Puffin Ireland...gone????

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No...well, yes...but no. I'm sharing this link with David Maybury's blog. David has a truly good explanation of what has been happening at Puffin Ireland. A few weeks back, the news came through that Puffin Ireland was to lose it's appointed children's editor, the absolutely wonderful Paddy O'Doherty. It seems that Penguin Ireland had decided they no longer needed an in-house children's editor. (Yet another victim of the current recessionary climate and it's effects on the publishing industry.) But, they still insist that Puffin Ireland has not closed. Michael McLoughlin (Penguin Ireland MD) says that manuscript submissions are still very welcome, and that he and Shannon Park from Puffin Uk will continue to work with assigned authors and illustrators.
I'm just going to quote David here... as he said it so very well:
"Removing the Puffin Ireland editorial position may make good sense if you crunch numbers – but the investment in children’s fiction and the growing relationship and goodwill with reader markets, organisations, booksellers, media, libraries and beyond has hit a hitch.
Congratulations and deserved well done to Paddy O’Doherty for the stalwart work, incredible potential and the brilliant list that she has created for Penguin Ireland/Puffin over the last two years. I just hope they continue to push as hard to continue the work she started."
I was really sorry to hear this news. Paddy O'Doherty brought an incredible amount of skill, dedication and energy to this position, as she has done in the past with all her other accomplishments. She is a true voice for children's literature. All the best in the future, Paddy! 

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