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Rebecca Strong had plenty of reasons to celebrate last week at the launch party for her stunning debut Here or There as, not only was the launch a wonderful occasion with 111 books sold (the packed room at Foyles is shown in this picture on the left), but we found out that the novel had been shortlisted for Five Live Book of the Month on the Simon Mayo BBC radio programme.
The book is now officially on sale and in shops so if you haven't already got your copy now is the time to do it.
Here or There, the light-literary debut from London author Rebecca Strong will launch this week on 28th July, with a pre-launch party and champagne reception at Foyles Gallery on Wednesday 25th July. The novel is the result of a year-long challenge set by Legend Press MD Tom Chalmers for 26-year-old first-time author Rebecca Strong.
Rebecca met Chalmers’ challenge with skill and panache and has created a powerful illustration of the rich and often troubled tapestry of modern society. The novel is split between the everyday experiences of numerous characters whose lives touch fleetingly, yet often with unpredictable significance. The latest in Legend Press’ rapidly growing and highly acclaimed novel list, Here or There is a novel about choices, freedom, desire, and how much we can control, and is expected to appeal to an extremely wide readership.
A passion for books and writing led Rebecca to study French and Spanish at University College London and then become an active committee member of the Society of Young Publishers (SYP). It was at the SYP that she met Legend Press MD Tom Chalmers and together they set the indomitable challenge of Rebecca writing a novel within a year.
Tom Chalmers commented: “When talking with Rebecca about some excellent short stories she had written I thought it would be interesting to see how Legend Press could work to help her, as a young first-time novelist, create a publishable novel within a year.
“The challenge was a success and we’re greatly looking forward to publishing Here or There as it is a vivid reflection of modern society and will be relevant to an incredibly wide readership. Its main target is the female reader but, with the range of characters and description, it also has great crossover potential to the male market.”
The SYP (Society of Young Publishers) have published the very first public interview with Rebecca Strong, author of the upcoming and much-anticipated Here or There (out on 28th July).
Rebecca is ex-editor of InPrint, the SYP's magazine, and in this special InPrint Online interview she answers some questions about her novel, what it's like to be published by Legend Press and some general probes about writing and her favourite authors. Read in full here. 
A review has been posted for the fantastic HEADING SOUTH by Luke Bitmead and Catherine Richards. It's written by Zoe King for the major writers' community site, WriteWords, view in full here.
We are publishing the third in our acclaimed series of short story-collections and are looking for talented, vibrant authors to be a part of the Legend Press drive to reaffirm the short story’s inimitable place in the mainstream market.
Our short-fiction series, which has become known as ‘The Short Story Reinvented’, is designed for today’s busy, but discerning, reader. Short fiction is a perfect answer in a world where everyone wants things to be easily accessible, sleek and tailored to fit their needs.
We plan to publish the new collection at the end of March 2008 and are calling for writers to send in their submissions by 1st October 2007. A summary of the brief is given below, for a full description email emmahoward@legendpress.co.uk or view the document on scribd.com. We look forward to reading, and hopefully publishing, your work!
Summary:
· Short-story of approximately 9,000-12,000 words
· Following a single main character
· Actions/thoughts to occur/take place during a single hour
· Stream-of-consciousness-style
· Non-genre-specific
· Thought-provoking and original.
We want to feel moved and inspired by these stories.
Please send submissions to Emma Howard, Publishing Executive, at 13a Northwold Road, London, N16 7HL by 1st October 2007 or as soon as you like. (If you would like your work to be returned or would prefer us to contact you by post please include an SAE. Otherwise, if you are happy for us to respond to you by email, please give us your email address.)
Any questions or queries, just let us know and we’ll try to get back to you as soon as we can – email emmahoward@legendpress.co.uk
Visit our online shop to buy discounted copies of the first two collections in the series, The Remarkable Everyday and Seven Days.
The popular website Trashionista, where they 'read books as if they're going out of fashion', is the latest review site to feature Heading South. 
Click here to read the review and the rest of their great stuff or buy Heading South now from our online shop.
