Mulcahy Conway Associates - LBF press release
Mulcahy Conway Associates is pleased to report a cluster of previously unannounced deals ahead of the London Book Fair. The agency anticipates a busy fair selling rights to a wide range of titles, in conjunction with their translation agents ILA.
Yesterday, Francesca Main at Simon & Schuster UK and Samantha Martin at Scribner (S&S) USA acquired, for six figures at simultaneous auctions between UK and US publishers, World English Language rights to Wendy Wallace’s historical novel The Painted Bridge. The book is co-agented by Ivan Mulcahy and Laetitia Rutherford. Italian rights were pre-empted by Mariagiulia Castagnone, Editorial Director of Piemme.
Andrea Best at Goldmann (RH Germany) acquired German rights in a substantial overnight pre-empt, to A Devil Under the Skin, a debut crime thriller set in London and Poland by Anya Lipska. The author’s book is again co-agented by Mulcahy and Rutherford.
Alex Foti at Il Saggiatore acquired Italian rights to 23 Things They Don’t Tell You About Capitalism by Mulcahy’s author Ha-Joon Chang. Published by Allen Lane (UK) and Bloomsbury Press (USA), this title has now been sold in fifteen languages and has become a publishing phenomenon in the author’s native South Korea, where over 450, 000 copies have been sold since its publication in November 2010. Last week 23 Things They Don’t Tell You About Capitalism was long listed for the 2011 Orwell Prize.
Mulcahy sold world rights to Freddie Mercury, the Definitive Biography by Lesley-Ann Jones to Hannah Black at Hodder & Stoughton for high five figures at auction. Publication will coincide with the new film about Freddie Mercury starring Sasha Baron-Cohen and scripted by Peter Morgan (Frost/Nixon, The Queen, The Other Boleyn Girl).
George Gibson at Bloomsbury USA just acquired NA rights to Ian Kelly’s biography Shakespeare: The Actor (to be published by Picador UK) from Mulcahy.
In a major six-figure five-year licensing deal negotiated by Jonathan Conway, Simon & Schuster acquired world rights to publish books from the archive of Country Life magazine.
Katy Follain at Michael Joseph bought world rights from Conway to St John Greene’s memoir Mum’s List after a lively six-figure auction.
In another six-figure auction, Conway sold world rights to Celebrity Masterchef winner Lisa Faulkner in a two-book deal with Francine Laurence at Simon & Schuster.
Rolf Zettersten, Publisher at Center Street (Hachette USA) acquired NA rights to world champion Iron Man triathlete and world-record holder Chrissie Wellington for a high five-figure advance. UK rights to her story had already been sold by Conway to Andreas Camponar at Constable & Robinson.
Ingrid Connell at Macmillan won an auction for UK rights to Guard a Silver Sixpence, a nostalgic family memoir by Felicity Davis, another of Conway’s authors.
Jake Lingwood at Ebury acquired UK and Commonwealth rights (excluding Canada) to Shane Spall’s travel memoir Voyages of the Princess Matlida in a two-book six-figure pre-empt from agent Laetitia Rutherford. The author will co-promote with her husband, actor Timothy Spall.
Rutherford sold world rights in The Frog Princess, a warm-heartened rags-to-riches memoir by former beauty queen Angie Beasley, to Daniel Bunyard at Michael Joseph.