book can be published anywhere else in the world, but must be translated and published in the U.K. also.

 

Panzer says, "The prize is divided between the author and the translator."

 

Note: This is a long post. Depending on where you live and your weather, bring whatever you want to snack on. 

 

To read the list tootle over to Baillie Gifford Prize Longlist 

RBmedia Acquires Award-Winning U.K. Indie Boldwood Books - Publishing Perspectives

This smoke is giving me a headache.

Panzer's next stop in the Catosphere was at the Publishing Perspectives site. There our inquisitive kitty boy found a post about U.K. publisher Boldwood.

 

According to the post RBmedia has acquired Boldwood. RBedia is an audiobook publisher and Boldwood is an ebook, print book and audiobook publisher.

 

Panzer says, "Sounds like they'll fit right together."

 

Note: This is a medium length post. Bring a glass of iced tea and a muffin for today's snack.

 

To read the post tootle over to RBMedia 

Developments in the U.K. and Germany Target Google's AI-Generated Summaries - Publishing Perspectives

At the Publishing Perspectives site Panzer found a post about Google's summaries feature.

 

According to the post, both the U.K. and Germany are taking aim at implementing controls on Google's summaries feature, but for different reasons and with different methods. Links to other sources are included in the post.

 

Panzer says, "It always seems like Europe beats the U.S. in doing what needs to be done." 

 

Note: This is a medium length post. Bring a cup of tea and two chocolate chip cookies (biscuits) for today's snack. 

 

To read the post tootle over to Google Summaries 

Shortlist Revealed for the U.K.'s 2026 Women's Prize for Fiction - Publishing Perspectives

It's been a long afternoon.

Moving across the Catosphere from Youtube to the Publishing Perspectives site, Panzer found a post about the U.K.'s Women's Prize for Fiction.

 

Andrew Albanese's post lists the six shortlisted novels, the judges and some of  the history of the prize. 

 

Panzer says, "An interesting collection of books on the shortlist."

 

Note: This is a long medium length post. Bring a cup of tea and a muffin for today's snack.

 

To read the post tootle over to 

 

 

Transatlantic Comments on the Anthropic AI Settlement - Publishing Perspectives

What will they do?

Panzer found a post on the Publishing Perspectives site about U.K. authors and publishers groups reactions to the Anthropic U.S. court settlement.

 

In addition to interviews with publishers groups Porter Anderson's post includes links to other posts dealing with copyright infringement in the U.K. and the E.U.

 

Panzer says, "It looks like this might be a stepping stone for U.K. authors and publishers to study."

 

Note: This is a very long post. You'll need to decide what to bring to snack on.

 

To read the post tootle over to Anthropic 

AI translation service launched for fiction writers and publishers prompts dismay among translators - The Guardian

$100 a book?

On today's trip into the Catosphere Panzer stopped in at The Guardian. There our intrepid traveler discovered a post about AI translators.

 

 According to a post by Ella Creamer an AI translation company has opened in the UK.Writers and publishers can have their fiction books translated by the company GlobeScribe for $100 per book per language.

 

Panzer says, "Who checks the translations to make sure they're correct?"

 

Note: This is a long post.  You'll need to decide what you want to bring to snack on while you read.

 

To read the post tootle over to AI Translation Service 

Audiobooks and Fiction Drive Modest Growth in UK Publishing Market - Publishers Weekly

Audiobooks and digital books are the place to be now.

Today, Panzer's first stop in the Catosphere was at the Publishers Weekly site. There he discovered news about the U.K. publishing market.

  

Ed Nawotka's post gives a break down on the publishing market in the U.K. for 2024. Audio and digital books are adding to the market growth for 2024 over 2023. The post has graphs for each of the market's sectors.

 

Panzer says, "Audio and digital are growth factors, just like the market growth in Spain in yesterday's publishing market post."

 

Note: This is a long post. You'll need to decide what to bring to snack on while you read the post and graphs." 

 

To read the post tootle over to U.K. Publishing Market 

UK Publishers on AI's Threats: 'A Marathon, Not a Sprint' - Publishing Perspectives

Do you think AI needs rules of use for authors' work?

Today's trip into the Catosphere took our brave traveling kitty pilot to the Publishing Perspectives site. There he found a post about the UK's AI bill..

 

Porter Anderson's post reports on what's happening with the UK's Data Bill in the House of Lords and the House of Commons. It also covers some of the proposed and stopped amendments to the Bill. There are links to other information included as well.

 

Panzer says, "This little kitty thinks they're treating it like a soccer ball and kicking it all over the field."

 

Note: This is a medium length post. Bring a cup of tea and two chocolate chip cookies (biscuits) to munch on while you read.

 

To read the post tootle over to AI's Threats 

The Last Laurels in Bristol - The Rap Sheet

Will another group take their place?

