Project archive: Toolset
Our most recent projects are shown first
Louisa Treger
Louisa Treger is the acclaimed author of four novels inspired by the untold stories of women who challenged the expectations of their time—remarkable women, rebels, artists and survivors who dared to live on their own terms.
Joshua Levine
Joshua Levine is an author, social historian, and journalist with a passion for bringing the past to life. He’s written multiple bestselling books, and was the historical advisor behind major films like Christopher Nolan’s Dunkirk and Steve McQueen’s Blitz. His book Dunkirk: The History Behind the Major Motion Picture hit Number 1 on the Sunday Times Bestseller List. With an unusually varied background, Joshua has also written and presented for radio and TV, earning a glowing reputation as a historical expert and storyteller – and we have created a site which reflects this wide range of experience.
“Simon’s knowledge and creativity are matched by an ability to respond to the client’s needs. He offers a superb service.”
Joshua Levine, storyteller, historian, and bestselling author
DCU Press
New website for Ireland’s first fully Open Access university press. DCU Press is a non-profit open access publisher of peer-reviewed books. It supports the University’s mission to advance DCU’s research impact and transform lives and societies, and reflects its commitment to Open Research.
Boys Don’t Cry
Microsite for new book by Made In Chelsea star Jamie Laing, an A-Z of male vulnerability that’s the conversation starter the younger generation of today didn’t know it needed.
New River
A top-quality non-fiction publisher, with a focus on mental and physical health, self-development and social science.
The Robbins Office, Inc.
Founded in 1978, the Robbins Office, Inc. is led by Kathy Robbins and is a literary agency representing adult fiction and non-fiction. They work closely with their authors throughout the development and publication processes — from the genesis of an idea to the packaging, marketing, and release of a writer’s work.
Robert Bryndza
New website for Robert Bryndza, a British-born, internationally bestselling crime author whose page-turning thrillers have captivated readers around the world.
Siop y Pethe
Siop y Pethe has been part of Wales’ literary community since 1967, and they continue to support and promote Welsh literature through our new website – which is fully bi-lingual in Welsh and English.
Gloria Barnett
Gloria is a science presenter who conduct talks and school visits. She also writes exciting ocean-themed fiction for children, as well as informative non-fiction books.
“Simon is a superb person to work with. He is excellent – full of knowledge and useful comments. His advice was always spot on. He has lots of patience too, which helps when working with non-tech individual like me! My new website has had many great comments already. Thank you Simon – it’s been a pleasure to work with you.”
Gloria Barnett, award-winning author, educator, science presenter
The Plughole Boy
Microsite for a series of children’s books by Aubrey Waddy, illustrated by Emily Taylor.
“Bookswarm delivered a site that works for ME, not something designed to attract applause from other site developers. I learned all sorts of valuable stuff from Simon Appleby during the development of the site, and his responsiveness was terrific. I’d genuinely recommend Bookswarm, over DIY unless you’re very adept, and over alternatives unless you’re very confident of what they’ll do for you.”
Aubrey Waddy, author of the Plughole Boy books for children
Crécy Publishing
Since 1997, Crécy has been a leader of transport and military history publishing across Europe. With a rich back catalogue and a constant list of new and upcoming titles, they offer one of the strongest and most varied selections of aviation, railway and military history titles on the market.
Big Idea Talks
Big Idea Talks is a new event series from Read Maxwell Communications that brings together leading experts to explore, challenge, and discuss the most pressing issues of our time. From science and technology to social change and global affairs, each talk dives deep into ideas that matter—sparking thought, conversation, and action. It’s not just about big names; it’s about big thinking.
Created at pace to promote the first event in the series, but designed to scale as required.
Michael Cordy
Michael Cordy writes stories about what could happen tomorrow to make sense of what is happening today. We created a new website to support his return to publishing with Manhattan Down.
Reverend Penny Stephens
“Simon and the Bookswarm team were very helpful and efficient with setting up my author website, listening carefully to my ideas and concerns, and doing a great job with creating it. I have found the whole process surprisingly straightforward, with their care and help. Thank you!”
Reverend Penny Stephens, author of Till Death us do Part
Elizabeth David Matters
Elizabeth David is probably the most influential food writer of the mid-to late twentieth century; her work, it can be argued, has changed the way we cook and, in general, the way we view food and drink today. This website is dedicated to her legacy, offering a platform to explore her work, life and the lives of her long list of friends.
Sarah Langslow Coaching
Website for Sarah Langslow, executive coach, speaker and author of Do Sweat The Small Stuff.
Clare Furniss Mk2
New microsite for bestselling YA author Clare Furniss, replacing her previous Bookswarm-designed website. The new look-and-feel is designed to appeal to both adult and Young Adult readerships.
Amy Arnold
New website for award-winning novelist and experienced creative writing tutor and mentor Amy Arnold.
“I love the website Bookswarm has created. How Simon understood so perfectly what I was after (when I didn’t) is beyond me! A stress-free and surprisingly enjoyable experience all round. I can’t recommend them enough.”
Amy Arnold, writer and coach
Laurel Alexander
New microsite for Laurel Alexander, a nonfiction author passionate about well-being and resilience and a storyteller who loves exploring fantasy and magical realism.
“Simon at Bookswarm made my transition to a dedicated author site effortless and cost-effective. With his deep expertise in the literary market, he provided practical, insightful guidance that gave me confidence every step of the way. His support was invaluable, and I couldn’t be happier with the results.”
Laurel Alexander, author and resilience coach
Kelly Scarborough
Kelly Scarborough writes historical novels about fascinating women who lived in challenging times. Her first novel, set in the Swedish royal court, will be published in 2026.
Tony Heck
New York-based novelist Tony Heck recently published his first novel, Tribulations.
“Initially struggling to make a website on my own, I am elated at the final website I have to represent me as an author. Simon is professional, prompt, and polite, working collaboratively to build a website that you want. Highly recommended.”
Tony Heck, author of Tribulations
Viper Books
Viper was established in 2019 as the specialist crime and thriller imprint of Profile Books. Its mission is to publish Books with Bite: the best and brightest in the genre, celebrating new voices and unique approaches to murder and mystery.
After starting life as part of the Serpent’s Tail website, we created a new sister site for the Profile and Serpent’s Tail sites, using the same architecture.
Sharon Bolton
Sharon (formerly SJ) Bolton grew up in a cotton-mill town in Lancashire and had a varied early career in marketing and public relations. She gave it up to become a mother and a writer.
Her first novel, Sacrifice, was voted Best New Read by Amazon.uk, whilst her second, Awakening, won the 2010 Mary Higgins Clark award. In 2014, Lost, (UK title, Like This, For Ever) was named RT Magazine’s Best Contemporary Thriller in the US, and in France, Now You See Me won the Plume de Bronze. That same year, Sharon was awarded the CWA Dagger in the Library. She has been shortlisted for the CWA gold and steel daggers.
“I’m a total technophobe, but Simon made the process of building my new website entirely stress free. Bookswarm have a lot of experience setting up authors’ websites and it shows. I’m delighted with the look of my new site and with how easy it will be to maintain in the future.”
Sharon Bolton, Sunday Times Bestselling Author
Heartwood Publishing
Website for travel specialists Heartwood, founded early in 2020 to publish and distribute a strong portfolio of complementary travel brands in the UK and across markets worldwide, and winners of the Specialist Publisher of the Year award at the 2024 Independent Publishing Awards.
“Heartwood Publishing worked closely with Bookswarm throughout 2024, having appointed them to build a new website that addressed a number of challenges:
- To create a single web presence for our portfolio of brands
- Through the new site’s creation, replace two old and out of date sites
- Support visits from consumers, retail customers and potential B2B business partners
- Provide a platform that would automatically update product content using Onix feeds
- Structure the design around distinct brands serving different purposes, whilst maintaining clear navigation for users
- Future proofing on a number of fronts, including the facility for direct sales, user accounts, adding brands, generating themed content and linking to social media
- Ease of updating and platform management for non-technical team members
Bookswarm delivered all of the above in a timely and cost-effective way, whilst maintaining their patience with us as the brief evolved during the design and build. Their publishing industry expertise was especially helpful, when it came to understanding specific issues we needed to tackle and the practical delivery of live Onix data feeds.
We would definitely recommend using Bookswarm to other publishers seeking to develop their web presence. “
Andy Riddle, Founder – Heartwood Publishing
Explore… Mac Keith Press
A new microsite from Mac Keith Press designed to be a useful and family-friendly resource to help parents and carers find the information they need about cerebral palsy and other childhood-onset disabilities.
The Society Project
This Sociery Project is an open space for all concerned with fairness and economic justice to assert a political will demanding change, for policies and an economy inherently serving society’s best interest, delivering a lower cost of living, generating ethical activity and profits for our collective benefit. It was created by Peter Ellis, author of The Accidental Societist.
Daniel Jakacic
Microsite for Australian author of Anja, Against The Odds.
In the tumultuous world of 1950s rural Slovenia, Anja is young, brilliant, talented—and caught in the oppressive grip of a corrupt government. As she navigates a landscape of betrayal and hardship, Anja’s determination to save her family’s farm from ruin propels her into a dangerous game of survival. With her father imprisoned for resistance and the threat of nationalization looming over their heads, her courage and resourcefulness are put to the ultimate test.
“Thanks Simon to you and your team for your excellent service. Every interaction has been a pleasure and the level of skill, judgement and care you and your team brought to designing, establishing and providing after sales support has been excellent. Anyone interested in an author website would do well to consider choosing Bookswarm.”
Daniel Jakacic, Author of Anja, Against The Odds
Post Wave Children’s Books
A new website for Post Wave Publishing UK, a newly formed independent publishing house, focusing on the children’s imprint, Post Wave Children’s Books.
Post Wave Publishing UK are the UK subsidiary of Post Wave Publishing China, a leading privately owned publishing house, and this is their first step towards becoming a truly global publishing brand.
“Working with Simon and Bookswarm to make our website has been really easy and efficient. Simon listened to our ideas, made updates quickly and kept the whole process clear and straightforward. He is responsive, very experienced and great to collaborate with. We’re really pleased with how our website turned out!”
Joanna McInerney, Editorial Director, Post Wave Publishing
Fiona Erskine
Website for engineer-turned-author Fiona Erskine, showcasing a mixture of traditionally and independently published titles.
“I’m delighted with my new author website and wouldn’t hesitate to recommend Bookswarm.
The things that particularly impressed me were
- Planning – Simon took a lot of time and care to establish exactly what I needed (as well as the bells and whistles I fancied), but he didn’t complain (or charge me more) when I made late additions to requirements. He’s experienced in the publishing world, and made some excellent suggestions and challenges.
- Smooth transition – The information on my old home-made website was transferred to the new and we have a period of transition to decide what to hide and what new material was required. I never felt rushed and could work on content at my own pace without having to worry about the magic that makes everything work underneath.
- Ongoing support – this is a team, not a one man band, so there is always someone on hand to help resolve issues.
If you’re in need of a new website or considering an upgrade to your old one, then I heartily recommend a chat with Simon.”
Fiona Erskine, crime novelist
UCL Press
Established as the UK’s first fully open access university press in 2015, UCL Press has fast become one of the leading open access scholarly publishers in the UK. They publish a wide range of open access scholarly monographs and edited collections, student textbooks and academic journals that are available to read and download free of charge.
We created a new ONIX-powered website to replace the previous Shopify-based site, providing greater flexibility over management of content and a much more tailored way of displaying book information, with a single page for each book that contains information and purchasing options for all editions.
“Simon and his team are fantastic to work with – adaptable, responsive and they really understand the requirements of a small publisher. They immediately understood our unique challenges and came up with cost-effective solutions to meet our needs, WHILST ALSO BEING A JOY TO WORK WITH. Highly recommend!”
Alison Fox, Marketing and Distribution Manager, UCL Press
Innermost Consulting
Andrew Saffron is one of the world’s leading culture change practitioners, whose high-challenge but engaging style has won him acclaim and awards. We created a new website for his business, Innermost Consultng, to support the publication of his business book, Better Culture, Faster. This included the creation of a new brand identity for Innermost.
