The Books Council and the Distribution Centre will be closed from Thursday afternoon,
21 December 2023 and will re-open after the holidays on Tuesday, 2 January 2024.
We wish you all a happy and peaceful Christmas.
The Books Council of Wales has today (7 December) announced the successful recipients of the English-language Cultural Periodicals Grant for 2024–28.
The grant, which is funded by Welsh Government through Creative Wales, is awarded as new, standalone funding every four years following an open competitive tender process. The tender was advertised in May, with interviews taking place in November 2023. Grants are awarded by an independent panel following a rigorous application and interview process.
The Books Council is pleased to be funding the following titles for the next franchise period:
Nation.Cymru – £25,000 per year for cultural content including book reviews and providing a digital free at the point of use platform for the publishing sector in Wales.
The Paper (@thepaperwales) – £10,000 per year plus a £10,000 start up grant during 2023/24. For providing a new platform for younger underrepresented writers, with a particular focus on working class writers.
Poetry Wales – £25,000 per year for providing a print and digital poetry magazine.
Welsh Agenda – £25,000 per year for cultural content including book reviews and providing a print and online platform for the publishing sector in Wales.
Helgard Krause, Chief Executive of the Books Council of Wales said: “We are pleased to be able to fund a number of excellent publications in this franchise round, including a new title, The Paper. There was, as expected, a very high level of interest in the grant, with the total applications amounting to more than double the £180,000 available. I would like to congratulate all the recipients on their success in what was a very competitive and rigorous process, with difficult decisions for the panel awarding the grant.
Following the conclusion of the interviews and communication of the panel’s decisions to all applicants in November, we anticipate that the Sub-committee will be looking to advertise a tender for the development of one brand new English-language literary magazine with a strong focus on fiction and creative non-fiction with a sustainable business model at its core.
The precise vision for this new venture will be confirmed at the next English-language Publishing Development Sub-committee in February. A tender for a new franchise will be announced soon thereafter.”
The Books Council of Wales’ Rhyngom Project, which is funded by the Welsh Government, aims to promote diversity in reading books for pleasure for children and young people aged 3–16 years.
The project, which will take place over the next two years, will lead to the publication of 50 reading books for pleasure, celebrating the culture, people and history of the whole of Wales, supporting the health and well-being of children and young people and developing their empathy and literacy skills, which in turn will aid the delivery of the Curriculum for Wales.
There are four strands to the project. The first strand will be to publish Welsh adaptations of 30 English titles which promote and celebrate diversity – some of which have won awards such as the Diverse Book Award.
The second strand will involve identifying further gaps in the provision, and commissioning and publishing 20 brand-new original Welsh and English books (10 Welsh, 10 English) that celebrate diversity from a Welsh perspective.
The third strand will be to create educational resources based on the 50 titles. These resources – in print and digital format – will provide additional and valuable guidance for teachers in Wales.
The Books Council of Wales is currently selecting a panel of experienced educational practitioners who work with children and young people across the country, to support this strand of the project.
The fourth and final strand will be to coordinate a book-gifting scheme for primary and secondary schools in Wales. Every state primary school will receive a free copy of the books for children aged 3–7 years and children 8–11 years, and every state secondary school will receive a copy of the books for children 8–11 years and readers 12–16 years. They will also be given printed editions of the educational resources based on the titles.
At the heart of the vision for this project is recognising and celebrating the diverse nature of social groups and communities in Wales across the new titles.
To help select the titles for adaptation, and to advise on authors and ideas for original books, the Books Council is working with a panel of individuals who represent a wide range of organisations, communities and backgrounds in Wales, and who are keen ambassadors in their fields of expertise. The Books Council is also pleased to be working alongside partners such as Race Council Cymru (RCC), DARPL and Black History Wales. Every title to be published as part of this project has also been endorsed by the Welsh Government.
