Bridget Williams Books

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Bridget Williams Books
Founded1990
FounderBridget Williams
Country of originNew Zealand
Headquarters locationWellington, New Zealand
DistributionDavid Bateman Ltd
Nonfiction topics
ImprintsBWB Texts
Official websitewww.bwb.co.nz

Bridget Williams Books is a New Zealand book publisher, established in 1990 by Bridget Williams.

Establishment[]

Williams established the company in 1990 when the company she was working for, Allen & Unwin, was sold. She purchased the titles which she had developed as Allen & Unwin's managing director and started her own publishing company.[1] Williams' vision for the company was for it to publish "good books that sell" – books with significant messages. Her personal interests in women's and Māori history, and New Zealand general history, have influenced the books that the company publishes.[2]

From 1995 to 1998, the company published under a joint imprint with Auckland University Press,[3] before returning to independent publisher status in 1998.

Development[]

In 2006, the company established the Bridget Williams Publishing Trust, which applies for grants from philanthropic organisations to support publication of specific titles.[1] For example, in 2013 the J.R. McKenzie Trust provided funding towards the publication and promotion of Inequality – A New Zealand Crisis.[4]

In 2011, Tom Rennie was hired as Associate Editor, and began to develop a digital publishing strategy for the company.[5] As a result, in 2013, BWB Texts were released – a series of short texts on topics of New Zealand interest, published first as e-books and later as paperbacks.[6] Certain titles in the series are funded by Creative New Zealand, and others are funded through the Bridget Williams Books Publishing Trust.[6]

Awards[]

  • In 1996, Redemption Songs won Book of the Year at the Montana New Zealand Book Awards[7]
  • In 1997, The Story of Suzanne Aubert won Book of the Year at the Montana New Zealand Book Awards.[8]
  • In 2010, Encircled Lands: Te Urewera 1820–1921 won the NZ Post Book of the Year Award.[9]
  • In 2015, Tangata Whenua: An Illustrated History won the Royal Society of New Zealand Science Book Prize,[10] and the Kōrero o Mua (History) category of the Ngā Kupu Ora Aotearoa Māori Book Awards[11]
  • In 2015, Bridget Williams Books won the NZ Book Industry Special Award, for the innovative publishing list and the expansion into digital publishing.[12]

References[]

  1. ^ a b "Minding the gap, Profiles, Otago Magazine, University of Otago, New Zealand". www.otago.ac.nz. Retrieved 4 December 2015.
  2. ^ Wannan, Olivia (5 July 2012). "Wellingtonian Interview: Bridget Williams". Stuff.co.nz. Retrieved 4 December 2015.
  3. ^ "About BWB | BWB Bridget Williams Books". www.bwb.co.nz. Retrieved 3 December 2015.
  4. ^ "Bridget Williams Books Publishing Trust". J R McKenzie Trust. Archived from the original on 8 December 2015. Retrieved 5 December 2015.
  5. ^ "Tom Rennie now associate publisher at Bridget Williams Books". BookSellers New Zealand. Retrieved 4 December 2015.
  6. ^ a b Oliver, Henry. "BWB Texts and the state of non-fiction book publishing in New Zealand". Idealog. Idealog Limited. Retrieved 4 December 2015.
  7. ^ "Judith Binney | BWB Bridget Williams Books". www.bwb.co.nz. Retrieved 4 December 2015.
  8. ^ "New Zealand Book Council". www.bookcouncil.org.nz. Archived from the original on 8 December 2015. Retrieved 3 December 2015.
  9. ^ Dekker, Diana (28 February 2011). "The life of a publisher". Stuff.co.nz. Retrieved 3 December 2015.
  10. ^ "2015 Royal Society of New Zealand Science Book Prize". Royal Society of New Zealand. Retrieved 4 December 2015.
  11. ^ "2015 Ngā Kupu Ora Aotearoa Māori Book Awards – Massey University". www.massey.ac.nz. Retrieved 4 December 2015.
  12. ^ "2015 New Zealand Book Trade Industry Awards Winners | Booksellers New Zealand". booksellers.co.nz. Retrieved 4 December 2015.
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