The Author's Friend News Blog

Otto Herschan (1927 - 2011)

2011-07-16T22:44:00.001+01:00

The Author's Friend was saddened to hear about the death of Otto Herschan, author of the recently published autobiographical memoir Holy Smoke? He passed away peacefully on Tuesday, 12th July. It was just after completion and shortly before the launch of this book, earlier this year, that Otto was first diagnosed with a serious illness. But in a spirit that was all too typical of him, he was

Smoking or Non-Smoking? Yours to choose with these New titles from The Author's Friend

2011-07-06T22:40:00.001+01:00

Recent titles added to The Author's Friend ever-expanding Online Catalogue reflect the range and diversity of writing talent that exists in Ireland today; proving again what an exciting country this is for writing and publishing. Assisted publishing with The Author's Friend is playing its part in bringing all this to the public eye. The following highlights just some such titles, listed in no

We have moved - The Author's Friend is now at .ie domain

2011-06-27T15:48:00.000+01:00

The Author's Friend, Ireland's leading provider of assisted publishing solutions to authors, writers, poets and independent publishers has moved to a new domain. We are still theauthorsfriend but the top level domain has changed from .com to .ie All the old e-mail addresses still work except that, from now on you will have to append .ie in place of the old .com. For example, e-mails sent to

Canon Sheehan Short Story Competition

2011-05-23T18:33:00.001+01:00

The Doneraile Literary and Arts Festival 2011 is holding a Short Story competition and is inviting submissions. A prize of €1000 is on offer for the winning entry. Conditions of Entry are as follows: The competition is open to people aged 18 or over Stories must not be more than 2000 words. The stories may be on any subject The story must be fictional Entries to be submitted with a fee of 10

Navan Writers Group Short Story and Poetry Creative Writing Competition

2011-02-09T12:01:00.000Z

The finals of the Navan Writers Group annual Shorty Story and Poetry Creative Writing Competition are to be held tomorrow (Thursday, Feb 10th) at Navan Library, Railway Street from 7pm. The theme for the competition is appropriate for Valentine's festivities: “LOVE LOST, LOVE FOUND” The short story competition will be judged by members of the writers group along with an outside adjudicator. The

New Title: Charles, the Maiden and the Ogre by Sorcha Duggan (A Modern Day Fairy Tale)

2011-02-09T11:44:00.007Z

Charles, the Maiden and the Ogre a modern day fairy tale by Sorcha Duggan. RRP €9.99 Charles the Maiden and The Ogre by Sorcha Duggan is a well-written, imaginative and truly original story. A modern day fairy tale, filled with fantasy, humour, and characters we all may recognize. Awarded a runner-up prize in a competition run by Company Magazine in 1999 it is now available in book-form for

You are Invited to the Launch of: 'An Alien Life' by Colm Hannon

2010-12-01T00:26:00.002Z

An Alien Life by Colm Hannon An Alien Life is a remarkable first collection of writings by Colm Hannon. The launch of this book will take place on Thursday, 9th December at Malahide Library, Co Dublin, starting 6.45pm. Entertainment and refreshments will be available and all are welcome to attend. Colm says he only started to write seriously about 15 years ago but in that time he has produced

New Works of Irish Fiction available from The Author's Friend

2010-11-23T13:46:00.018Z

Any writer, even the most successful, will tell you that fiction can be a difficult market to break into. Unlike non-fiction, the target audience is often harder to define and for most genres, the competition can be intense at best of times. Despite this The Author's Friend, through it's assisted publishing service, is helping new, upcoming as well as established novelists and short story

John Toland, Sophia of Hanover - The Heretic and The Heiress. Two New Books by J.N. Duggan

2010-10-26T14:41:00.010+01:00

What is the connection between a European Princess, a descendant of the Wittelsbach and Stuart dynasties, who would go on to become Heiress Presumptive to the throne of Great Britain by the Act of Settlement of 1701, and a Donegal heretic widely denounced by political and ecclesiastical authorities of the day? Two new books by Irish author J.N. Duggan furnish an answer. Sophia, Electress of

Shelbourne Cult Heroes

2010-10-25T21:40:00.012+01:00

The supporters club at Tolka Park was the venue for a different kind of gathering on Thursday, 21st October. Players and fans of past and present gathered to witness the launch of the second edition of Seán Fitzpatrick's Shelbourne Cult Heroes. Hearty congratulations were paid to Seán, who has managed to profile and track players from a club steeped in history. Shelbourne FC has seen many

Mossie's Story

2010-10-25T21:23:00.009+01:00

A very special gathering took place at Navan Public Library on Wednesday, 20th October to mark National Social Inclusion Week. The occasion was the presentation of a new book by local author Mossie Forde. Among those present were Mossie's family and friends; her fellow writers from the Small Impact Writers Group; David Jones and Oscar Duggan from TAF Publishing, and the staff of Navan Library

New and Forthcoming Titles from The Author's Friend

2010-10-18T23:11:00.040+01:00

In the space of less than one year The Author's Friend has helped over a dozen Irish authors to get their books published and onto the bookshelves - in both real and virtual sense of the term. You can browse them for yourself among more than 30 books that are now available to buy from our Online Catalogue. The coming weeks and months will see a deluge of yet more new titles achieving public