“I’ve never seen anyone in this field, or related fields, move so quickly and with such expertise. We discussed ideas and they were executed. We discussed some more ideas, they were executed. We discussed tweaks and they were done.
AND Simon was an absolute pleasure to work with. I think the price was an absolute bargain!”
Andrew Saffron, author of Better Culture, Faster
Bob Gomersall
Dr Bob Gomersall researched in and taught physics, and was the author of one of the world’s first educational multimedia CD-ROMs. He has founded three successful technology businesses, was a long-standing board member of HF Holidays, and invests in start-up businesses. Now he’s written his first book, a handbook for a new kind of entrepreneur: the kind that wants to create not just a profitable business but a worthwhile life.
“A website felt daunting but with guidance and support from Simon it couldn’t have been easier. Clear requests and regular updates broke the process into small achievable steps. Full training was given to make changes independently with the comfort of back-up. Delighted with the outcome at a great fixed price cost.”
Sally Abbatt, author support for Worthwhile Wealth – an entrepreneur’s guide to success that satisfies
Kris Dyer
Kris is co-founder of Rakkit Productions Ltd and an award-winning voice actor and audiobook narrator, who has worked on over 300 audiobooks, including many bestsellers.
“Simon and the Bookswarm team are the ultimate professionals — I’d been putting off redoing my website for years as it was too much hassle to contemplate. Simon’s friendly and efficient guidance make the whole process pain free and I’m delighted with the end result. What’s more he knows the publishing and media industries better than anyone so was able to design a website that perfectly captures the tone, style and content required. I couldn’t recommend Bookswarm highly enough!”
Kris Dyer, voice actor, producer and writer
Leuven University Press
Leuven University Press is a mission-driven academic press of international repute. We created a new ONIX-powered website to replace the previous Shopify-based site, providing greater flexibility over management of content and a much more tailored way of displaying book information, with a single page for each book that contains information and purchasing options for all editions.
“It has been a pleasure to work with Simon and the Bookswarm team for the second time to renew our website. Simon and Alex are very experienced in book metadata, ONIX, and WordPress, and they always strive to find the best solutions for our wishes and needs within budget. The ONIX-powered website they developed is an indispensable tool for us to efficiently and flexibly present our books online.”
Annemie Vandezande, Leuven University Press
Liz Wildwood
Microsite for independent psychological mystery author Liz Wildwood, a new pen name for Ripley Hayes.
James Verini
James Verini is a features writer at The New York Times Magazine, specializing in the coverage of war and conflict, and the author of They Will Have to Die Now: Mosul and the Fall of the Caliphate. His journalism has also appeared in National Geographic Magazine, The New Yorker, Foreign Policy, and elsewhere.
We created a new website to streamline the management of James’ database of articles
“I could not have asked for a finer designer than Simon, and cannot recommend him highly enough. In a short matter of days, he completely revamped my website to my exact specifications, and he did so at far less cost than what other designers would have charged. He is inventive, responsive, and endlessly helpful.”
James Verini, magazine journalist and book author
Rachel Quin Marketing
Rachel is a creative and award-winning marketer with a wide range of experience and a passion for marketing, particularly digital.
“As a marketer, my website is a critical tool to promote my services, show off my portfolio, and make a strong first impression. I had been making do with a quickly cobbled together WordPress site and frankly, after working with Bookswarm, it’s become clear just how powerful a professionally created website is.
Simon and the team were so easy to work with – adaptable, responsive, and brilliant at communicating what might work best for me – and the finished product is a testament to their hard work. Working with Bookswarm made setting up a website so easy, and I’m thrilled with what they delivered. I would recommend in a heartbeat!”
Rachel Quin, creative and award-winning marketer
The History Press
The History Press is an independent non-fiction publisher based in the heart of Cheltenham, Gloucestershire – also home to one of the most prestigious literary festivals in the country.
We created a new website populated using an ONIX feed from their Consonance title management system, with the option to sell selected titles directly (special editions, signed copies, etc.). All ebooks are available to buy via Glassboxx.
“Having worked with Simon in the past, Bookswarm instantly sprang to mind when I needed to deliver a new company website in time for the 2024 London Book Fair. Simon and his team easily outclassed the competition with their thoughtful proposal, which showed the most care and attention to our brief.
With a very tight window for delivery, the Bookswarm team remained responsive throughout while providing excellent customer care. Each of our challenges was met with creative problem-solving and industry-specific advice allowing us play to our strengths. The entire project was also clearly costed and came in well under budget with no nasty surprises. The end result was a beautifully designed, functional website that we are all proud of (live as of March 8, 2024).
It’s worth noting that support since launch has remained exemplary with swift responses as issues arise. On one occasion we had mere days to launch a complex, time-limited offer. Simon was still on hand to help, despite being on holiday and separated by a 12-hour time zone. The successful campaign brought us thousands in revenue.
If you’re dithering over whether to include Bookswarm for tender, I’d urge you stop reading this and get on with contacting them for a chat and a quote!”
Cynthia Hamilton, Head of PR & Marketing at The History Press
Clearly Agile
Created for author Giles Linsday, a new microsite designed as a marketing hub for the book Clearly Agile: A Leadership Guide to Business Agility, a pivotal resource for leaders striving to navigate the complexities of today’s fast-paced business environment. Includes a lead magnet and a feed of Charles’ posts from Medium.com.
Zaid Al-Ali 2024
A new home page for academic and author Zaid Al-Ali, designed to focus on his more recent publishing, and sit alongside an earlier site created in support of his first book.
The Antony Harwood Literary Agency
An Oxford based literary agency with an international reputation. From brilliant first-time writers to those with long-established careers, from bestsellers to prize-winners in all genres, the Antony Harwood Literary Agency are proud to represent a wide range of wonderful authors, managing their business around the world in publishing, film, television and on the stage.
“Getting a website up and running was, frankly, a very daunting prospect but, from the first conversation with Simon, I knew I was in a safe pair of expert hands and the whole experience turned out to be quick, smooth and clear. And I’m absolutely delighted with how the website looks and functions, and how easy it is to keep it up to date.”
Antony Harwood, literary agent
Hugo de Burgh
Hugo de Burgh writes books about survival in chaotic times. After a long career involving many traditionally-published books, Hugo is now independently publishing both a novel and a non-fiction exploring the future of Britain in the Age of Asia; this required a new digital presence to promote the books and act as a digital hub.
“As a novice I was very dependent on Simon Appleby to take me through the creation and operation of a website point by point. He was clear in instruction, efficient in execution and immediately responsive to all my requests for help. I am confident that his support will continue as I gradually acquire the skills needed to improve my use the website. The initial design was his, and I like it very much.”
Hugo de Burgh, professor, novelist
AFE
AFE is Europe’s principle publisher and distributor of pilot supplies and flying training products, and every product they sell is backed by their reputation as Europe’s longest established company in the field. Publications and products that carry the AFE logo are widely acknowledged for their quality and accuracy.
An unusual project for Bookswarm, as AFE sell a wide range of products beyond publications – but the explanation is that AFE is the sister company of transport and military publisher Crecy Publishing, whose new website Bookswarm will launch soon.
Paul Adam
Paul Adam is the author of thirteen critically-acclaimed novels for adults and the award-winning Max Cassidy Trilogy of thrillers for children, featuring a dare-devil teenage escapologist.
“I’m delighted with the site. I think it’s terrific. Really clean, clear, attractive, modern and easy to use. Perfect for authors.”
Paul Adam, author
The Whitefriars Club
The Whitefriars Club is one of the oldest literary dining clubs in London, dating back to 1868. They meet eight times a year for dinner at the Savile Club, where they invite prominent cultural or political figures as their guests to speak about their careers or the important topics of the day. The club prides itself on the warm, inclusive and convivial atmosphere it offers to all its members and guests.
The website allows interested users to discover more about the club, while members can log in to book tickets for events, purchase items from the club shop and view the ever-expanding club archive.
“Working with Simon and Alex at Bookswarm has been a tremendously positive experience. Together we were able to go from inception to implementation in a matter of weeks. The process was smooth and pleasurable, and the result exactly what we had set out to achieve. I never felt that any of my awkward requests would go unanswered: there was always a solution. and it was delivered with good cheer. What a lovely company to work with!”
Alessandro Gallenzi, Honorary Secretary, The Whitefriars Club
Stephen Collier
Website for former policeman-turned-author and screenwriter Stephen Collier.
“I had been looking for a website designer, specific to writers and authors. Up until this time I had built my own websites with varying degrees of success.
Then I found Bookswarm and Simon Appleby. After a conversation we seemed a good fit and the price was not as extortionate as some website designers.
Simon and his team produced an amazing site – professional looking and a professional team that provided just what I needed. Thank you Simon and your team.”
Stephen Collier, crime writer for page and screen
Kieron O’Hara
A new website for Kieron O’Hara, a writer and philosopher. For 30 years Kieron has been an academic in the UK, first at the School of Psychology at the University of Nottingham, and then in Electronics and Computer Science at the University of Southampton, where he is now an emeritus fellow.
“It’s been great working with Simon and Bookswarm to get my personal author’s website up and running. He’s got the technical expertise to get everything working, the administrative knowledge to ensure that the site meets all the important legal criteria, the aesthetic skills to get it looking attractive, and the patience needed to train me how to upload and edit content. He’s also quick to respond to cries for help.”
Kieron O’Hara, author, computer scientist and philosopher
The Hampshire United Trilogy
A website for a triology of books about football, with a spiritual dimension – by US-based independent author Alex Phakos.
“Working with Simon Appleby and Bookswarm was a positive experience, start to finish. He captured my vision perfectly and created an author website that is beautiful, professional, and truly me. Creative, responsive, and a joy to work with—Simon exceeded every expectation.
I don’t recommend people lightly. Simon is exactly the type of person you will never want to stop working with. Hire him today.”
Alex Phakos, author of The Hampshire United Trilogy
Raising the Nation
Raising the Nation is a manifesto for a brighter future where all children can thrive. The site includes a number of additional essays not included in the print publication, linked to from the book using a QR code.
Thomasina Unsworth
Thomasina is a personal development coach offering coaching for writers, coaching for presentation skills and coaching for confidence, clarity and change.
“I had an idea of what I wanted when I met with Simon and he understood it immediately. He helped me to articulate my vision and purpose, so that I got exactly the website that I wanted. I am not very technically savvy, to say the least, but Simon was supportive and patient. He explained everything really clearly, was prompt in his responses when I needed help, and I know that he will continue in his support. I always feel that I can go to him with questions. The process was an absolute pleasure, and I am more than happy with the result. Thank you Simon and Bookswarm.”
Thomasina Unsworth, life coach and author
Hachette Schools
Hachette Schools brings pupils, teachers and librarians closer to brilliant Hachette Children’s Group books and authors.
Their extensive list of titles ranges from fantastic non-fiction that supports the curriculum, to well-loved authors including Cressida Cowell, Kes Gray, David Almond, Patrice Lawrence, Dermot O’Leary, Francesca Simon, Matthew Syed.
The site allows visitors to discover a wealth of free resources for new and well-loved books, specially written to support the curriculum and encourage discussion in the classroom or library, and hear about all the latest news and competitions.
David Almond
David Almond is the highly acclaimed author of Skellig, The Savage, Clay, My Name Is Mina, My Dad’s a Birdman, Slog’s Dad and many other novels.
University of London Press
The University of London Press are passionate advocates for the humanities – a collaborative, non-profit and predominantly open access publishing partner to researchers and institutions. Users of their new website can buy books, browse series, learn more about their team and their publishing model, or submit a proposal.
“It has been an absolute pleasure working with Simon and Bookswarm on our new website for the University of London Press. As a small university press team publishing both open access and non-open access books, Simon worked closely and patiently with us to make the experience easy, enjoyable and on budget. We’re delighted with our new website which really enhances the visibility and discoverability of our books and have already recommended Bookswarm to other publishers!”
Paula Kennedy, Head Of Publishing at University of London Press
The James Lockhart Literary Agency
A new website for a literary agency with a special interest in non-fiction.
“I’m extremely grateful to Simon and the Bookswarm team for designing and building my website. They have been a pleasure to work with, efficient, creative and attentive. I can’t recommend them enough.”
