series tells the story of underdog Skandar Smith, who lives in a world where unicorns are real—and deadly. It promises “unlikely heroes, elemental magic, fierce sky batles, ancient secrets, nail-biting races and bloodthirst unicorns”. Steadman, who worked in corporate and family law before deciding to focus on writing, had the initial idea for the story in 2013, but only commited it to the page when she began a creative writing MA at the Universit of Cambridge. She graduated, with a distinction, last year. The concept of the bloodthirst unicorns came about as a direct response to the “cuddly” image that unicorns have gained in recent years. She explains: “I started thinking, ‘Why did they become cuddly? How could they be different?’, and built from there.” She wrote the first draſt in three months “in a kind of frenzy”. Despite it being Steadman’s first published book, she penned another beforehand—a courtroom drama for adults—which went out on submission but was not picked up by publishers. She admits that she considered giving up writing at that point, and adds: “Everyone sees the amazing success, but I also experienced hearing silence for something I’d poured my hopes and dreams into. It’s worth trying other things and sticking at it because you never know what’s going to happen.”


Chicken run


She discovered her agent Copeland aſter reading his début children’s book, Charlie Changes into a Chicken (Puffin). Steadman felt the agent would “really get my sense of humour”, and approached him by email with the subject line “Bloodthirst unicorns”. He recognised that Steadman’s manuscript was special “very, very quickly”. He says: “The central idea was so brilliant. I was excited. And once I started reading and realised how well she could write, and the depth of the world she created, I knew this would be huge.” However, Steadman’s experience with her adult title leſt her with “very low” expectations. She says: “I really didn’t know if anyone would like it, so I was very shocked. I’d been on submission for months with nothing happening, so I was ready to try to forget about it. Then


First-timers at Frankfurt


A criticism sometimes levelled at The Bookseller Daily is that few titles are actually sold “at” Frankfurt. And sure, the multi-level acquisition process is such now that the deals done with a handshake and cash passed under the table at Frankfurts of yore have taken on mythic qualities. But there is no question that the excite- ment and the hype of FBF about “hot books” can propel them into multiple territories— even if it is weeks after the trade leaves the Messe. Here are four such successes...


TheBookseller.com


I lost count of the number of attempted pre-empts we had. The passion from the publishers was white-hot...


Sam Copeland, agent


a few days later the offers starting coming in.” Copeland says the response to the manuscript was “almost unprecedented”. He adds: “I lost count of the number of atempted pre-empts we had. The passion from the publishers was white-hot. This has since been matched by the response from foreign publishers.” Aſter holding several Zoom calls with interested publishers, Steadman was won over by the team at S&S Children’s, whose excitement about the book was “fizzing out of the screen. They had so many ideas, and their vision for the books and the series really aligned with what I imagined,” she says. “They were really ambitious for it in a way that was almost scary to me, but they also made me feel like they would look aſter me.” The first title in the series will be published in hardback in spring 2022. Steadman is looking forward to editing the book and setling down to write its follow-up. Though the initial deal is only for three books, Steadman has planned out five volumes in the series.


! Stop Press...


To date, pre-empts and offers have been accepted in 14 territories for Skandar and the Unicorn Thief, including France, Spain and Germany. Multi-publisher auctions are taking place in Japan, Russia and other Eastern European territories.


Pre-empts have been accepted in Germany, Italy and the Netherlands, with auctions ongoing in several other major territories. As a former student of Spanish herself, Steadman is “so excited” about the book being translated for foreign markets. She says: “It’s just so amazing that this book can be enjoyed by people all over the world. When the foreign rights deals started coming in, it made me unbelievably happy because it’s a new perspective on the book that you’ve writen.” For Copeland, the auction “helped publishing feel normal again”. He says: “Despite the pandemic, it felt like exciting business was happening. Knowing that publishers are ready to spend big money is incredibly important for the industry.” He believes it is also a sign that “the children’s market is very, very buoyant at the moment”, citing his colleague Claire Wilson’s recent “huge” children’s publishing deals as further evidence. When looking ahead to life aſter publication,


Steadman’s main hope is simply that “children want to read the book and enjoy reading it”. She expands: “I always loved the idea that children might be talking about it in the playground. If they’re excited, that’s all I really would want out of it, to be honest.”


‘14


The Girls Emma Cline


New York superagent Bill Clegg bagged a seven-figure US deal for Cline’s début on the eve of FBF ‘14, with seven major territories going during the fair (including to Chatto). Awards and bestsellerdom followed; The Girls has sold £1.2m in the UK since its 2016 release.


‘15


Eleanor Oliphant is Completely Fine Gail Honeyman


The hottest Frankfurt book of the past decade? Madeleine Milburn sold the Scot’s book to the US, UK and a further 27 territories during FBF 2015. It has gone on to become the third-bestselling début novel since records began in the UK.


‘18


Three Lives Lisa Taddeo


An eve-of-FBF seven-figure US deal for Taddeo’s study of three women’s sex lives spurred a heated UK auction during the fair, with Bloomsbury winning out for six figures. The book became a bestseller list fixture and Narrative Non-fiction Book of the Year Nibbie winner.


‘19


Girl A Abigail Dean


The slushpile find was at sixes and sevens last year: sold by Juliet Mushens for six figures at auction to HarperCollins (UK), and for seven figures to Viking (US), before going to a further eight territories during the fair. It will be released in January next year.


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