Majority owned by Michael Heyward and Penny Hueston, in partnership with Maureen and Tony Wheeler, the founders of Lonely Planet, Text Publishing is one of the world’s leading independent publishing houses. Founded in 1990 by Diana Gribble and Eric Beecher, it was initially a joint venture between Text Media and Reed Publishing. Over the years it has attracted investors including Canongate Books and the Wheelers.
Text is proud to be the publisher of an extraordinary list of authors: Helen Garner, Garry Disher, Michelle de Kretser, Olga Tokarczuk, Barack Obama, Magda Szubanski, Tim Flannery, Kate Grenville, Peter Singer, Raimond Gaita, J.M. Coetzee, Nina Kenwood, Graeme Simsion, Robbie Arnott, Amanda Lohrey, Tyson Yunkaporta, Gail Jones, Nick Cave, Jessica Stanley, Clare Wright, Melanie Cheng, Jennifer Down, Rose Carlyle, James Islington, Sarah Krasnostein and Sam Neill, among many others.
Text’s authors have won or been shortlisted for major prizes including the Nobel, the Booker, the Pulitzer, the Miles Franklin and the Stella. Text has published numerous bestselling books and has sold rights to its titles in dozens of territories.
In 2012, Text launched the Text Classics, a list that has grown to around 150 lost, out-of-print or forgotten books. Authors published in the Text Classics series include Patrick White, Christina Stead, Henry Handel Richardson, Thea Astley, Miles Franklin, Elizabeth Harrower, and Madeleine St John.
Text publisher Michael Heyward said: ‘Text has created an unparalleled space for itself in Australian publishing. Now it’s time for a new owner to provide a home for the company’s entrepreneurial energies and its family of brilliant authors. We are lucky to have the right custodian in Penguin Random House Australia. We know the key people there very well, have worked with them for many years, and have forged great relationships with them. As we discussed our future together, PRHA has been deeply respectful of the Text legacy.
We have agreed on a Charter of Independence that will allow Text to retain full publishing control as we continue our work of acquiring, editing, curating, designing, marketing, publicising and selling rights in our books. Our books will, as ever, be sold to the ANZ trade by PRHA. We will continue to sell our books in the UK and work with our network of agents around the world.
‘I have been publisher at Text through five different ownership structures and both Penny Hueston and I are excited about this wonderful opportunity to guarantee the future of the company we have spent so many years building. We are passionately committed to doing everything we can to allow Text to thrive as a distinctive and integral part of PRHA. As we begin a new chapter with Julie Burland and her team, we want to thank Maureen and Tony Wheeler, along with Marcus Fazio, for their staunch support. We want to thank our staff, particularly those remarkable and gifted souls who have been with us for many years. And we want to thank the hundreds of authors who trust us with their books.’
Maureen and Tony Wheeler said: ‘It has been a pleasure and a privilege to be involved with Text, Australia’s best publisher and Melbourne’s gift to writers and readers everywhere.’
Julie Burland, CEO of Penguin Random House said: ‘As long-standing partners, Penguin Random House and Text Publishing know each other well, and have built a relationship based on trust, respect and shared goals. I have always been inspired by the values that drive Text’s success and we deeply admire the legacy that Text Publishing has established in our industry. We believe that PRH is uniquely positioned to preserve and honour that legacy with integrity, passion and vision.’