Today, Panzer made a trip to The Rap Sheet site. There our traveling kitty found a post about CrimeFest convention in the U.K..

 

In his post J. Kingston Pierce lists the CrimeFest award winners and those also nominated. As Panzer told you earlier this month, CrimeFest announced on their site they are closing down. The post also includes links to other information about the closing and reactions to it.

 

Panzer says, "This little kitty will miss them."

 

Note: This is a long-medium length post. Bring a cup of tea and two chocolate chip cookies (biscuits) to snack on.

 

To read the post tootle over to Final CrimeFest

To read Panzer's previous post tootle over to International Crime Fiction 

CrimeFest - The International Crime Fiction Convention - Awards Shortlist

The convention is in the UK.

Panzer stopped in at the CrimeFest site and found the announcement of the nominees for this year's awards.

 

The winner in each of the seven categories will be announced on May 17.

 

Click the link below to go to the CrimeFest site. Upon arrival at the site an announcement about CrimeFest closing this year appears. Click the Close button in the upper right corner of the announcement. Scroll down to the list of Awards in the black box. Click each award to see the nominee's list for that award.(Sometimes, the announcement doesn't appear and you're taken to the long list of entries instead of the nominees list. Don't ask me why. I'm a cat not a computer nerd.)

 

To read the nominees list tootle over to Crimefest Nominees

Reaching for Theakston Renown - The Rap Sheet

Read the novels on the list?

Panzer's next stop in the Catosphere today was at The Rap Sheet site. There our traveling kitty boy found an announcement about a prize for British crime novels.

 

J. Kingston Pierce's post lists all 18 of the novels nominated to the long list for the Theakston Old Peculier Crime Novel of the Year.

 

Panzer says, "You'll need to go to The Rap Sheet to see the list and read about the prize."

 

Note: This is a medium length post. Bring a cup of tea and a muffin to snack on while you read."

 

To read the post tootle over to Theakston Crime Novel of the Year

Canada's Thomas Allen & Son to Close ... Publishers Weekly

I didn't expect that.

Panzer was shaken from his kitty bed by crying coming from the Catosphere. Jumping into the Panzermobile, he followed all the angst to the Publishers Weekly site. There he found a post about the closure of Canada's Thomas Allen and Son.

According to the post by Ed Nawotka, Thomas Allen and Son will close in March 2023. The Canadian company is a publisher and distributor in Canada for U.S. and U.K publishers.

Note: This is a long-short length post. Bring a half a cup of cocoa for today's reading.

To read the post tootle over to Thomas Allen to close

Crime in the Spotlight - Bloody Scotland

Today, Panzer made a quick stop at the Bloody Scotland site. There he found an interesting post.

 

Market your book?

The crime writing conference Bloody Scotland will be held September 15-18 in Stirling Scotland. If you are based in the U.K., Bloody Scotland has openings for authors to read excerpts from their crime fiction at the event. The reading can be in person or via online.

 

Panzer says, "You'll need to hurry. The application deadline is August 5."

 

To read the post and the application tootle over to Crime in the Spotlight

Amazon Publishing's Eoin Purcell: 'Surprise Books' and Other Pandemic Effects - Publishing Perspectives

Today Panzer made a stop at the Publishing Perspective site. There with a little digging in the posts he found one about Amazon Publishing.

 

The post by Porter Anderson is a long interview with Amazon Publishing's Eoin Purcell. The post is divided into five sections. Each section discusses a separate part of publishing. The first section addresses how authors have adapted to the pandemic. The second section addresses the intensity of readers and listeners during the pandemic. The third section addresses  publishing books for global and local readers. The fourth section addresses giving book translators credit. The fifth and final section addresses the cultural nuances necessary in books. The post includes information about Amazon Publishing's markets in the U.K. and Germany. There are several links included in the post.

 

Panzer says, "There's a lot of interesting information in the post."

 

I can sleep anywhere.

Note: This is a humongous post. Bring a thermos of tea and six muffins for today's reading selection. If you plan to follow the links in the post, you will need to decided what refreshments and sleeping accommodations you will need to bring with you.

 

To read the post tootle over to Amazon's Eoin Purcell

 

Sweden's Storytel Buys Audiobooks.com - Publishers Weekly

Today's trip into the Catosphere took Panzer to the Publishers Weekly site. There with just a little digging in the posts our illustrious kitty traveler found one about Sweden's Storytel.

 

What will Amazon do?

According to the post by Ed Nawotka, Sweden's Storytel is acquiring Audiobooks.com Storytel's acquisition of Audiobooks.com allows the company access to the U.S., U.K. and Australian audio book markets. Storytel already has audio book markets in 25 countries globally.

Panzer says, "I never heard of audiobooks.com. Of course, that's not surprising because Mom won't let me drive the car."

