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News 3 May 2004
Mainstream are excited to have acquired FLESH AND BLOOD, The Human Story Behind the Headlines by Diane Blood. It is the true story of Diane Blood whose husband tragically died of meningitis at the age of 30. The book describes their relationship, his sudden death and her fight to use his sperm to have the child they had dreamed of. Her case caused a huge ethical storm and was debated in the courts, in Parliament and in the media. With huge public support, yet against impossible odds she won on appeal and went on to have two miraculous little boys, Liam and Joel. After a particularly precarious pregnancy and after spending the first days of his life in the intensive care ward of the baby unit, Liam was finally allowed home. By then it was almost four years after his father's death. Baby Joel was born three and a half years later in July 2002. For the first time, in her own words, Diane tells of the tears, the heartache and the joy behind this landmark journey. The case continues to reverberate around the world, Diane is currently helping an Australian woman who is fighting for permission to use her late husband's sperm to have the child they had wanted together. FLESH AND BLOOD shows how controversial policies are made that affect all our lives. It would make riveting fiction - the fact that it is a true story makes it all the more compelling. World rights are available. For further information please contact fiona.brownlee@mainstreampublishing.com
The
Mainstream Autumn Sales Conference will take place this week with
guest appearances by authors Diane Blood (FLESH AND BLOOD),
Catherine Hill (DANCING IN THE SEA), Martin Hannan
(ROCK OF GIBRALTAR) and Douglas Skelton (INDIAN
PETER).
In
addition to being sold to Inedita in Spain, THE GREAT ESCAPERS has
now been sold to Hardie Grant in Australia and we have had an offer
from a major US publishing house.
Serial rights for lead Autumn title, DANCING IN THE SEA have now been sold to a leading national newspaper with an interview and a review already confirmed in two other national papers.
Irshad
Manji has just gone into the New York Times Bestseller list with THE
TROUBLE WITH ISLAM. Mainstream published in the UK this
week and Irshad has been in the country for an intensive promotional
tour. Interviews included The Times, The Independent, BBC Radio
4 Woman's Hour, BBC Breakfast News and BBC World Service. She was
also invited to do a talk at the Oxford Union. Serial rights were
sold to the Sunday Times.
Other
books getting a huge amount of press attention at the moment are POWDER
WARS whose author and the main character in the book have
been interviewed for PM on BBC Radio 4 and 
IN
THE GHOST COUNTRY. Peter Hillary, author of IN THE GHOST
COUNTRY, will be visiting the UK from New Zealand for four days
from Tuesday 11th May. Interviews include Midweek on BBC Radio
4, a national broadsheet and a tabloid.
Serial rights for ON THE MAKE by David Stenhouse
have been sold to the Sunday Times. He has also been invited to
give a talk about his new book at the Royal Over-Seas League on
16th June.
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The National Sporting Club Awards will be announced at the Café Royal in London on Wednesday 19th May. Mainstream have four authors who have been shortlisted, Paul Howard, author of RIDING HIGH, Jack Alexander, author of McRAE'S BATALLION, Jack Milburn, author of JACKIE MILBURN and Ian Robertson, author of SWEET CHARIOT.
And Finally...
WHITE GOLD received the unusual accolade this week of being listed as the book that Martin Fowler from Eastenders is reading at the moment.
Apparently 'It's quite an adult book'!