WCA Deal Report for June 28, 2019

By Deals

Shanghai Educational Publishing House Co. has acquired rights in China to doctors David Goldbloom and Pier Bryden’s HOW CAN I HELP?. The deal was arranged by Cindy Zhang at Andrew Nurnberg Associates International, on behalf of Meg Wheeler at Westwood Creative Artists for Michael Levine.

Forbes has acquired Hungarian rights to Anna Porter’s BUYING A BETTER WORLD. The deal was arranged by Peter Bolza at Katai & Bolza Literary Agents, on behalf of Meg Wheeler at Westwood Creative Artists for John Pearce.

Fundacja Pogranicze has renewed Polish rights to Josef Skvorecky’s THE MIRACLE GAME. The deal was arranged by Tomasz Berezinski at Graal Literary Agency, on behalf of Meg Wheeler at Westwood Creative Artists.

Wydawnictwo Czarne SP Z O.O. have acquired Polish rights to Skvorecky’s collection of short stories. The deal was arranged by Tomasz Berezinski at Graal Literary Agency, on behalf of Meg Wheeler at Westwood Creative Artists.

Washington Post Reviews Jivani

By News

jivaniWe’re thrilled to share that Jamil Jivani’s debut non-fiction Why Young Men – now published in Canada, America, the U.K., Australia and New Zealand – scored a review in The Washington Post. Journalist Dina Temple-Raston writes, “Jivani offers a compassionate analysis of sidelined youth and does so with a special authority – because he was one.” Click here for the full article.

2019 Speaker’s Book Award Shortlist

By News

jivanitownship at warWe’re excited for authors Jamil Jivani and Jonathan F. Vance, both finalists for the 2019 Speaker’s Book Award!

Jivani’s Why Young Men proposes a positive path and offers a counterintuitive, often provocative argument for a sea change in the way we look at young men, and for how they see themselves.

In A Township at War Vance takes the reader from rural Canadian field and farm to the slopes of Vimy Ridge and the mud of Passchendaele, and shows how a tightly knit Ontario community was consumed and transformed by the trauma of war.

The Speaker’s Book Award honours non-fiction and public policy works by Ontario authors covering historical and cultural aspects of the province. The winning entry will be announced at an awards ceremony held at the Ontario Legislative Building in the fall.

Apply for a Fall Internship at WCA!

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Westwood Creative Artists, one of Canada’s largest literary agencies representing more than 400 writers, is looking for a candidate to fill a full-time 12-week internship position, beginning Monday August 19th and ending Friday November 8th, with possible flexibility for the right candidate.

A considerable amount of time during this internship will be spent working with WCA’s  international rights director and rights assistant in preparation for the Frankfurt Book Fair in October. There will also be the opportunity to work with other WCA agents and at the reception desk. In the rights department, the intern will be involved in catalogue proofreading, general preparation and follow-up for the Frankfurt Book Fair. There will also be some data entry and other administrative tasks. While working with individual agents, the intern will understand how the agents manage their authors, learn about Canadian and US submissions, and provide needed support in a varied number of capacities. At the reception desk, the intern will really be at the “nerve centre” of the agency. Tasks will include daily administration work, reading submissions, and receiving authors and publishers as they arrive at the agency.

We offer an honorarium of $1500, a lively and congenial work environment in Toronto’s Annex neighbourhood, and an excellent opportunity to gain an overview of the publishing industry in Canada and abroad through the lens of the literary agent and the writers we represent.

The ideal candidate will be eager to learn, highly organized, energetic, and have a positive outlook. Strong proofreading and computer skills required; previous office experience and knowledge of the publishing industry an asset; passionate attention to detail and accuracy a must. Please send your cover letter, resume, and references to the attention of Meg Wheeler at meg@wcaltd.com at your earliest convenience or by July 8th. We appreciate all applications but will only reply to candidates selected for an interview.

Higdon and Major Indie Winners

By News

Higdon Marrowmajor rockCongrats to the 2018 Foreword Indies Winners! We’re thrilled to share that Christine Higdon’s The Very Marrow Of Our Bones won the Editor’s Choice prize for fiction and Kevin Major’s One For The Rock won gold in the Mystery (Adult Fiction) category.

Foreword Reviews, a book review journal focusing on independently published books, recognizes the best books published from small, indie, and university presses, as well by self-published authors.

