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Firefly Press receives Three-Year Grant from Welsh Books Council

Published Mon 16 Jan 2017 - By Literature Wales
Firefly Press receives Three-Year Grant from Welsh Books Council
Dragon Red by Shoo Rayner

Tales of dragons, ladybirds, and suspense in the dark streets of Victorian Cardiff are just some of the stories to be published this spring with the help of new three-year investment from the Welsh Books Council announced today.

The investment in new Wales-based children’s publisher Firefly Press will allow it to develop its business and press ahead with its award-winning list of fiction titles for children and teenagers, which has received high praise across the UK.

Set up less than three years ago, Firefly publishes up to eight books a year for five to nineteen year olds. Last year it won the Branford Boase Award for a debut children’s writer and editor, with the stunning tale of Aubrey and the Terrible Yoot by Horatio Clare. And in 2017 it has two titles nominated for the CILIP Carnegie Medal along with a significant number of other prize listings.

‘We are thrilled with the support we have received from the Welsh Books Council, particularly at such a difficult time for arts funding,’ said Firefly Publisher Penny Thomas. ‘This grant, awarded to Firefly for the first time, will help us strengthen our list of quality children’s and YA books published from Wales. It’s a wonderful boost and mark of confidence in Firefly and Welsh publishing, and means we can look forward to a very exciting few years.’

Firefly has been awarded nearly £90,000 over three years and joins four other English language publishers in Wales who are currently supported by WBC’s revenue grant, agreed by the Welsh Government last week. The funding represents vital help for publishers and books from Wales seeking to compete in a market dominated by much larger UK publishers and multinationals.

Based in Cardiff and Aberystwyth, Firefly launches its 2017 spring list at the Cardiff Children’s Literature Festival in March, with picture book Sophie Finds a Fairy Door by Laura Sheldon, Victorian drama Gaslight by Eloise Williams for 8-12s and the third and final book in the popular Dragon Gold series for 7-10s, Dragon Red by Shoo Rayner, which draws on one of the ancient legends of the Mabinogion. And May sees the launch of a second book telling the adventures of Aubrey, a boy who can talk to animals – Aubrey and the Terrible Ladybirds, by Horatio Clare.

Click here to visit the Firefly website.