Meath County Library Hosts Readers & Writers Day

2010-09-23T23:50:00.004+01:00

There was a packed attendance at Navan Library on Wednesday (22nd September) for Meath County Library Services Readers & Writers Day. The Author's Friend was represented on the day by David Jones and Oscar Duggan. The event was organised around a series of panel discussions on various topics connected with writing and publishing in Ireland today. The first session was entitled What's Happening

Any Chance of a Start? New Irish Author Makes His Debut with Tale about Ireland's Construction Boom

2010-06-30T13:38:00.013+01:00

It's always exciting to be able to announce the arrival of a new writer on the scene. All the more so when the author has chosen a theme for his debut novel, that is both challenging and relevant to the present day. Michael Caulfield, a retired primary school teacher from Galway, offers a contrasting perspective on the recent fallout from the collapse of Ireland's property boom. In doing so he

The Irish Writers, Authors and Poets Handbook

2010-05-30T20:47:00.015+01:00

The much anticipated Irish Writers, Authors and Poets Handbook for Ireland and Northern Ireland hits the bookshelves this week and is also available to buy online, from the web catalogue of The Author's Friend. Price €14.95 plus P&P. The Handbook is a welcome arrival for writers, publishers, anyone involved in literary circles across the island of Ireland. For years we have had to rely on UK

New Features Added to Website and Online Catalogue

2010-05-27T01:11:00.069+01:00

As you will no doubt be aware, The Author's Friend's website serves to advertise and promote our Assisted Publishing service. Among the services we provide to authors, writers, poets, includes the platform to market and sell books online. We do this through our Online Catalogue. The books which we sell include, but are not limited to, titles published with the assistance of The Author's Friend.

Job Vacancy: Publishing Intern Wanted

2010-03-16T14:02:00.011Z

Publishing Intern able to develop into a key Business Manager required The Author's Friend, Ireland’s leading assisted publishing company has an opportunity for an entrepreneurial person to help develop a new publishing venture. The new venture involves building an internet based publishing business selling book projects to pre-primary crèches and nurseries, primary and secondary schools and

Venture and Venus - a Jack Muldoon Story

2010-03-04T01:48:00.036Z

Today is World Book Day and what better way for The Author's Friend to observe this prestigious event, than with the announcement of a new publication by an Irish author. Venture and Venus by Michael McDonough follows the fortunes of one Jack Muldoon, a young Irish army officer whose travels through life invariably draw him towards excitement and danger. This latest installment of Jack's story

New Irish Author Shows the Way with Assisted Publishing

2010-01-25T02:22:00.035Z

They say that there is a book in everyone of us. That's certainly the case for Francis Goodman - originally from Monaghan but now living in Co. Meath - who has just written his second novel. Jane's Secret tells the story of a pregnant Irish teenager escaping to London with the intention of having an abortion. She arrives on the doorstep of her aunt Emma Flynn, whose own heartbreak experience

Free Information Guide for Authors, Writers, Poets

2010-01-11T02:21:00.013Z

A twelve page Assisted Publishing Services Information Booklet for Authors, Writers, Poets has been produced by The Author's Friend with the aim of helping authors to get their books into print, and published too if required. The booklet deals with all the different stages involved; from manuscript preparation, printing, publishing and not forgetting the business of marketing and promoting your

Happy New Year - 2010!

2010-01-03T00:00:00.013Z

A Happy New Year to all our readers. The Author's Friend wishes writers everywhere a successful and prosperous 2010. We also hope that we may play some part in your success through our specially tailored, assisted publishing service. Key features of our assisted publishing service include:The author retains copyright and all publishing rights to his/her work We produce books to any size (A5,

Happy Christmas from The Author's Friend

2009-12-22T21:34:00.008Z

The Author's Friend wishes all our readers and followers a Very Happy Christmas and Prosperous New Year. We look forward to continue serving you in 2010. In the meantime, feel free to browse the inaugural issue of Scribhneoir - the newsletter of The Author's Friend. Read about our latest assisted publishing projects including:Irish Freedom Fighter: Peadar Bracken (1887-1961) Biography of an

Information Day on Getting Published at The Irish Writer's Centre

2009-10-20T12:41:00.003+01:00

From Inspiration to Publication An information day on getting published and the publishing industry. When: November 7th Time: 10am to 4pmVenue: Irish Writers' Centre, 19 Parnell Square, Dublin 1.Cost: €50 (€40 for members) With guest speakers Dermot Bolger, Stephen Boylan, Sarah Bannan, Declan Meade, Caitriona O'Reilly, and Abie Philbin Bowman. Whether you are an aspiring writer

Successful Seminar Held on the Benefits of Short Run Digital Book Production

2009-09-27T11:50:00.009+01:00

A well attended seminar for book publishers - Profit from Digital Short-Run Book Production - was held on Thursday, 24th September at the head office of Xerox Ireland, co-hosted with digital print specialists Gemini International. In a presentation by David Jones, Business Development Manager at Gemini International he detailed the benefits of digital printing techniques for book publishers. He

2009-09-21T20:58:00.004+01:00

IRISH TRANSLATORS’ AND INTERPRETERS’ ASSOCIATIONCUMANN AISTRITHEOIRÍ AGUS TEANGAIRÍ NA HÉIREANN International Translation Day, Wednesday, September 30th2009, 6.30 pmIrish Writers’ Centre, 19 Parnell Sq., Dublin 1 All welcome, admission free, wine reception! Gerry Loose and Peter MansonPoetry and / in Translation To celebrate International Translation Day 2009, and to mark the launch of the new