WCA Deal Report for June 14, 2019

By Deals

Tundra Books’s Tara Walker has acquired world rights to Caroline Adderson’s debut graphic novel ONCE UPON A TIME. The book is described as a charming and inventive story about the value of punctuation, to be illustrated by Roman Muradov. Publication is expected in spring 2021. The deal was arranged by Jackie Kaiser at Westwood Creative Artists.

Knopf Canada’s Craig Pyette has acquired world rights to historian John Boyko’s THE DEVIL’S TRICK: HOW CANADA FOUGHT THE VIETNAM WAR. The book is described as a bold expose on the spinning of a secret web of diplomatic, military, and economic interdependence between the United States and Canada during the Vietnam War. Publication will be in April 2020 to coincide with the 45th anniversary of the fall of Saigon. The deal was arranged by Jackie Kaiser at Westwood Creative Artists.

Ten Speed Press’s Kaitlin Ketchum has acquired rights to Toronto photographer Ian Brown’s AMERICAN DREAMS in a six-figure deal at auction. The photography book is described as a powerful and bipartisan collection that features 175 portraits of Americans from all walks of life alongside their handwritten statements about their American dream. Publication is expected for spring 2020. The deal was arranged by Hilary McMahon at Westwood Creative Artists.

McClelland & Stewart’s Martha Kanya-Forstner has acquired Canadian English rights to writer Jenny Heijun Wills’s OLDER SISTER. NOT NECESSARILY RELATED. The debut memoir deals with rediscovered culture and the painful ripple effects following a child’s removal from a family. The book will be published in fall 2019. The deal was arranged by Jackie Kaiser at Westwood Creative Artists.

Penguin Random House Canada’s Anne Collins has acquired Tessa McWatt’s SHAME ON ME: AN ANATOMY OF RACE AND BELONGING. The book is an analysis of the race debate from a personal perspective. Publication is expected in winter 2020. The North American English rights were arranged by Jackie Kaiser at Westwood Creative Artists. Philip Gwyn Jones at Scribe U.K. acquired U.K. and Commonwealth rights (excluding Canada) for publication in fall 2019 in a prior deal.

Tundra Books’s Tara Walker has also acquired world rights to Sara O’Leary’s THIS IS RUBY. With illustrations by Alea Marley, the book is about a girl who loves paleontology. Publication is expected in Fall 2020. The deal was arranged by Jackie Kaiser at Westwood Creative Artists (World).

Pajama Press’s Gail Winskill has acquired Canadian English rights to Ailsa Ross’s THE GIRL WHO RODE A SHARK: AND OTHER STORIES OF DARING WOMEN. The book, illustrated by Amy Blackwell, tells inspiring stories of girls and women from around the world who were warriors, scientists, artists and athletes, explorers, and adventurers. Publication is expected for September 2019. The deal was arranged by Jackie Kaiser of Westwood Creative Artists.

Portage & Main Press’s Catherine Gerbasi has acquired world rights to two more volumes in Tasha Spillett’s SURVIVING THE CITY graphic novel series. The series is about Indigenous kinship, resilience, cultural resurgence, and the anguish of a missing loved one. Publication is expected in Fall 2019 and Fall 2020. The deal was arranged by Jackie Kaiser of Westwood Creative Artists.

 

Maillard Shortlisted for Alberta Book Award

By News

twin studiesThe Book Publishers Association of Alberta has announced its 2019 Alberta Book Publishing Awards Shortlist and we’re thrilled to see Keith Maillard’s Twin Studies made the cut!

From the Publisher:

“Twin Studies is a masterful novel that explores the complicated bonds between twins and siblings, friends and lovers; the role of class and money; and the nature of gender and sexuality. It’s a novel with characters who are real, their relationships a rich world that readers will thoroughly lose themselves in. No other contemporary novel so deftly explores the intersection between our inner lives and our public lives — that ‘we’re not what people see.'”

Nielsen and Stone on Chocolate Lily Shortlist

By News

nielsen no fixed address1773210017We’re delighted to share that WCA author’s Susin Nielsen and Tiffany Stone have been shortlisted for the 2020 Chocolate Lily Book Awards! Nielsen’s No Fixed Address is a finalist in the Novel Category (Grades 4-7) and Stone’s Tree Song illustrated by Holly Hatam, is a finalist in the Picture Book category.

Created in 2002, the Chocolate Lily Book Awards strives to increase literacy for grade school children in British Columbia while celebrating BC authors and illustrators.