The Minister for Education and Welsh Language, Jeremy Miles said: “As someone who loves to read, I know what a pleasure it is to read a book, and I’m very pleased to support this project. It’s important that books represent and celebrate diversity, and that children and young people can see themselves and others in literature and develop empathy.”
One of the main aims of commissioning original Welsh and English books as part of the scheme was to ensure publishing opportunities for authors and illustrators from under-represented backgounds and communities. In order to secure a grant to publish books as a part of this project, publishers demonstrated their committment to commissioning new talent from writers and illustrators from a variety of different backgrounds.
To support new authors and illustrators, publishers have adopted a number of different models, including co-authorships between new and established authors, or commissioning budding authors who have not until now had the opportunity to work with a publisher in Wales.
Amongst the authors of the original books is Natalie Jones, a Welsh Jamaican writer and teacher, who will be writing a factual book (to be published by Y Lolfa) for children aged 3–7 years about 20 individuals from culturally diverse backgrounds who have achieved great things in Wales. For another publication, Haf Llewelyn, a highly acclaimed Welsh author, will be mentoring three new authors from under-represented communities to create a collection of short stories for readers aged 8–11 years (to be published by Atebol).
The twenty original Welsh and English books will be published in November 2024, and the 30 Welsh adaptations will be published in February 2025. All will be available for purchase from bookshops and Gwales online shop. Printed editions of educational resources based on the adaptations, and digital editions (on Hwb) of educational resources based on the original books, will be available by June 2025. The Books Council’s Distribution Centre will then be packaging the books and resources over a period of months, in order to deliver the free books to all maintained schools in Wales by September 2025.
Books Council of Wales’ newly appointed Young People’s Panel met for the first time on Friday, 7 July. The purpose of the scheme is to ensure opportunities for young people to express their opinions on reading material and current themes, as well as their aspirations for future publications. The panel will also consider various campaignes to promote reading for pleasure among young people.
The panel members were appointed following a call out in February for individuals between 17 and 20 years old. A high number of impressive applications were submitted by young people from across Wales. We would have liked to have been able to include every candidate on the panel. However, following a selection process, nine individuals were invited to join the panel and to attend meetings. Anna Nijo, one of the members, said, “By joining this panel, I hope to increase the number of people who enjoy reading books, perhaps by supporting schools to encourage their pupils to engage with the school or local library.”
The group’s enthusiasm and eagerness to share ideas and feedback in order to shape the future of the publishing industry in Wales is very evident. Gruffydd ab Owain explains, “My vision for the panel is to bridge the gap between books for children and books for adults, to ensure that diversity is maintained and expanded, as well as to explore strategies to better engage with young people.” In addition to this, the panel will be sharing valuable information in order to develop reading for pleasure campaignes in the future. Charlie Evans said, “I would like young voices to be at the root of literature promotion. I am truely looking forward to working with the panel.”
The panel will meet three times a year, once in person and twice in virtual meetings. It will be chaired by Llŷr Titus. Llŷr knows from experience how important it is to maintain teenagers’ interest in reading. Llŷr said, “As someone who remembers having difficulty when younger in finding a Welsh book that I enjoyed, I was very pleased to be able to accept the invitation to chair the panel. I believe that only by speaking with young people, and, more importantly, listening to them, can we learn how to improve the provision for them, and help them to enjoy reading books in Welsh. My hope is that this group’s contribution will lead to improvement, and that the people and organisations who need to listen and learn will do so.”
The Children’s Books and Reading Promotion Department is very grateful to the young people on the panel and to Llŷr Titus for their committment and valuable input, ensuring that we support the publishing industry and inspire new audiences to read for pleasure.
There will be two new Welsh-language magazines available for readers this year after Gwasg Carreg Gwalch and Golwg secured grants from the Books Council of Wales to pilot two new titles.
Gwasg Carreg Gwalch will launch their new popular history magazine, Hanes Byw, in September and Golwg will launch a new digital sports magazine by the autumn.
