The London Book Fair 2013

Attention all aspiring crime-authors - it’s the London Book Fair till Wednesday.

Look, Mark, you say, that’s all very well, but this book doesn’t get written by itself. I’m with you there, friend. But held at Earls Court in London, the Book Fair is where 25,000 literary agents and scouts, publishers, booksellers and marketing professionals all come to talk books and publishing. That’s 25,000 people who can help you along the path to getting published.

This year the Book Fair is making a big attempt to reach out to writers. If you’re an author, it’s one of the ways you can find out more about publishing or self-publishing, or get inspiration on how to break into an increasingly competitive business or advance your career.

The Author Lounge is a place that brings together experts from all parts of the publishing industry – from editors and designers and agents and booksellers – to share their expertise and insights into modern publishing with authors and unpublished authors.

There’ll be talks and seminars and discussions over the next three days, including a look at how the new digital landscape is opening up new opportunities for authors; how to make the most of marketing; and how to help readers discover your books.

And if you’ve managed to sign up for it, there’s also The Lit Factor – see what they’ve done there? – that gives unpublished authors the opportunity to meet and network with literary agents.

Authors such as William Boyd will at this year’s fair, as well as Roz Morris, whose terrific Nail Your Novel is absolutely one of the best writing books on how to write a novel you could possibly read.