Happy New Year

Happy New Year, readers, friends, family and interested passers-by. I hope your 2023 was a better year than the COVID infused (and confused) years of 2020, 2021, and parts of 2022.  It was certainly a good year for me, for my family and also for my book BETRAYED.

I’d like to tell you about some recent developments associated with the book’s release into new territories, its movie/TV option process, and its latest nomination for an award for ‘outstanding investigative reporting’.

Hachette (Australia), my publisher, released the book into the UK/Europe under its export program in mid-2023. The program was a good way to introduce the title into the UK/EU market, tapping into overseas sales and providing invaluable exposure to a wider readership. Hachette UK released BETRAYED in UK stores including Waterstones, Blackwell’s, Foyles, via 1000+ independent bookstores associated with Bookshop.org, and online via Amazon UK.

You might recall I also flew to England to attend the London Book Fair in April as part of the book’s UK release, and was able to make valuable contacts with potential film/TV partners, as well as meet with Hachette’s (UK) representatives. That first-ever foray for me into the publishing, rights and marketing sectors of the book industry was a real eye-opener, and taught me more about the importance of having — and maintaining — a strong relationship with one’s publisher. 

Since the book’s release into the UK, I’ve now been advised that under the same export program, Hachette will release the book into the US/Canada market in 2024! Hachette (US) will make BETRAYED available through Barnes & Noble’s bookstores, independent retailers under the Bookshop.org arrangement, Indigo Canada, and online through Amazon US. Though the numbers may be modest at this stage, a combination of word-of-mouth, ongoing media exposure and a potential film/TV deal will help to grow readership in the longer term.

The book was originally optioned by Lucky Country Productions (Bill Leimbach), and a process involving a writer, a producer and a director coalesced into a serious pitch to market (in Australia and the US) for the funding of a 90-100 minute feature film adaptation of the story. Options on books generally last up to about three years, but by the time the second extension on the option was approaching (and in the absence of any concrete film deals), a decision was made not to continue down the feature film/Lucky Country Productions path. Nonetheless the book was quickly snapped up by one of Australia’s leading production companies whose CEO has major screenwriting, executive producer, showrunner and director credits to his name. A new option was executed in November. All I can tell you at this stage is an announcement about the option will be forthcoming in the new year (2024). Stay tuned … this could be very exciting.

And finally, hot on the heels of the 2023 Best True Crime Ned Kelly Award in September, the book has been nominated for UK CrimeCon’s True Crime Awards 2024. The judges represent an array of sectors and industries, and bring their experience to the event, taking into consideration each entry’s originality, research, ethics and sensitivity. BETRAYED has been nominated in the category “outstanding investigative reporting”. There are five other categories in book publishing, as well as many more in podcast and screen.  The first step after nomination is the shortlisting process. If BETRAYED passes that test, we will find out the judges’ final decision at a ceremony in London on 25 April when all of the winners (and those highly commended) will be celebrated.  

In the meantime, best wishes to you all for a happy, healthy and satisfying 2024, and remember to always have a book by your side, and one on stand-by!

Cheers,

Sandi Logan