The two new titles have been set up with funding from the Books Council of Wales, which supports both English- and Welsh-language magazines from Wales, thanks to funding from Creative Wales.
Owain ap Myrddin, from Gwasg Carreg Gwalch, said: “The aim is to raise stories from history and archaeology, etymology and folktales, traditions and art that are still relevant to our lives today, and that shine a light on contemporary issues. It will also include elements of stories and grassroots history that the Welsh community can delight in and feel comfortable to contribute to. The majority of the articles will relate to the past 250 years and there will be an emphasis on weaving the past with the present – as the influences of yesterday can still be felt in daily life today.”
Hanes Byw will launch on 28 September, with 4 issues a year available from bookshops or through subscription on the Carreg Gwalch website.
Golwg will launch their new sports magazine by the autumn. Owain Schiavone, Chief Executive of Golwg Cyf, said: “Golwg is delighted to have the opportunity to pilot a new sports magazine and we have exciting plans for it. We are keen to try to develop an innovative Welsh-language service that offers specialist commentary on a number of different sports, from the popular and mainstream to less well-known sports. We will release more information about the exact nature of the magazine in due course. We are keen to hear from anyone who would like to contribute to the project, via email, to owainschiavone@golwg.cymru”
Arwel Jones, Head of Publishing Development at the Books Council of Wales, said: “We’re pleased to be able to support the pilot programmes for these two new magazines, that bring a new range of subjects to the Welsh-language magazine market. The independent panel that awarded the grant noticed a gap in the provision for magazines relating to sports and to popular history. We have, therefore, been able to offer a one-year grant of £30,000 each to pilot brand new magazines on these subjects and to widen the choice for readers.”
The Books Council of Wales extends its warmest congratulations to Manon Steffan Ros as she is announced the winner of the Yoto Carnegie Medal for Writing, for her novel The Blue Book of Nebo. It is the first time in the award’s almost 90-year history that it has been awarded to a book in translation. The Yoto-Carnegies are the UK’s longest-running and best-loved book awards for children and young people.
The original Welsh novel, Llyfr Glas Nebo, won the Prose Medal at the 2018 National Eisteddfod and was a winner in three categories of the Wales Book of the Year in 2019. Set in post-apocalyptic Nebo, the poignant story unfolds through the shared diary entries of mother and son as they adapt to survive and create a new life after The End.
The Blue Book of Nebo is published by Firefly Press, Cardiff-based children’s and YA indie publisher, which celebrates its tenth anniversary this year.
Arwel Jones, Head of Publishing Development at The Books Council of Wales said: “We’re absolutely delighted for Manon and send our warmest congratulations to her for winning the Yoto Carnegie Medal for Writing. It is wonderful that Manon’s work has been recognised in this way and is a testament to her exceptional talent as a storyteller. Although The Blue Book of Nebo is Manon’s first YA book in translation, she has of course written many Welsh-language books and has honed her skills and her craft as a writer over time and in different genres, competing in Eisteddfodau, writing books for adults and children as well as writing for stage and screen. We hope that winning the award will enable more people to discover and enjoy Manon’s work.”
First Minister Mark Drakeford said: “I would like to congratulate Manon on the incredible achievement of The Blue Book of Nebo being the first ever translated book to win the Yoto Carnegie Medal for Writing, showcasing the strength of storytellers from Wales on the international stage. I look forward to Manon’s books being enjoyed by an even wider audience in Wales and beyond.”
The winners were announced at a ceremony in London on 21 June 2023. As a Yoto Carnegie winner, Manon joins a selection of acclaimed authors such as Neil Gaiman, Philip Pullman and Terry Pratchett who have won the award in previous years.
As part of the prize, winners receive £500 worth of books to donate to a library of their choice. Manon is making her donation to her local library, Tywyn Library in Gwynedd, where she wrote a few of her books when she didn’t have the means to get internet at home. To celebrate Manon’s achievement, the Books Council of Wales has announced that they will match this amount through a donation of £500 of Welsh book tokens.