James Macdonald Lockhart, founder, the James Lockhart Literary Agency
Sharon Wee
Sharon Wee is a food explorer, and author of Growing Up in a Nonya Kitchen, a cookbook based on the food of her Perakan heritage. We created this new website to replace a previous website made with GoDaddy Website Builder.
“I met Simon Appleby from Bookswarm when he spoke at a panel during The London Book Fair. He had such astute and relevant insight of the current status of the publishing industry and this led me to consider his firm to help me improve my communications strategy. The first order was to redesign my personal website. Beyond the choice of fonts, colour palette and motifs, the overarching benefit was getting Simon’s advice on how to work around the various social media channels, obtaining the most suitable website name, building content and managing the various functions on WordPress. He was always courteous, patient and the response turnaround was swift. For a tech dinosaur like me, the guidance was valuable and much appreciated. Thank you!”
Sharon Wee, author and blogger
Anna Kemp
Anna writes picture books and fantasy stories for anyone who likes adventure, magic and some laughs along the way. We created this new site to replace her old Wix site, and allow a separately branded section for her new middle-grade series, The Goblyn Wood Adventures.
“I am absolutely thrilled with the website that Simon designed for me. I didn’t really know what I wanted or needed from a website but Simon’s expertise in creating sites for authors lit the way. The process was smooth and speedy and Simon was always available to answer any questions. I now have a site that is bursting with content, easy to navigate and looks beautiful. Most importantly for me it is wonderfully easy to maintain and update. I feel confident using it but it is also great to know that Simon can help me out if I get stuck. I’m already seeing the benefits of a more polished website in increasing numbers of requests for school visits and events. I can’t recommend Bookswarm highly enough. Thank you Simon!”
Anna Kemp, children’s author
Bedford Square Publishers
Bedford Square Publishers is an independent publisher of fiction and non-fiction, founded in 2022 in the historic streets of Bedford Square London and the sea mist shrouded green of Bedford Square Brighton.
The site uses an ONIX feed from Consonance to populate its catalogue, and also incorporates a ‘sub site’ for the No Exit Press imprint – No Exit titles and authors have separate branding.
“It was so fantastic to work with the Bookswarm team as they were both collaborative and creative but also transparent about everything they were doing, including the costs. So we got a website that we are really pleased with and it all came in on time and within budget.”
Laura Fletcher, co-founder & Commercial Director at Bedford Square Publishers
Lucienne Boyce
Lucienne Boyce is a historical novelist, biographer, and historian. She was already a WordPress user, and our aim with this project was to keep the best elements of her old site, while creating a better-defined structure, and migrating the separate blog from Blogspot into the site, to increase the amount of search-engine friendly content and allow readers to find all her content in one place.
“I enjoyed working with Simon on the website. I was impressed by his patience answering any questions I had, and also by the way he was able to make suggestions that we could then discuss and tweak so that the website would meet my requirements. I’m really pleased with the end result.”
Lucienne Boyce, author
Brambleby Books
Brambleby Books specialises in natural history, with an emphasis on biodiversity, conservation and the environment.
Chris Smaje
Chris Smaje has coworked a small farm in Somerset, southwest England, for the last twenty years. Previously, he was a university-based social scientist, working in the Department of Sociology at the University of Surrey and the Department of Anthropology at Goldsmiths College. Since switching focus to the practice and politics of agroecology, he’s written for publications such as The Land, Dark Mountain, Permaculture magazine and Statistics Views, as well as academic journals such as Agroecology and Sustainable Food Systems and the Journal of Consumer Culture.
Chris is the author of two books with Chelsea Green, and a very popular blog – when designing a new version of his site, we focused on retaining the ‘old school’ blog feel, and showcasing the high level of engagement by readers in the Comments section, alongside all the trappings of a modern author website.
“I’ve been very happy with Bookswarm’s services. Approachable, good listening to get the brief right, technically competent, and promptly responsive to support requests – all first rate. I’d recommend them unreservedly to other writers.”
Chris Smaje, author
Seren
Seren is Wales’ leading independent literary publisher, specialising in English-language writing from Wales for over forty years. With a list spanning poetry, fiction and non-fiction, their aim is to bring Welsh literature, art and politics before a wider audience.
The new Seren site uses WooCommerce to provide a full retail experience, including the ability to purchase book subscriptions for yourself or as a gift.
“Working with Bookswarm made developing our new website an exciting and enjoyable project. We were involved in every step of the process and worked safe in the knowledge that Simon and his team had our vision and interests at heart. The new site feels refreshed whilst keeping everything we loved about the old design. I can highly recommend working with them.”
Sarah Johnson, Deputy Publisher, Seren
Reading Riddle
Reading Riddle is the home of Kate Cunningham, author of books for children and Young Adults, including the A Flea In History series, featuring Vlad Flea. Kate also specialises in school visits, encouraging children to learn about history through Vlad’s adventures.
The books are illustrated by Kate’s son, Sam Cunningham, and we make liberal use of his drawings in the site design.
“When I reached out to Simon about creating my new website I had two sites that had evolved in random and confusing ways, and I had absolutely no idea how to make sense of it all. Luckily Simon and his team did! I now have an amazing new site that I’m proud to shout about, and direct people to. I am still amazed every time I look at it, that a tangled mess could become such a thing of beauty. More than that, it made me consider what, and how, I communicate with my audiences and has really boosted the content and how I interconnect all the elements.”
Kate Cunningham, children’s author
DunnFogg
DunnFogg is a high-profile independent literary agency that specialises in quality and commercial non-fiction and fiction. Set up in 2021 by Ben Dunn and Jack Fogg, the agency represents numerous award-winning, bestselling and renowned writers and artists.
“Simon and Bookswarm are a joy to work with, providing a fantastic design, great support and clear communication, making it an extremely enjoyable and easy process, with the end result being a wonderful website.”
Ben Dunn, literary agent, DunnFogg
Rocket Bird Books
An e-commerce website for newly launched picture book publisher Rocket Bird Books.
The Rocket Bird Crew has one mission: to turn children into booklovers before they’re able to read a single word. We work with the most amazing authors and illustrators (both well-known names and soon to be so) to create picture books that live beyond the page. Retold and remembered on bus journeys and woodland walks, these are stories to returned to time and time again. They will challenge, entertain and comfort.
Merryn Glover
Merryn Glover is an author and community gatherer who writes fiction, drama, poetry and non-fiction, with work widely published and broadcast on the BBC.
Merryn is also an experienced workshop leader, storyteller and project manager – so her new website needed to showcase all aspects of her publishing and wider work.
“I am absolutely thrilled with the beautiful website the Bookswarm team have created for me and am getting great feedback on it, too. Simon and Susie bring the highest technical and design skills, creating bespoke sites that reflect the writer’s personality, always working with utmost professionalism and customer support. I cannot recommend them highly enough.”
Merryn Glover, author and community gatherer
Hannah Sheppard Literary Agency (HS-LA)
HS-LA is a boutique agency run by Hannah Sheppard. Hannah puts authors at the heart of everything she does; from helping authors to develop their ideas for commercial success with expert, collaborative editorial work, to being their number one fan and shouting about their stories as loudly as she can – she is here to build careers that flourish.
We developed a new visual identify for HS-LA, which we then applied to a new website showcasing their clients and enabling online submissions.
“Working with Bookswarm has been an absolute pleasure. Simon and Susie have been brilliant, fully understanding the brief both on what I needed from the website, and on branding and design. They’ve been able to make really helpful suggestions and their experience working with publishing sites mean they already fully understood what was required. They made the whole process really easy and I feel confident keeping my website updated.”
Hannah Sheppard, founder, HS-LA
Dorothy Koomson (2023 relaunch)
A major redesign of our previous website for Dorothy, now incorporating an online shop as well as a fresh new look-and-feel.
Museum Bums
Based on the eponymous viral Twitter account, the book Museum Bums takes you on a whirlwind tour of the finest rear ends in museums around the world, divided into six categories of keisters. Heritage scholars and art educators Mark Small and Jack Shoulder pair illuminating social commentary and historical context and lively captions with more than 270 depictions of tasteful—and sometimes cheeky— bums in art. We created a website to support and promote the book, with plenty of bums on show!
“We were recommended Bookswarm for the Museum Bums website, and after looking at a few of his current sites we were confident Simon could provide what we needed. We were looking for a shop window for our products but also a space to expand on our online presence, share further insights into the world of Museum Bums, and advertise upcoming events.
Simon’s preliminary meetings and draft websites proved he knows what he’s talking about and we’re absolutely thrilled with the final product. While we’re not luddites we’re also not the most tech-y people, so another crucial part of Bookswarm’s service is the ongoing support once the website’s online. It’s very reassuring to know that if we break something, Bookswarm are on hand to put it back how it was!”
Mark Small and Jack Shoulder AKA The Museum Bums
Duckworth – 125th Anniversary Edition
A major update to the Duckworth website to celebrate the publisher’s 125th birthday!
“Hugely knowledgeable, practically minded and super-responsive – what more could you want? Simon and all the team at Bookswarm are a genuine pleasure to work with.”
Pete Duncan, MD, Duckworth Books Group
Terri Potts-Chattaway
Terri Potts-Chattaway is a writer and TV producer with a new book project about the life of Star Trek composer, her husband Jay Chattaway.
“Simon has been a complete joy to work with. I am new to anything that has to do with websites, and he has been quite patient and has explained everything to me as we go along. I highly recommend him and his team.”
Terri Potts-Chattaway, author and blogger
Jane Ross Potter
Microsite for author Jane Ross Potter, showcasing her books and short stories and the locations she visits for her research, via an interactive map and photo gallery.
“I contacted Bookswarm to completely rebuild and update my author website. Simon had many creative suggestions that make the website much more than simply an introduction to my novels. With a photo gallery, map, and photos linked to places of interest on the map, it is now an interactive place to visit. Simon very patiently explained in video calls and emails how to update and add content, and he is consistently responsive to follow-up questions. I highly recommend Simon and Bookswarm to any author, wherever based, and whether for one book or many. I look forward to continued work with this team as I add books.”
Jane Ross Potter, author
Reaktion Books
An independent publisher of adventurous and innovative non-fiction since 1985, Reaktion Books publishes around 90 new titles each year, and has nearly 1,000 titles in print. Their list ranges widely across art and visual culture, biography, food history, general history, music, natural history, philosophy, politics and popular science.
The new Reaktion site offers e-commerce, including an innovative monthly Book Club where members receive a free ebook of their choice each month, as well as a 40% discount on all other purchases.
“It’s been a pleasure working with Simon and Bookswarm on the development of our new website. From initial design meeting, through development and final rollout, Simon and his team have been unfailingly responsive, diligent and professional. We are very pleased with our new site and have noticed an increase in sales and traffic immediately. I have no hesitation in recommending Bookswarm to any potential customer.”
David Hoek, Sales Manager, Reaktion Books
Laura Wilson
Laura Wilson writes psychological crime novels, sometimes with contemporary settings, and sometimes with settings in the recent past, including the DI Stratton series, which is set in the 1940s and 50s.
“Great ideas, excellent designs, and prompt, efficient service. Simon is great to work with – very patient, good at explaining things, and extremely helpful in dealing with follow-up questions.”
Laura Wilson, crime novelist and YA author
Ripley Hayes
Ripley Hayes is an independent author, and the creator of the DI Daniel Owen series, set in Wales.
“Bookswarm made me a unicorn — a website that is easy for me to use. I’m a technologically challenged author so that’s kind of a big deal. The whole process was painless from start to finish.”
Ripley Hayes, crime author
Nick Black
Author website providing additional material and background for Nick Black’s debut novel, The Honourable Doctor.
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“Starting with no knowledge or experience of creating a website, Simon steadily and methodically guided me through the creation and establishment of my site. His straightforward, jargon-free and practical approach was perfect and I’m delighted with what we jointly created. I even feel confident about developing it further, especially knowing he is available for help and advice at the touch of a button.”
