Through the course of her talk Ciara will explain key aspects of her job like the acquisition and editing process. She will also provide information that may be of use to writers sending work out to publishers such as: how to submit material to publishers, current trends and they type of books Hachette are looking for at the moment.

Ciara Doorley is Editorial Director at Hachette Ireland, the Irish publishing division of Hachette UK --- parent company of Orion, Little, Brown, Hodder & Stoughton, Headline, John Murray, Octopus, HachetteIndia and Australia and sister company to Hachette Book Group USA. Ciara has worked at Hachette Ireland since 2007 and is responsible for commissioning and publishing a host of bestselling fiction authors including Ciara Geraghty, Fiona O’Brien, Roisin Meaney, Martina Reilly and Christy Kenneally, as well as bestselling non-fiction titles including the acclaimed Vanishing Ireland series.

Gareth will provide an overview of the eBook industry, discussing everything from formats and retailers through to examples of highly successful self-published eBook authors. A questions and answers session will allow all those attending to quiz Gareth on all things eBooks.

Gareth Cuddy is the CEO of Europe's leading eBook Company, ePubDirect.  Based in Cork, the company creates and distributes eBooks to over a thousand on-line retailers and over 25,000 libraries.

Cliona Lewis will discuss all aspects of publicity in a changing media landscape. She will talk about the importance of media strategy from the outset of a book’s life, when it is being acquired by the publisher; how to identify and target the correct media for an author’s audience; the key role of social media; planning and implementing a publicity campaign; managing the media, and, crucially, author care. Her talk will cover publicity for both fiction and non-fiction titles.

Cliona Lewis is the Publicity Director for the Penguin Group in Ireland. As well as devising publicity campaigns for the Penguin Ireland imprint, she works on key titles for the Penguin UK group across all its imprints including Viking, Hamish Hamilton, Michael Joseph and Allen Lane. Prior to joining Penguin in 2005, she worked as Publicity Manager for Gill & Macmillan for five years. She also worked in the UK, selling foreign rights for Templar Publishing and Andromeda Oxford Ltd.

Publishing & Literary Consultant Emma Walsh will be exploring how to approach the publishing industry from a commercial perspective.

Emma’s talk will encompass:

• The best way to approach an agent and/or publisher
• Ways to develop and refine your work
• Building a profile in your field 
• How to maximize your chances of getting closer to publication
• Understanding the commercial market
• The business side of book publishing – what you need to know
• The pros and cons of self-publishing vs traditional publishing.

This session will be an informal session and attendees will be invited to ask questions throughout to steer the talk so that they get the most out of the session.

Emma Walsh has over 14 years’ experience in the book & publishing industry in Ireland. She has worked in almost every facet of the Irish Publishing Industry developing a broad foundation of knowledge that is sought after from a diverse range of clients in the book and publishing arena. Emma has worked with a range of clients from large corporations to individual fledgling authors and from established publishing houses to developing new imprints. Emma has agented three top ten Irish titles and regularly reviews books on television, radio and in newspapers.