Note: This is a medium length post. Bring a cup of tea and a chocolate chip cookie (biscuit) for today's reading.

To red the post tootle over to Storytel and Audiobooks.com

Ingram Expands U.K. Footprint - Publishers Weekly

Panzer was tootling around in the Catophere when he heard clapping and cheering outside. Following all the noise took our brave kitty boy to the Publishers Weekly site. With no digging at all he found a post about Ingram Content Group.

Global is pretty big.

According to Jim Milliot, Ingram Content Group announced the acquisition of a new 96,000 sq. ft. site in the U.K. Some of Ingram Content Group's services are being moved to the new location in Milton Keynes, U.K. later in 2019. These services will include physical and digital global book distribution services and print-on-demand (POD) services. There are links to the services being moved included in the post.

Panzer says, "Hmm ... It makes sense to have those services in the same place. The company can easily track the books' global distribution that way."

Note: This is a short post. Bring a cup of tea for today's reading selection. If you plan to follow the links in the post, bring a muffin too.

To read the post tootle over to Ingram

UK Spring First in Series Sale, AU/NZ Mothers Day Price Promo, May Buy 2 Thrillers Get 1 Free Sale. A Snapshot of Kobo's little known promotions feature for indie authors - The New Publishing Standard

Today's trip into the Catosphere took Panzer to The New Publishing Standard site. There our ingenious kitty found a post about Kobo's promotion feature.

According to the post by Mark Williams, Kobo is an untapped market for promoting their indie authors' ebooks. Three examples of Kobo's May promotions are the 99 cent promotion on the site in the U.S., the Mothers' Day promotion in Australia and New Zealand, and the Spring Price Drop promotion in the U.S. and Canada. There are other Kobo promotions examples included in the post. Also included are descriptions of how the promotions work, as well as, how to submit an ebook for consideration for the promotions.

I'm definitely looking into this.

Panzer says, "This little kitty has been using Smashwords to get his ebooks on Kobo so he didn't know about the Kobo Writing Life dashboard and the promotions feature."

Note: This is a h-u-m-o-n-g-o-u-s post. Bring a thermos of tea, a dozen muffins, and a sleeping bag for a nap in the middle.

To read the post tootle over to Kobo promotions

Parragon Faces Closure - Publishers Weekly

Step forward now to buy them.

Today's trip took Panzer to the Publishers Weekly (PW) site. There our intrepid kitty reporter found a post about the impending closure of book publisher Parragon.

According to Jim Milliot at Publishers Weekly, publisher Parragon has announced the company's closure. The U. K.-based company has employees around the world, including the U.S. Employees have already been notified of the company's decision. While the company is looking for a buyer there doesn't appear to be any interest.

Panzer says, "Hmm ... This was an unexpected announcement."

Note: This is a short-medium length post. Bring a cup of tea and half a muffin for today's reading selection.

To read the post tootle over to Parragon

Publishers call on Man Booker prize to drop American authors - The Guardian

Panzer had barely entered the Catosphere when he heard booing and hissing coming into the Panzermobile. Following all the hullabaloo took our inquiring kitty to The Guardian site. With no digging at all he found the source of all the bad vibrations in the Catosphere were about the Man Booker prize.

I'm not sure what to think about that.

According to the post by Sian Cain, in 2014 the rules for the Man Booker prize were changed. Thirty publishers have signed a letter asking Man Booker "prize organizers to reverse the change." The letter signers believe American authors will dominate the competition and the prize. The Man Booker Foundation disputes the rules were changed to favor American authors; instead, stressing the new rules allow "authors of any nationality, regardless of geography, to enter the prize providing they are writing in English and published in the U.K."

Panzer says, "Hmm ... This little kitty wonders if an American kitty author's book can enter the competition if Amazon publishes his book in English in the U.K.?"

Note: This is a long-medium post. Being a cup of tea and two muffins for today's reading selection.

To read the post tootle over to Man Booker Prize

Rakuten Shuttering Its U.K. Marketplace - PW (Publishers' Weekly)

Panzer was tootling around in the Catosphere when he heard crying and wailing. Following all the noise took him to the PW site. There our kitty adventurer found the source of all the angst was a post about Play.com closing.

Let's see what's happening here.

The post by Neill Denny covers the announcement by Rakuten of the closure of their United Kingdom Play.com site in August. Although the Japanese company has owned Play.com since 2011, a change in the VAT system in 2012 necessitated changes to the platform. Even with those changes it still was not enough to make the platform viable. Rakuten has decided instead to concentrate their efforts in the French and German markets.

Panzer says, "Hmm ... Did the VAT really make them leave the U.K.?"

Note: This is a shortish post. You'll only need a cup of tea for today's reading selection.

To read the post, tootle over to Rakuten