Nick Black, historical fiction author
House of Books & Friends
House of Books and Friends is a purpose-led independent bookshop, cafe and events space with an important mission – to combat loneliness in the community. Its first branch opens in Manchester in Autumn 2022. The new website will ultimately facilitate direct sales, but at time of launch is focused on indirect sales via Bookshop.org, as well as showcasing the venture’s news, events and social purpose.
Novel Entertainment
Novel create successful children’s character brands. They then manage those brands across a wide range of media, including TV, radio, licensing and merchandise, publishing, gaming, interactive online content, music, theatre and film. And anything else that looks like fun!
Jamie Costello
Jamie Costello is the YA pen name of author and journalist Laura Wilson, and Monochrome is her first YA novel – necessitating a separate web presence from Laura’s existing website.
“Great ideas, excellent designs, and prompt, efficient service. Simon is great to work with – very patient, good at explaining things, and extremely helpful in dealing with follow-up questions.”
Laura Wilson, crime novelist and YA author
Tiger Tales
Tiger Tales publishes imaginative picture, board, novelty, chapter, and nonfiction books for children of all ages. Whether the story is funny, whimsical, informative, or teaches a gentle lesson, Tiger Tales books are designed to entertain, educate, and engage young readers.
Scion Publishing
Scion Publishing Ltd was established in 2003 to publish high quality and innovative medical and life science books for students. It is still run day-to-day by its founders. Their new e-commerce website was created alongside that for their sister company, Lantern Publishing.
Cat Castellanos
Cat Castellanos is a writer. She has covered a variety of subjects, from Amazonian head shrinking to politics, brain health, Veteran’s Affairs and backcountry cooking. She has written for CNN, National Geographic Channel, BuzzFeed, Huffington Post, Thrive Global, and Maria Shriver’s networks, among others. She is currently somewhere between her 4th and 50 bajillionth draft of her first novel, Noms de Plume.
“Loved working with Simon! Professional, creative, and went above and beyond!”
Cat Castellanos, author
Lantern Publishing
Lantern was formed in June 2011 with the aim of publishing innovative and readable books for nursing, health and social care. Their new e-commerce website was created alongside that for their sister company, Scion Publishing.
Lizzie Lane
Lizzie Lane is a bestselling author of sagas, historical fiction and more – who also writes as Jean G Goodhind, Erica Brown and Jean Moran. We created her first website to showcase her extensive list of books, and allow her to start building a mailing list, as well as sharing news and snippets from the historical research that informs her writing.
“I wasn’t sure about having a website but Bookswarm came up trumps. I’m not that technical so need someone like them loitering in the background when I get lost. Brilliant!”
Jean Goodhind, historical romance and cosy crime author
Swan River Press
Swan River Press is Ireland’s only independent press dedicated exclusively to the literature of the fantastic. Guided by a passion for works of the supernatural and strange, they are committed to producing high-quality, limited hardback editions, in order to provide fitting homes for these fascinating texts. They publish contemporary, classic, and occasionally obscure writers from around the world with an emphasis on Ireland’s past and present contributions to the genre.
We worked with founder Brian J. Showers to transition from a static website to a fully WordPress-based database of titles and authors, incorporating PayPal buy buttons for available titles, and migrated the Swan River Press blog from a standalone WordPress.com site to being an integral part of the new website.
“Simon and his team were helpful and professional in creating a new website to best suit my company.”
Brian J. Showers, founder, Swan River Press
Rob Starr
Rob Starr is an author living in Brighton & Hove. His new author website primarily promotes his debut novel, What The Tide Brings Back, with future books to come in a planned trilogy – but we also showcase his previous writing projects, including a non-fiction book, plays and musicals.
“Dear Simon
I wanted to just drop you a short line to say thank you for delivering my new author website .
As you know I was rather scared of starting this as not only is it a new career choice for me, but also the thought of a website and social media etc is well out of my comfort zone. I was therefore so happy to have been introduced to you as you made the whole process not only easy for me but also allowed me to be part of the entire process without having to be involved in the building of it. It really was a great experience for me and I not only have ended up with a fantastic website, but I feel like I understand how it works and what I need to do to progress in this new adventure. You really were a joy to work with on this.
Thanks so much
Rob Starr”
Rob Starr, author of What The Tide Brings Back
Escaping Maya’s Palace
A website for author Richard Sclove to act as the focal point for marketing and publicity of his new book Escaping Maya’s Palace:
A celebrated saga from ancient India tells of a young king who mysteriously shifts character and gambles away his kingdom. By unraveling this legend’s secret meaning, Escaping Maya’s Palace launches a sleuthing expedition into a distortion in psychological and spiritual growth that lies buried deep at the root of modern civilization. Today this undetected malady contributes to woes ranging from opioid addiction to social alienation, the rise of authoritarian populism, and environmental catastrophe.
Informed by long-lost wisdom from the Mahabharata, one of the great epics of world literature, award-winning author Richard Sclove explains how our civilization descended into this blighted condition. Integrating a missing psychological dimension into social theory and world history, this intellectually daring and engrossing work clears a path for remaking modern politics and economics, social movements, and daily life. This book’s profound insights offer renewed hope to a world in crisis.
“Simon is outstanding. He has excellent technical skills, responds extremely quickly to questions and requests, explains everything clearly, and is a pleasure to work with in every way.”
Richard Sclove, author of Escaping Maya’s Palace
Rock the Boat
Rock the Boat was launched in 2015 with the goal of publishing bold, diverse and thought-provoking books for children and Young Adults. We created an imprint site for Rock the Boat at the same time as we were redesigning the website of parent publisher Oneworld.
Oneworld
Oneworld was founded in 1986 by husband and wife team Juliet Mabey and Novin Doostdar as an independent publishing house focusing on stimulating non-fiction. Now publishing over 100 books a year, Oneworld has retained its founding commitment to the old-fashioned principles of great writing, editorial excellence, high production values, and marketing flair, to produce books that are read by the intellectually curious all over the world.
We have created a new, modern web presence which is automatically updated via an ONIX feed from Stison.
Alice Oseman
Alice Oseman is an award-winning author, illustrator, and screenwriter, and was born in 1994 in Kent, England. She has written four YA contemporary novels about teenage disasters: SOLITAIRE, RADIO SILENCE, I WAS BORN FOR THIS, and LOVELESS. She is the creator of LGBTQ+ YA romance webcomic HEARTSTOPPER, which is now published in physical form by Hachette Children’s Books, and she is the writer, creator, and executive producer for the smash-hit television adaptation of HEARTSTOPPER.
“Working with Simon and the team at Bookswarm was an absolute dream. The whole process was smooth and professional. Simon is so experienced with author websites it meant we could skip past the basic needs and focus on the unique aspects we needed to appeal to our international audience, fan base and new readers alike. They had a real problem-solving attitude and were quick to respond to edits during a tight turnaround. We were also delighted with the look and design which perfectly matched our brand vision.”
Krissi Hill, Marketing Manager at Hachette Children’s Group
Janet Savin
Author website for Janet Savin, whose debut historical novel Music for Three in a Prelude to Revolution is set against the backdrop of revolution in Communist Prague.
“Simon Appleby designed my literary fiction website, and it’s gorgeous. It has the look I wanted, raised to several powers above my expectations. His work combines a high degree of technical expertise and creative intuition. His approach to working is clear and systematic, and he is equally professional in client relations. He patiently explains terminology and processes, and I never felt lost. His training session is brilliant and includes a recording for easy referral later and a built-in support system. I am not much at home in the digital world, have had difficulty with websites in the past and was dreading maintaining this one. But it’s a delight.”
Janet Savin, author
b small publishing
b small are on a mission to empower all readers with critical literacy skills. Whether that’s examining engineering through fun activities or digging for the truth behind real-life mysteries – or even learning to speak French or Spanish – the books they publish help children make sense of themselves, others, and the world around them.
“From the very start of our working relationship together, Simon and the team have been efficient, understanding and incredibly patient with all our little tweaks and queries – no question or adjustment was too tedious, finickity or small! Such a joy to have a bespoke website that so perfectly meets our needs, and a real weight off our shoulders to know that the Bookswarm team are on hand to handle any issues that crop up. Simon has been a real pleasure to work with and we’re thrilled with the final result.”
Naomi Weeks, Marketing and Publicity Manager, b small publishing
Fenella J Miller
“I have just had a new website designed by Simon Appleby of Bookswarm. Not only is the website exactly what I wanted, easy to negotiate and update, it was also a pleasure to work with Simon. I can’t recommend his company highly enough.”
Fenella J Miller, historical romance author
Publishing Scotland
Publishing Scotland provides support, training, funding and advocacy for the book publishing sector in Scotland They act as the voice and network for publishing, to develop and promote the work of companies, organisations and individuals in the industry, and to co-ordinate joint initiatives and partnership.
This new website was built from the ground up to reflect Publishing Scotland’s organisational and communication priorities, including members only content, a ‘Knowledge Bank’ of information for members, covering topics like Covid-19 assistance and Brexit, and a comprehensive events section.
“We are delighted with our new website. We’d already worked with Simon and Bookswarm on another project so had high expectations which were fully met. We had lots of requirements and ideas and it was great to have Simon’s creative and technical input. The final website works really well and looks great. It’s good to have maintenance and ongoing support too.”
Joan Lyle, Training and Information Manager at Publishing Scotland
The Book Society
The Book Society (formerly known as the Society of Bookmen) is a club for professionals in the book trade, publishers, booksellers, literary agents, librarians and authors. Membership is exclusively by invitation from the Society’s committee.
The new website brought in a fresh new design as well as streamlining the member experience for membership renewal and event booking.
“Working with Simon and Bookswarm was fantastic. They rebuilt and streamlined our ageing website including complex back-end booking systems with speed, aplomb and great value. The site looks brilliant and gives us the fresh and modern outlook we’d been hoping for. In short, we are delighted to work with them and look forward to doing so in future.”
Michael Bhaskar, Chair, The Book Society
Geoffrey Roberts
Geoffrey Roberts is an historian, biographer, and political commentator. A renowned specialist in Russian and Soviet foreign and military policy and an expert on Stalin and the Second World War, his books have been translated into Chinese, Czech, Estonian, Finnish, French, German, Japanese, Korean, Persian, Polish, Romanian, Russian, Swedish and Turkish.
The E.A.R.T.H. Gang
Website for author Ellie Linden promoting her debut, The E.A.R.T.H. Gang, “an out-of-this-world adventure, where four children and a dog must risk everything to help the Earth.”
“I love the website Bookswarm has created. A very professional service with quick responses to any changes needed. I would highly recommend Simon and his team.”
Ellie Linden, author, The Earth Gang
Maldon Books
Maldon Books is an award-winning independent bookshop located in the heart of the historical town of Maldon, Essex. We replaced their previous Wix-based site with a new, WordPress- and WooCommerce-based website to better showcase their selection of titles, allow easy staff curation and reflect the welcoming, comfortable environment of the shop.
“We had a fantastic experience working with Simon and the Bookswarm team. Simon was able to create a new website for our bookshop that now runs efficiently – and looks fantastic too! All our queries were answered, and Simon was incredibly helpful with launching our new site. We cannot recommend them enough!”
Olivia Rosenthal, Owner, Maldon Books
The Society of Young Publishers
The Society of Young Publishers is a volunteer-run organisation supporting junior and aspiring publishing professionals across the UK and Ireland, open to anyone, of any age, interested in publishing or a related trade – or who is hoping to be soon.
Their new website uses WordPress and Paid Memberships Pro to deliver a seamless member experience, with the website providing members with access to the Resource Centre, InPrint magazine and member discounts.
Batsford Books
A website for newly-independent Batsford, which has been part of other publishing companies for more than 20 years, derived from the website of Pavilion, from which Batsford is being ‘spun out’.
Michael Cowl Gordon
Michael Cowl Gordon is a specialist in addiction medicine since 1973, and author of forthcoming The Twelve Step Pathway – A Heroic Journey of Recovery.
“Simon is a pleasure to work with, and has a high level of tolerance for my high level of ignorance about IT.”
Michael Cowl Gordon, author of The Twelve Step Pathway – A Heroic Journey of Recovery
Colin Fletcher
Website for Colin Fletcher – author of historical adventures White Clyffe and King’s Mercy, and a forthcoming volume of non-fiction, Southern Waters. The design is inspired by the beautiful countryside of South Western England, where Colin’s books are set.
