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News 14 April 2005
Mainstream is delighted to have acquired world rights to ABODE
OF LOVE by Kate Barlow. It forms the first-ever insider's tale of life within
a Victorian religious cult by a woman whose grandfather claimed to be Jesus
Christ and took her grandmother as a 'spiritual bride' in spite
of having a first wife still living within the community. At the age of
six, the author, Kitty Barlow, left Canada and went to live with her grandmother
in post-war England. Her grandmother still presided over the remnants of
the cult of the Agapemone (Greek for Abode of Love) but she and her sisters
were shielded from their family history and it was years before they discovered
that their mother and two uncles were illegitimate, a fact which had led
to the defrocking of their clergyman grandfather, shunning by the outside
community and their being banned from attending school. In ABODE OF LOVE,
Kate Barlow describes her own experiences of growing up within the cult
and researches its roots, putting it into a historical context. She provides
a wonderful picture of a gothic mansion and it's inhabitants in
the 1950s still trapped in the 1900s. Kate and her family are to this day
responsible for the North London Church which was built by their grandfather
but vacated after his claim to be the second coming. She now lives in Canada.
ABODE OF LOVE will be published in Spring 2006. We already have a manuscript
and had a lot of interest at the London Book Fair. Please contact fiona.brownlee@mainstreampublishing.com or Karen.brodie@mainstreampublishing.com if you would be interested in
seeing a copy.
Rights Deals
Rights deals are coming in thick and fast at the moment. UNLOCKING THE SOLOMON KEY has created an international furore. After a major auction in the US we have accepted a very good offer from Touchstone Fireside at Simon and Schuster with Wiley the underbidders. The book was sold to Trish Todd by Fiona Brownlee at Mainstream. Elizabeth Atkins at ACER has sold rights to Bertrand in Brazil and Plaza y Janes in Spain. Piergiorgio Nicolazzini at PNLA has accepted a very good pre-emptive bid from Mondadori in Italy. Elsewhere we have had offers from France, China and Portugal which are being considered.
Awards
Congratulations to Gina Mallet! Her book LAST CHANCE TO EAT has been nominated for a 2005 James Beard Foundation / KitchenAid Book Award in the 'Writing on Food' category. The winner will be announced on 2 May www.jamesbeard.org
Publicity
Numerous interviews are lined up for Spring books:
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NO ONE TAKES MY CHILDREN - interview with Donya al-Nahi will run in The Times T2 section on Friday
15 April
DANCING IN THE SEA - interview with Catherine Hill will appear in the News
of the World on 17 April. It will be followed by an interview in The Herald
on 25 April.
HATELAND - Bernard O'Mahoney will be on the Simon Mayo Show, BBC Radio
5 Live, on 12 May to coincide with the publication date. Maxim magazine's
interview with Bernard will appear in their June issue on sale 28 April.
KATHY'S STORY - This Morning, ITV1, have confirmed 27 May for their interview
with Kathy. She magazine's interview will appear in their July issue
on sale 4 June.
Publicity for MASTERS OF THE BAIZE got off to a blazing start. It was 'Book
of the Week' in both the Sunday Times and The Independent on 3 April.
Backlist titles also continue to generate publicity. There was a very good review of RENT BOY in Saturday's Daily Telegraph Property section in the snakes and ladders column by Rosie Murray-West
Events
David Tossell has been invited to discuss PLAYING FOR UNCLE SAM; The Brits' Story of the NASL at the next London England Fans Forum at the Offside Bar, London EC1, on 21 April, prior to the England team's summer tour of the United States.
David Stenhouse, author of HOW THE SCOTS TOOK OVER LONDON, will be doing an event at Crown Court Church, the Church of Scotland in Covent Garden on Monday, 18 April, at 7pm. Over 500 people have been invited.
And Finally...
Fiona Brownlee, Director of Marketing and Rights, goes on maternity leave
on Tuesday, 19 April, returning just in time for the Frankfurt Book Fair
in October. As she has had no qualms about pasting photographs of other
members of staff on the web site we thought it was about time she had a
taste of her own medicine and take delight in picturing her at 9 months
pregnant...
NB: to see what Karen Brodie, Louise Williamson, Elaine Scott, Lindsay Farquharson, Graeme Blaikie and Emily Bland look like check out our new look home page at www.mainstreampublishing.com!