“The website, an essential tool for any author, will become the focus and anchor of your marketing drive.
I have found that Simon Appleby’s experience of specialist author websites after a background in book publishing, can be relied on to create an efficient website.
A nice man, helpful and accessible.”
Colin Fletcher, author
SmartLab Toys
Since 2004, SmartLab Toys’ STEAM products have earned more than 50 of the toy industry’s most prestigious awards, including multiple Oppenheim Platinum awards and the Good Housekeeping Best Toy awards. Now part of the Quarto Group, their passion is creating toys and games that inspire creative thinking while providing opportunities for children and adults to learn and play together.
The Military History Club
Founded in 2021 by historian and broadcaster Saul David – described by Simon Heffer in the Daily Telegraph as ‘peerless now among our military historians’ – the MHC is an exclusive club for lovers of military history with various tiers of membership to suit different levels of involvement.
Bounce Sales & Marketing (2021 relaunch)
A new design for a site we originally built back in 2016-17.
Bounce Sales & Marketing represent 40 independent children’s publishers to the trade both in the UK and overseas. From beautiful, award-winning picture books to bestselling YA fiction, colourful early learning board books to fun and insightful reference and non-fiction titles, Bounce has a children’s book for every age and every taste, while helping booksellers discover hidden gems and give their customers a bespoke range of titles perfect for their communities.
The website we created for Bounce is designed to make it as easy as possible for their customers – booksellers, libraries, schools – to place orders and request materials from their client publishers. The emphasis is on making these transactions as quick and painless as possible.
The bibliographic information in the website is drawn from the Supafolio system.
RA Williams
RA Williams is the author of the Gothic fiction trilogy The Gift, perfect for readers of Gothic and historical military fiction who don’t mind a good fright now and again. His new website is designed to be a digital representation of his writing desk.
“When my publisher informed me it was due time to establish an author webpage I was refereed to Bookswarm. And it was wise advice. Simon Appleby is top of the game. He understands authors and is well capable of capturing the spirit of them digitally.”
RA Williams, author of The Gift trilogy
David G Bailey
Author website for David G Bailey, author of YA fantasy novel Seventeen:
Sir Tristram will take seventeen to the match – how many will he bring back? He must reunite his Blood City teammates – Knights, Pirates and Westerners – to win the prestigious Seskie tournament against their oldest rivals. Penalty shoot-outs often end in tears. In Cibola they may end in a fight to the death. Behind the football match is a bigger power play, a king’s mission to bring down his greatest rival by persuasion, trickery or force. Needing a squad of soldiers as well as footballers, Sir Tristram must also find a place on tour and in his heart for the teenage child he has not addressed by name since infancy…
“I went to Simon at Bookswarm because of his track record and specialism in authors, finding him able and willing to incorporate special features into my website that would not have been available under other standardised packages. I was delighted with the look, feel and dynamism of the site he produced, as well as the training to operate it largely myself. For aspects beyond my capabilities his Ninja Support plugin does exactly what its name suggests, responding swiftly and efficiently to sort things out. I would wholeheartedly recommend Bookswarm to other authors.”
David G Bailey, author
25 Years of The Literary Consultancy
Inspired by the fact that TLC was started at the kitchen table of Rebecca Swift, we created a digital ‘kitchen table’ to celebrate a quarter century of their work supporting writers and the literary community. Well-wishers can upload poems, postcards and messages which are displayed to visitors.
“Simon was absolutely fantastic. His approach was open-hearted, and I felt he really understood what TLC is about, rather than simply rushing in with ‘design solutions’ that had little resonance with our ethos.”
Aki Schilz, Director, The Literary Consultancy
Gaelic Books Council
Bi-lingual site in English and Scottish Gaelic for Tha Comhairle nan Leabhraichean / The Gaelic Books Council. Their main missions are:
- To support the development of Gaelic writing.
- To stimulate interest in Gaelic books and other related materials.
- To support Gaelic authors by awarding grants and commissions.
- To support the Gaelic publishing industry.
- To increase the range, quality and impact of Gaelic literature
The new site uses WooCommerce to allow the sale of books and other products, and is integrated with the in-shop POS system Merlio, allowing streamlined inventory and stock management. It’s fully bilingual in English and Scottish Gaelic through the use of the WordPress Multiingual Plugin (WPML).
“We are delighted with our new website made by Bookswarm. From making the site accessible in both English and Gaelic to the integration with our EPOS system, Simon had a solution for all our requirements. The end result is a beautiful site which provides a seamless user experience. Post launch, Bookswarm’s excellent customer service has ensured that any issues are fixed within a few hours. I would highly recommend Bookswarm’s services to any individual or company seeking to improve their online presence.”
Joe Sanders, Comhairle nan Leabhraichean / The Gaelic Books Council
Tomorrow Is Too Late
In Tomorrow Is Too Late, Grace Maddrell collects testimonies of activism and hope from young climate strikers, from Brazil and Burundi to Pakistan and Palestine. These youth activists are experiencing the reality of the climate crisis, including typhoons, drought, flood, fire, crop failure and ecological degradation, and are all engaged in the struggle to bring these issues to the centre of the world stage.
Working with freelance project manager Luthfa Begum, we designed and built a site to help promote Tomorrow Is Too Late, including an interactive map showing all the contributors and a live feed of Twitter and Instagram posts with the #tomorrowistoolate hashtag.
Look for this website soon on Designrush’s selection of best book websites.
Swift Press
Swift Press is an independent publishing company that launched in June 2020. Part of the Independent Alliance, they publish fiction and a wide range of non-fiction.
“We worked with Bookswarm to create the website for our new publishing company Swift Press and were delighted with the results. Simon is great to work with, the communication was always clear, punctual and thorough and we felt very supported throughout the build process and beyond. Highly recommend the Bookswarm team!”
Swift Press
Peter Fisk
A major design overhaul of Peter’s previous Bookswarm-designed website, reflecting a changed content focus, the increasing importance of blogging to Peter and the design language from his latest book, Business Recoded.
The Clover Crate
The Clover Crate was founded by a team of book enthusiasts spread around the world, readers who love their shelves filled with books and goodies! Their purpose is to introduce their customers to new reads as well as help them rediscover their favorite series in unique ways, while creating bookish merchandise related to beloved novels and characters.
Mac Keith Press
Mac Keith Press was founded by Ronnie Mac Keith in 1959 to improve the lives of disabled children, their families and carers by extending the knowledge and understanding of the fields of developmental medicine and paediatric neurology. They are an independent, registered charity and funded by the sale of their publications.
Mac Keith Press were already using WordPress and WooCommerce but we created a new website design and a new architecture to streamline the organisation of their core book information. We also integrated WooCommerce with Moodle, allowing users to purchase online learning enrolments from the shop, alongside books and ebooks.
“Simon’s approach at Bookswarm is wonderfully supportive, friendly, and helpful. He guided us through the initial design, development and implementation stages of our website, and is now working brilliantly with us on its continued use and expansion: helping us build a great online presence and explore innovative new projects. He is always responsive and understanding of our publishing needs, and is highly recommended.”
Ann-Marie Halligan, Managing Director, Mac Keith Press
J.B. Turner
J.B. Turner is a thriller writer, best known for the Jon Reznick® series of novels. He is a former journalist. His next book, NO WAY BACK (Thomas & Mercer), will be published on 1 January 2022. He also wrote the American Ghost® series of political thrillers and the Deborah Jones® crime books.
“Simon was a delight to work with. His attention to detail and can-do attitude were very refreshing. Thrilled with the brand new website. Would highly-recommend to any authors looking to refresh their author websites.”
J.B. Turner, thriller writer
Madeleine Reiss
Madeleine Reiss is the author of Someone To Watch Over Me, This Last Kiss, Before We Say Goodbye and Live A Little – with a fifth book on the way. This is her first website, designed to showcase her books as well as her editorial services offering.
“Such a painless process and I felt supported all the way through.”
Madeleine Reiss, author
Abi Elphinstone
Abi Elphinstone writes adventure books filled with magic. From glow-in-the-dark rainforests to castles built on the backs of sleeping cloud giants, there’s a lot to discover. We created a new website for Abi to replace a site that was not mobile-friendly or easy to update.
“I was bowled over by Simon and his team at Bookswarm. They were efficient, creative and incredibly helpful. I couldn’t recommend them more.”
Abi Elphinstone, children’s author
Walter Foster
Brimming with tips, techniques, and step-by-step lessons, as well as practical exercises, unique projects, and creative prompts, Walter Foster’s engaging and inspiring books have helped people around the world discover their creative talents, learn new mediums, and achieve their artistic goals. This new website showcases their books as well as providing a wealth of additional inspiration and resources through the Art Studio.
Keith Kahn-Harris
Keith Kahn-Harris is a writer and sociologist. He’s published both academic and non-academic works, and is the author of seven books. His new website is designed to be an archive of his writing going back to the 1990s, so we created a simple-to-use database covering both his articles and papers, and his many talks and lectures.
“I’ve had a complicated career that’s involved multiple projects and many publications on a wide variety of themes. In the past, I’ve commissioned personal websites but never been satisfied with the results. Until now, no one has ever managed to build something that strikes the right balance between breadth and depth. I’m delighted to say that Simon and Bookswarm have managed to build me a website that allows me to publicise my books while also housing my personal archive. I was hugely impressed with the patience with which Simon discussed my needs with me and then developed a website that reflected my idiosyncrasies. He responded quickly to enquiries and was happy to go through several rounds of changes until we got to a result I was happy with. I would recommend him to any author who wants to have a website they can be proud of.”
Keith Kahn-Harris, sociologist and writer
Scientifically Speaking
Jo Browning is the author of Scientifically Speaking – a new book aimed at scientists and medics faces with the challenge of communicating their findings in a post-truth world.
“Now more than ever, the scientific and medical community is under the microscope and in front of the media. Science matters, and in a post-truth world it’s more important than ever for scientists and physicians to be heard.
But there’s a challenge. To get people to listen, you can’t communicate in writing alone anymore. You need to speak up and be seen – on stage, online, and on camera. To do this well you need to master the art of influential speaking, which is something you weren’t taught at university or medical school.
This book teaches you how to become a compelling scientific speaker so that you can put your message across with confidence and clarity, both online and in person. It’s written by a speaking coach with 25 years of experience in science communications.”
Revise SQE
Revise SQE books have one purpose in mind – helping students pass the new SQE1 law exam. They focus only on the topics you’ll be assessed on, making sure that you don’t spend time on unnecessary subject matter, and they will prepare students for the multiple-choice questions they’ll face in SQE1 and show how to answer them successfully.
“Right from the very first phone conversation I felt I had an ally in Simon. He wanted to understand what we were about, how our market worked, what the priorities were, how quickly we wanted to be up and running, and he created a plan to deliver it on time and cost-effectively. Once we were underway progress was good, and the Bookswarm team were helpful and responsive, happy to engage in robust debate about design and functionality. The finished product is excellent and has been extremely well received by authors and prospective customers. Highly recommended!”
Jonathan Harris, Director, Fink Publishing
Lawrence Wishart
Lawrence Wishart have been publishing critical left ideas on politics and culture since 1936. Through books, journals and events, they foster a space where people can think together, challenge political ‘common sense’ and explore new possibilities. Their current work is particularly focused on the areas of race, gender, LGBTQ issues, intersectionality, climate justice, and colonialism.
Barrington Stoke Young Editors
The Young Editors scheme allows young readers to be involved in the publishing process – teachers, parents and librarations can download manuscripts before they are published, send in feedback, and help shape Barrington Stoke’s books.
Tiffani Collins
Author website for Tiffani Collins, creator of the epic fantasy series The Traveler’s Journal, chronicling the adventures of Danny North Star and Alice Sinclair.
Dominion of Drama
Dominion of Drama is an IP & above-the-line production company founded by award-winning author turned writer-producer Jeff Norton. Dominion develops exceptional scripted stories and partners with top talent and best-in-class producers, platforms, and distributors to tell tall tales to audiences around the world.
Pequeño&Grande
Spanish language version of Little People, Big Dreams, created for the Spanish publishers Alba Editorial. The site includes design and technical variations from the original US / UK site.
Séverine Autesserre
Bi-lingual website for New-York based academic Séverine Autesserre, who is an award-winning author, peacebuilder, and researcher.
The site is fully available in both English and French, with multiple languages handled by the WPML family of plugins. English > French translation was undertaken by Nathalie Reis Translations and project managed by Bookswarm.
“I am thrilled with the results of my collaboration with Bookswarm!
My redesigned website is much more appealing and user-friendly than it used to be, and I now have a French translation of this site.
The redesign process was a lot of work, but it was certainly worth it.”
Séverine Autesserre, award-winning author, peacebuilder, and researcher
Deborah Swift
Rebuild of an existing website, using most of the existing design elements but simplifying how books were managed and recreating the theme using Divi.
“The kind folks at Headline (who publish my Pepys Books) recommended Simon at Bookswarm, and immediately I was having a sensible conversation with someone who was used to making websites for authors. He tidied up the muddle that the other company had left behind, streamlined the design, and made it all functional so that a non-techie person like me could update it with the minimum of fuss. And all for a reasonable cost.”
Deborah Swift, author of historical fiction
Fran Grant
Fran Grant is an author of Children’s, Middle Grade and Young Adult books, as well as a copywriting professional – an all-round word lover. She asked us to create one site which could encompass both of these aspects of her work.
“From the first conversation with Simon I knew I was in safe hands, and working with an industry expert. I had a very specific requirement – to have a website where I could showcase both parts of my business – Author arm and Copywriting arm – rather than host two separate sites. Simon listened to my specific needs and presented a number of choices/solutions. The process was fast, efficient, and stress free, and Simon was a pleasure to work with, providing updates and advice along the way, and support at go-live. I am over the moon with my website and I’ve received a great deal of feedback and compliments on it! Thanks, Simon.”
Fran Grant, author and copywriting professional
Lion Hudson
Lion Hudson publish books and other media for children and adults to help them grow in their Christian faith. We created a new e-commerce website for Lion Husdson to replace the previous incarnation, focusing on ease of use and integration with multiple distributors and internal systems.
Henley Hall Press
Brand creation, website design and build for publishing startup Henley Hall Press, an independent publisher of thought-provoking non-fiction books, including current affairs, gardening and ecology.
Profile Books
Twenty-five years sinces its founding and the mission of Profile Books is unchanged: to be a fearless publisher of a diverse range of distinctive books, of the highest quality, written by the best authors in their field, and to remain a beacon of independent publishing. We created a new website for Profile Books, powered by a feed from Biblio, to mark this milestone and to provide a solid foundation for all their future digital marketing.
A new website for imprint Serpent’s Tail was created as part of the same project.
“We had a great experience working with Bookswarm. Simon knows how publishing works and his vast experience meant that most challenges with our build had been encountered before and he was able to present flexible solutions. Responsive and agile as a team, we were pleasantly surprised by how stress free the builds were (we’ve built two sites with Bookswarm in the past year) and very pleased at how they’ve turned out.”
Niamh Murray, Campaigns Director, Profile Books
Illuminate Publishing
Illuminate are an award-winning independent publisher of high-quality, inspirational teaching and learning resources. They publish across a wide range of secondary subjects – academic and vocational.
We created a new, WooCommerce-based web shop for Illuminate to replace their old Zencart-based web presence.
“We are absolutely over the moon with our new website! It really is fantastic. A huge thanks to for all the time, effort and creativity that has gone into making this happen for us. It’s a fabulous showcase for our publishing, and just what we hoped for.”
Rick Jackman, Director and Co-owner at Illuminate Publishing
Horrid Henry
Welcome to Horrid Henry’s special place, his wonderful and most Horrid website, which is all about Horrid Henry himself – with loads to watch, loads to listen to and loads to do.
“Working with Simon and his team on our redesign was a joy from start to finish, and the experience isn’t over yet; knowing that they are there for additional support and advice is giving us the confidence to keep creating and improving on what was already an excellent showcase for our brands, and we look forward to many more happy and creative associations.”
Lucinda Whiteley, Creative Director at Novel Entertainment
Lucy Ridout Editorial
Lucy provides professional fiction and travel editing for debut writers and established authors. Her portfolio includes first-time fiction and bestsellers, travel memoirs and prizewinning novels. We created a new site to showcase her work and the many testimonials from delighted clients, to explain exactly what the editing process involves, and to make it really easy for potential clients to get in touch.
“It was a huge relief to discover Simon and the Bookswarm team. Not everyone understands publishing folk or the nerdy need to make multiple fiddly text changes and get the heading hierarchies just right. Luckily for us bookish people, Simon is immensely patient and responsive. I’m so pleased I chose Bookswarm to redesign my site.”
Lucy Ridout, editor
Nathan Rose
Nathan Rose is a bestselling author of books about technology, creativity, and strategy. He also helps non-fiction authors navigate the self-publishing process – helping them create timeless, influential books which reach their readers.
“What a great experience working with Simon. The entire process – from brief, to wireframes, to design images, to implementation – was beyond expectation. Best of all was he would work to what I asked for, but would also gently push back whenever he had a better idea.
I am delighted with the design and functionality of my new website, and I would definitely recommend his services. He is a consumate professional.”
Nathan Rose, business author
Flint
Flint is a new imprint from The History Press dedicated to publishing non-fiction books that spark. We have created a simple Divi-based site to showcase the books and provide a blogging platform and data capture mechanism independent of the main publisher website.
Keelan Nicks
Keelan Nicks writes for a new age of urban fantasy. Current projects include his upcoming debut novel Burden Of Care and the occult mystery novella Olivia Finch. Keelan is also a freelance content editor with over three years of experience with helping self-published and aspiring authors find their light in the writing community.
Little People, Big Dreams
Bookswarm has created a new digital home for Little People, BIG DREAMS, the best-selling biography series by Maria Isabel Sánchez Vegara.
Users can discover the lives of outstanding people, from designers and artists to scientists and activists. All of them achieved incredible things, yet each began life as a child with a dream. Told as a story, with a facts and photos section at the back, this sweet series for kids celebrates triumph over adversity through some of history’s favorite characters.
Barbican Press
The Barbican Press list holds poetry, drama, writing for children, and compelling nonfiction too, including vivid tales of maritime communities.
The publisher is the writer Martin Goodman. He knew what sort of publisher he would like to find for his own work, and so created it for others. The Press was born in Plymouth – hence the name ‘Barbican Press’ for the Barbican in that city, and a sense that a Barbican is a strong and protective space in which writers with a fighting spirit can take shelter.
Barbican Press were already using WordPress, but we worked with them to create a completely new look-and-feel and content structure, including the ‘Where in the world?’ map, which plots the key settings of all of their books.
“A sweet aspect of Bookswarm is their focus on books. They bring wide and relevant experience to the table. That gave us clear direction in creating Barbican Press’s new website. In our meetings there was real focus on understanding how we want to communicate with our readers and the book industry. Our site feels distinctly ours, meets our needs, looks good, works cleanly, and the support in finessing it once it went live has been prompt and effective. We’ve been really happy to recommend them to others.”
Martin Goodman, Publisher, Barbican Press
Alice Allen
Poet Alice Allen was born in London, grew up in Jersey in the Channel Islands and lives in the UK. We created a website for Alice to support the publication of her debut collection, Daylight of Seagulls, which is informed by the experience of her Jersey family who lived through the Nazi occupation, and the stories she would regularly hear when spending time on her grandparents’ farm as a child, as well as the Jèrriais language spoken by her grandmother.
The Prime Trilogy
Set in an alternate universe, The Prime Trilogy is a gritty, albeit comedic coming of age tale that poses a serious question, “Could the greatest heroes from inspired texts and world mythology, even begin to fill the shoes of a modern teen?”
Ben Wales
Website for Ben Wales, Masters level coach, facilitator and author specialising in leadership and high performance of growth companies between £5m and £100m turnover. Ben is the author of the forthcoming book Is This A Question?
Joelle Izack / Opal Iden
A pair of websites for an American romance novelist who writes under two different pen names – the sites use the same underlying structure and basic theme, with two different ‘skins’.
“It took me quite a while to step into a contract with another web designer. But, I am glad I did. With years of experience in the industry, Simon and his crew honed their communication and technical skills to a level that guaranteed they successfully translated my “I want” into a couple professional, market oriented, pleasing set of sister websites. Thank you for all the hard work and the perfect platforms for my stories.”
Joelle Izack, author
New Welsh Review
Founded in 1988 as the successor to The Welsh Review (1939-1948), Dock Leaves and The Anglo-Welsh Review (1949-1987), New Welsh Review is Wales’s foremost literary magazine in English.
After undertaking an initial consultancy exercise funded by the Welsh Books Council into the options for digital publishing that would work best for NWR, we designed and built a new website for New Welsh Review, which uses WordPress and WooCommerce to allow them to sell books, magazines and subscriptions – with subscribers also receiving access to an extensive archive of online articles, and a library of digital back issues delivered via our partner Circular Software’s Masterplan system.
The site also acts as the home for the New Welsh Writing Awards, and as a submissions portal for non-fiction, short fiction and poetry.
Return of a Native
Photographer and writer Joanna Wing explores the lives of creative people and their relationship to place, in photo-essays enlivened by extensive research and links to further reading and musical accompaniments.
“Simon listened carefully to my brief and came back with a design that was exactly what I had in mind – a user friendly, simple yet beautiful blog. I’m delighted with it. And I couldn’t be happier with their friendly and prompt service.”
Joanna Wing, writer and photographer
Isabelle Dupuy
Saraband 2020
Saraband is an award-winning independent publisher of outstanding fiction, absorbing nature writing, pressing environmental issues and compelling memoir. Over the last quarter century, they have provided a platform for underrepresented and marginalised voices that are often overlooked, championing diversity and inclusion as part of our commitment to excellence – and to their readers of all ages, backgrounds and personal identities, wherever they may live.
This is the second version of the Saraband website we have created.
Holly Bourne
Holly Bourne is a bestselling and critically acclaimed author. Inspired by her work with young people, and her own experiences of everyday sexism, Holly is a passionate mental health advocate and proud feminist.
We created this site jointly for Holly’s publishers Usborne and Hodder & Stoughton.
Dulwich Books
An award-winning independent and much-loved bookshop, Dulwich Books has been serving its local community for over 30 years. We worked with them to create an attractive new ‘one page’ site which will be flexible enough to change as the business evolves, using WordPress and the Divi Builder.
Geoffrey Gudgion
Website for Geoffrey Gudgion, who writes stories with a subtle, other-worldly twist.
“Working with Simon, Hazel and Alex at Bookswarm has been an absolute delight. My needs were moving beyond DIY WordPress and I’m delighted to have made the step into their hosted environment. The site looks fantastic and is a step-change in functionality. Even better, it will scale with me as more books are published. Strongly recommended.”
Geoffrey Gudgion, author of Draca and Saxon’s Bane
Erich Segal
Erich Segal (June 16, 1937 – January 17, 2010) was an American author, screenwriter, and Classics Professor. He was best known for writing the phenomenally successful novel Love Story (1970), and the hit major motion picture of the same name.
We worked with his literary estate to launch a new website in time for the 50th anniversary of the first publication of Love Story – designed to showcase Erich’s achievements in the fields of writing, academic and sport. We wish we could have met Erich while he was alive, but working on this website alongisde those who did know him was the next best thing.
“I can’t thank you enough for Erich’s website. It is absolutely perfect! You really listened to what I wanted, and captured both Erich and his work. You managed to incorporate all the different elements and still keep it fresh and accessible. The publishers in the US love it. Thank you for making the whole process such a pleasure, and I would highly recommend Bookswarm.”
Karen Segal, Erich Segal literary estate
S. K. Tremayne
S. K. Tremayne, a bestselling novelist and award-winning travel writer, and a regular contributor to newspapers and magazines around the world.
The Monday Revolution
The Monday Revolution is about changing your personal approach to work and life. It’s about taking control of time and spending it on the things that matter. There is great satisfaction in getting things done. Who wants to spend long days in pointless meetings or writing reports that never serve any real purpose?
It’s also the debut business book by David Mansfield – and every chapter contains stories, anecdotes and uncomplicated real-world advice on how you can Revolutionise your working life. From Monday.
“Searching for a web building company fills most of us with dread. It’s a minefield. I was fortunate enough to have Simon and his team recommended to me and the whole process was painless, delivered on time and on budget.
Since the launch Simon has been on hand to deal with any improvements and issues without hesitation. There’s really no need to look elsewhere.”
David Mansfield, author of The Monday Revolution
Boldwood Books
Boldwood Books is a new fiction publishing company with its first books published globally in August 2019.
Based on the principles of a true partnership with authors, consumers and team members, Boldwood seek out the best stories from around the world from both new and established writers and bring them to readers everywhere.
Owen Bennett-Jones
Owen Bennett-Jones reported for the BBC for 30 years. He has been a resident foreign correspondent in Bucharest, Geneva, Islamabad, Hanoi and Beirut and presented Newshour on the BBC World Service. In 2008 he was Sony news journalist of the year and in 2009 the Commonwealth journalist of the year. In 2012 Owen was Ferris Professor of Journalism at Princeton University. His podcast on the murder of Benazir Bhutto, The Assassination, won gold at the British Podcast Awards in 2018.
We created a new website for Owen to bring together his journalism, non-fiction and fiction all ine one place for the first time. The site includes the ability to upload source materials associated with books – so readers and listeners can access key documents that are part of Owen’s investigations.
Quiller Publishing
Quiller Publishing Ltd is an independent publisher which was founded in 2001 by Andrew Johnston. Quiller Publishing has two imprints: Quiller is their general list and Kenilworth Press for equestrian titles. Over the years, Quiller Publishing has been built into an extremely well-respected publishing company, focusing originally on country sporting subjects and in recent years, diversifying into lifestyle titles along with a number of noted and highly regarded biographies and autobiographies.
This new website for Quiller features ‘live’ updates from their title management system, BooksoniX.
“It has been a great pleasure to work with Simon to develop the new Quiller Publishing website. He has been highly knowledgeable and supportive throughout the process. No question was too daft and no request was ever too hard, complex or unachievable. Simon works through problems methodically, providing easy and effective solutions. We are delighted with our finished product and think it’s fair to say Simon and his team absolutely nailed it!”
Becky Bowyer, Production Manager, Quiller Publishing
Moonlight Publishing
Moonlight Publishing is a small company specialising in information books for children aged 4 to 12. Their books nurture children’s curiosity about the world around them. Each book explores one particular aspect of human experience with children: the human body, animals, plants, science, geography, transport, music, art and history.
This new WooCommerce-based website allows visitors to explore titles by series, theme and target age-range, and explains how Moonlight’s Talking Books work.
“Simon was highly organized and responsive throughout the process of building our new website. I felt he understood our needs very well and was helpful and encouraging in guiding us through the different stages of the process, making it all very easy. He was also flexible in responding changing timelines. We are delighted with the results!”
James Clement, Managing Director, Moonlight Publishing
The Hamilton Agency
The Hamilton Agency Ltd is a literary agency based in Michelin House in South Kensington. It was founded March 2019 by Matthew Hamilton, who was an agent with Aitken Alexander Associates for over 12 years. Previously he was editorial Director at 4th Estate, and Publishing Director and a member of the Board at Bloomsbury. He has a particular interest in politics, music, entertainment, narrative non-fiction and literary fiction.
“When I set up my literary agency Simon was so supportive and inspiring – and he played a key part in the branding of the company. He created a stylish and extremely effective website, which is simple for me to update. Simon’s technical support is excellent too and whenever I’ve had a question he’s responded immediately. Bookswarm offer incredibly good value and they really are the best in the business.”
Matthew Hamilton, founder, The Hamilton Agency
Sophie Botros
Sophie Botros is a philosopher and author. Dr Botros’s newest book Truth, Time and History: a Philosophical Inquiry was published by Bloomsbury Academic in September 2017.
We have created a new website for Sophie. The home page is focused on her most recent book, including a video summary and a slideshow summarising key ideas explored in the book.
“My recent experience of working with Simon Appleby and his team at Bookswarm was entirely positive. I could not have wished for a more professional collaboration, Simon, with whom I had two face-to-face meetings, was always charming, understanding, good-humoured, and patient, as I sought to grasp the relationship between the ‘Dashboard’ and editing screen, on the one hand, and the website, on the other. He always responded immediately to any query of mine, while his instructions and explanations as to how the ‘Dashboard’ works were so simple and illuminating that I soon mastered how to update text and images for myself. The design of my website seems to me brilliant, eye-catching and yet, as befits an academic, tasteful. Its uncluttered simplicity makes even abstract ideas easy to take in. Simon seemed to know what I wanted almost from the start. I am absolutely delighted with the result.”
Sophie Botros, philosopher and author of Truth, Time and History
Eileen Conway
Website for US-based debut author of middle-grade fiction.
Neem Tree Press
New website for Neem Tree Press, a vibrant, young publishing house producing books that change and broaden perspectives. Neem Tree Press are global in scope with books under contract from Germany, the Middle East, Spain, Turkey and the United Kingdom to date. The common theme for their books is to provoke both thoughtful discussion on sensitive issues and a thirst in the reader to explore further the ideas or cultures they encounter.
Orchard Series Books
Hachette Children’s asked us to create a framework within which it was possible to set up microsites for a number of different middle-grade children’s series, including Beast Quest, Rainbow Magic and Unicorn Magic – with many of these series running to hundreds of titles.
The brief was to allow the client to create each new site and control the look and feel without requiring any design or technical input from us, which we achieved by setting the site to use a range of design parameters, including masthead images, pre-defined typography styles and numerous colour options. The result is a scaleable solution where a new website can be set up very quickly, using only a handful of design assets that are produced by the in-house team, and including a full book listing, organised by series and sub-series.
Orchard Series Books has launched with four series, with a number of additional series sites due to launch soon.
Bonnier Rights
Bonnier Rights sells foreign rights to fiction, illustrated and narrative non-fiction, and children’s books from the Swedish Bonnier Publishing Group, Sweden’s largest publisher.
We designed and built their new website using WordPress, and set it up so that books and authors are automatically added and updated, using a feed from Bonnier’s Opus rights management system.
Jonathan Coe
Website for leading British novelist Jonathan Coe, showcasing his full catalogue of work, including galleries of numerous UK and overseas editions of his books.
Dan Conway
Dan Conway is a former high school elected official. He held a variety of non-prestigious jobs over his twenty-year career in corporate America. Today, he writes about work, tech, family, and culture. His essays have appeared in Business Insider, Fatherly.com and Cuepoint. He lives in Northern California with his wife and three children.
We created this website to help promote his first book, Confessions of a Crypto Millionaire: My Unlikely Escape from Corporate America.
Dorothy Koomson
Dorothy Koomson is an award-winning novelist and best-selling author of My Best Friend’s Girl, The Ice Cream Girls and The Woman He Loved Before and many more books. Dorothy was already using WordPress, and we have created a new, custom design for her website, tied in to her transition to a new publisher; we have also streamlined the management of content on the site, using custom post types and custom fields to make it easier to add books.
Duckworth
Duckworth nurtures a rounded world view through accessible and stimulating works of popular science, psychology, memoir and history. Founded by the family of Virginia Woolf in 1898, Duckworth have published incredible authors including D.H. Lawrence, Oliver Sacks, Evelyn Waugh and Beryl Bainbridge.
We really enjoyed creating this site for Duckworth after they joined the Prelude Books family – and reading about their interesting and at times hair-raising history!
“Hugely knowledgeable, practically minded and super-responsive – what more could you want? Simon and all the team at Bookswarm are a genuine pleasure to work with.”
Pete Duncan, MD, Duckworth Books Group
Barrington Stoke
We redesigned the Barrington Stoke website to reflect their evolving brand identity, and signpost information for key audiences: parents / carers, teachers and librarians, and members of the book trade.
“Bookswarm have been excellent to work with on the redesign of our website. They always give careful consideration to our proposals, advising us how to achieve and improve what we have suggested. They are great to work with, going above and beyond what’s been agreed, full of initiative, reliable on deadlines, problem solvers rather than problem creators. We would not hesitate to recommend their expertise.”
Lucy Juckes, Chair, Barrington Stoke
Awesome Reads
Awesome Reads believe reading should be a fun, entertaining, and life-long pursuit. In short, it should be awesome.
We enjoyed making this simple website for Awesome Reads. And it meant we got to say ‘awesome’ a lot. Which was… awesome.
Yale Representation
Yale Representation provides a managed sales representation service in the UK for a number of prestigious publishers. We created a new website for them, to replace their old Drupal-based site. It includes a bookshops section with dynamic map, and different ways to explore Yale Representation’s clients and their wonderful books.
“I’d wholeheartedly recommend Bookswarm. Simon is efficient, patient and communicative. He did everything he said he would and more and I’ve got nothing but good things to say about him and his colleagues. Perhaps most importantly, I didn’t get any sense that he was bored with the project and wanting to move on once the site was delivered but there was lots of tweaking to do. I don’t think I’ve ever experienced that sort of start to finish service with an IT-type project before – or any other sort of project, for that matter.”
Lisa Kemmer, Sales and Operations Manager, Yale Representation
Princess Ponies
The Princess Ponies books are written to give adventure-loving little girls an alternative to Barbie and Disney Princesses. The heroine of the series, Philippa (Pippa) MacDonald, is a head-strong action heroine who makes friends and strives to save the day.
We created a new microsite for Princess Ponies using WordPress and the Divi Builder plugin.
Annabel Pitcher
Annabel Pitcher is a multi award-winning author of books for children and young people, whose work is published in 25 territories … and also a knackered mother of three young sons. We designed and built a new site for Annabel to replace her previous web presence.
Hachette Kids’ Gifts
A book for every child this Christmas, with this book recommendations microsite, helping gift givers identify suitable titles based on age and genre.
Illumicrate
Illumicrate is the subscription box for book lovers everywhere, dedicated to bringing its customers the best new releases and other fun things that book lovers are sure to enjoy.
Jack Heckel
A website for the whimsical worlds of Jack Heckel. Jack Heckel is the pen name for the writing duo of John Peck and Harry Heckel, who write novels which poke fun at common fanstasy and SF tropes.
“Simon and team have been fantastic throughout the process. It has been a pleasure working with them and building a great new website.”
John Peck, one half of writing duo Jack Heckel
Byte The Book
Byte The Book’s network helps its members make useful connections within the book industry and other allied industries and enables them to understand their publishing options and become more literate in the business of books.
Their new website allows members to join and manage their membership online, update their public profile online, and use the members-only message board to network with their peers.
“Simon has just rebuilt the Byte The Book website and done a superb job, we’re over the moon and so proud of our lovely new site and all he has done for us. He and the team at Bookswarm are a joy to work with. Simon has an almost a psychic ability to understand exactly what you need, is incredibly intelligent, genuinely seems to want to help you and your business without fleecing you for every penny and has a really broad experience in the publishing industry, all of which combine in a beautiful confluence of wonder. Hats off to you sir! If you’re an author or a publishing company and need a new website, Simon is your man!”
Justine Solomons, Founder, Byte The Book
The Marketing Alliance
The Marketing Alliance is a small marketing agency specialising in publishing, education and EdTech, founded and run by Julia Garvey.
“Before I commissioned Bookswarm to build my new website I was toying with doing it myself, after all I’m familiar with WordPress and I wanted something clean and simple.
If you are in the same position as this, then I urge you not to DIY. Simon and his team took my ideas and made them a reality quickly, efficiently and far better than I would have been able to. They enabled me to get on with my job while creating a site that is professional and of a very high standard. I also discovered that just because something looks simple, doesn’t mean it is easy to create – Bookswarm added a level of sophistication to the functionality that would not otherwise be available to me. I found the whole team efficient, friendly and approachable and I am delighted with the end result.”
Julia Garvey, founder, the marketing alliance
Marina Warner
Marina Warner is a writer of fiction, criticism and history; her works include novels and short stories as well as studies of art, myths, symbols and fairytales. We created a new site to act as a definitive bibliography and news source.
Summer Reading for Kids
Seasonal reading promotion microsite for Hachette Children’s.
Chinese With Mike
We took over the existing design and reworked it to use the WordPress Content Management System (CMS), as well as implementing a series of content updates.
Hodderscape
Updating the Hodderscape blog to use a new version of the brand, with a new-look mascot (Pickwick the dodo).
This was an update to a previous iteration of the site, which we created several years before, with the same underlying architecture.
“When a project comes along I can work with Bookswarm on I immediately feel more relaxed. Communication on projects from start to finish is outstanding (and so important) which helps to move things along at a good pace and get the results we all want. Simon is always on hand for questions and advice throughout the project, and is incredibly tolerant of the unrelenting change requests and tweaks from our many stakeholders.”
Amy Dolman, Digital Marketing Manager, Hodder & Stoughton
Bloody Scotland
Bloody Scotland established itself as the leading Scottish International Crime Writing Festival in 2012 with acclaimed writers Lin Anderson and Alex Gray at the helm, then joined by Craig Robertson and Gordon Brown. Based in Stirling, Bloody Scotland has brought hundreds of crime writers new and established to the stage with always enthusiastic attendees who make the festival every bit as much as the writers do.
“Simon and the Bookswarm team are always a delight to work with. Receiving an email from them is usually the highlight of my work day! They helped me rebuild and redesign the Bloody Scotland website from the ground up as it sorely needed to be refreshed to accommodate our rapidly expanding audience. They were able to capture exactly what I envisioned and presented in my design brief, making the whole process incredibly fast, efficient, and pain free. Our online ticket sales saw a sharp increase after the website’s redesign and I have little doubt its improved aesthetics and accessibility had a hand in that. I constantly recommend Bookswarm to any client looking for a new or refreshed website and strongly recommend you do too.”
Laura Jones, Bloody Scotland
The Book Marketing Society
The Book Marketing Society was launched in November 2004 with the objective of becoming the representative body of marketing within the book industry. We created the second version of this site in 2018 using an online membership site, including a members area where logged-in users can access a database of award-winning book marketing case studies.
Grishaverse UK
Data capture landing page for UK fans of Leigh Bardugo’s Grishaverse.
Oxford Edit Write
Oxford Edit Write offers a range of editorial services to authors and publishers, specialising in the educational sector and trade books for children.
Whether you’re an author or a publishing company, they can support you at any stage or all the way – from concept proposals and commissioning right through to proofreading. With expert project management and a friendly, efficient approach, their goal is to see your projects come to life.
“Simon and his colleagues at Bookswarm were fantastic when building a website for my freelance editorial business. They were knowledgeable, expert and professional in a real, human, warm and patient kind of way. Bookswarm know exactly what they are doing, they do it brilliantly and so I was able to get on with doing my ‘thing’. Use them… you’ll live happily ever after!”
Lynne Humphreys, Publisher, Oxford Edit Write
Susanna Lea Associates
Created in 2000, Susanna Lea Associates has offices in Paris, London and New York. Their aim is to work in close collaboration with authors and publishers in order to maximize the potential of each project both domestically and in translation – in print, audio and electronic media – and, when applicable, for film.
We designed and built the new website for Susanna Lea, allowing each office to show market-specific covers for key titles and showcase its own team and social media presence.
Felicity Bryan Associates
Felicity Bryan Associates is an independent literary agency based in Oxford, with a client list includes prize-winning and bestselling authors in adult and children’s fiction, and non-fiction. We designed and built a new website for them designed to showcase their clients in an easy-to-maintain site, while also attracting plenty of submissions through an easy-to-use online process.
“We opted to completely overhaul our previous website and Bookswarm made the process very straightforward – particularly impressive considering we transferred a lot of content from the old site. They were happy to invest lots of time working with us on the design until we had things exactly right. We’re delighted with our new website and have had glowing feedback from our authors. The ongoing support has been great, too.”
Megan Palmer, Digital Manager and Administrator, Felicity Bryan Associates
Imogen Clark
Website for author Imogen Clark, who originally self-published her debut novel but then signed with Amazon publishing imprint Lake Union.
“As soon as I started talking to Bookswarm about the feel that I wanted for my website I could tell that they were with me and understood what I was looking for. The resulting site is exactly what I had in mind and was achieved quickly and with the minimum of fuss. They were pro-active in making suggestions for things that I hadn’t considered and patient when I changed my mind. I cannot recommend them highly enough.”
Imogen Clark, author
Hayes Press
Hayes Press is as a non-profit publishing house known for its faithful, biblical publishing. Some of the topics includes bible characters, general themes, general surveys of Bible, Canon, guides to various translations, and inclusive language debates.
We implemented the website using the WooCommerce shop plugin for WordPress.
Douglas Westcott
Douglas Westcott is a pseudonym for a well-known Bath businessman, self-published author of Go Swift and Far.
Kathryn Hughes
Kathryn Hughes is author of digital number 1 and international bestseller The Letter, as well as The Secret and The Key.
The Jane Grigson Trust
The Jane Grigson Trust is an educational charity set up in 1991 in memory of the great British cookery writer Jane Grigson. Its aim is to advance the public understanding of food, its cultural and nutritional aspects, and the art of its preparation.
Michael Symmons Roberts
Michael Symmons Roberts has won the Forward Prize, the Costa Poetry Prize and the Whitbread Poetry Award, and been shortlisted for the Griffin International Poetry Prize and the T.S. Eliot Prize. He has received major awards from the Arts Council and the Society of Authors. He is a Fellow of the Royal Society of Literature, and of the English Association.
“It was a pleasure to work with Simon and the team at Bookswarm. They were professional, creative and efficient, always happy – and swift – to answer my stupid questions. The fact that they specialise in writers and publishers made the whole process so much easier.”
Michael Symmons Roberts, British poet, writer and broadcaster
Farrago Books
Website for Farrago Books, the series-driven humour imprint of Duckworth Books Group.
“Hugely knowledgeable, practically minded and super-responsive – what more could you want? Simon and all the team at Bookswarm are a genuine pleasure to work with.”
Pete Duncan, MD, Duckworth Books Group
Introducing
Migration of the site for Icon Books’ well known series of graphic guides to a WordPress back-end, while retaining the existing look and feel.
Updated in 2017 to celebrate Icon’s 25th birthday and tie-in with the look and feel of their main website.
Michael O’Mara Books
Creation of a new website for specialists in creative and inspired adult non-fiction, Michael O’Mara Books, encompassing their LOM ART and Buster Books imprints too. The website take a feed from the client’s Biblio system to keep the catalogue up to date.
Christina Enquist
Website for debut author Christina Enquist, with her first YA novel The Immundus.
“Simon and his team did a phenomenal job on creating my author website. His team was flexible and accommodated the various edits and really understood the vision of the site. I would highly recommend Simon and the Bookswarm team.”
Christina Enquist, author of The Immundus
Just Sit
Website for Just Sit – A Meditation Guidebook for People Who Know They Should but Don’t.
“Simon is wonderful to work with. We enjoyed every bit of the process and are more than elated with the final result. We love our website! Thank you, Simon.”
Elizabeth and Sukey Novogratz, authors of Just Sit
Piers Torday
Author website for award-winning children’s writer Piers Torday.
“Designing a new site and keeping continuity with my old one was a seamless process with Bookswarm from start to finish. Simon and his team were incredibly clear, responsive and inventive as they kept pace with my many questions and challenges. They immediately understood my brief and fulfilled it to the letter, and the result is I now have a website completely fit for purpose, with a lovely welcoming design, that is also very simple for me to manage and update. The support has been great too. I would recommend without reservation.”
Piers Torday, winner of Guardian Children’s Fiction Prize
MBA Literary and Script Agents
Based in London’s Fitzrovia for over 45 years, MBA is a leading literary agency representing writers in all media – books, and scripts for film, television, radio and theatre.
Helen Pearson
Ultra-clean website for science journalist, author and communicator Helen Pearson.
“It was a pleasure working with Bookswarm to build my website. The team were courteous, efficient and excellent at understanding the needs of authors. We were able to work closely together to design a site that was elegant in design and easy to update, all delivered to a tight deadline.”
Helen Pearson, science journalist, author and communicator
Wildfire
Wildfire is part of the Headline Division of Hachette UK, a vibrant and dynamic publishing company which is also one of the biggest in the world. Wildfire publish a broad range of quality commercial fiction and non-fiction.
Alex Seymour
Author website for ex-Royal Marine Alex Seymour, whose book Psychedelic Marine recounts his experiences of conflict and his quest for the hallucinogenic brew known as ayahuasca to help him recover from the horrors of war.
“The folks at Bookswarm understood exactly what I needed and worked to build a great website. I am very satisfied with the results. The team is friendly, experienced and I highly recommend them.”
Alex Seymour, author of Pyschedelic Marine
The Happysmarts Project
We migrated the Happysmarts Project to being WordPress-based, allowing the client to more easily manage the content, and translating the exercises and scales that are the heart of the project in to GravityForms so that they can be tweaked and the results can be exported at any time. We also took the opportunity to modernise aspects of the design and make the site mobile-friendly.
Trad’s Diary
Trad’s Diary has been a regular fixture for many gardeners since June 1975, forty two years ago, when the first issue of The Garden appeared. It was, and is, written by Hugh Johnson, who as Editorial Director had created the new magazine out of the old Journal of the Horticultural Society.
Bookswarm created the latest version of Trad’s Diary to be mobile-friendly and easy on the eye – and it’s home to over 500 entries written by Hugh since the diary went digital back in 2008.
P. D. James
Website for the late, great crime author P. D. James, designed to showcase her backlist as well as new publishing output from Faber, and provide readers with access to a range of archive material.
Connecting Paradigms
Website for speaker, trainer, and author of Connecting Paradigms
“Simon and his group have a great system for authors to express their creativity and passion through their website. If you are an author in need of a site to highlight your writing and other work, Simon is the right guy for you!”
Matthew S. Bennett, speaker, trainer, author
Filotico Arts
Branding and website design for cultural consultancy and production company Filotico Arts.
Pavilion Books Group
Pavilion Books is a thriving independent London-based publisher specialising in illustrated books for the UK and all international markets. Their new website is populated with bibliographic data feeds from their Stison title management system, and also features a blog, news & events section and many different ways of exploring their books – by category, by imprint and by author.
Annabel Kantaria
Website design and build for Dubai-based author of ‘domestic noir’ Annabel Kantaria.
“Authors should look no further: Bookswarm completely understand our needs.”
Annabel Kantaria, author of domestic noir including The One That Got Away
Bounce Sales & Marketing
Bounce Sales & Marketing represent 40 independent children’s publishers to the trade both in the UK and overseas. From beautiful, award-winning picture books to bestselling YA fiction, colourful early learning board books to fun and insightful reference and non-fiction titles, Bounce has a children’s book for every age and every taste, while helping booksellers discover hidden gems and give their customers a bespoke range of titles perfect for their communities.
The website we created for Bounce is designed to make it as easy as possible for their customers – booksellers, libraries, schools – to place orders and request materials from their client publishers. The emphasis is on making these transactions as quick and painless as possible.
The bibliographic information in the website is drawn from the Supafolio system.
“Bookswarm were consummate professionals. Patient to explain the more advanced levels [of technology] and jargon regarding what they were doing, they were able to take my plan, shape it into reality and deliver a website that keeps making me smile, pat myself on the back and tell myself what a genius I am for coming up with the idea. But really I owe it all to them.”
Graeme Williams, Trade Marketing Manager at Bounce Sales and Marketing Ltd.
Dr Genevieve Von Lob
New website for clinical psychologist Dr Genevieve von Lob. While she already had a website, Genevieve felt an update was needed to support the publication of her debut non-fiction book, Five Deep Breaths: The Power of Mindful Parenting. The site also has the ability to showcase events and private practice information.
“Bookswarm really are the people to go if you an author looking for your ideal website. They have made my vision into a reality, and I couldn’t be more delighted with the final result. Simon is highly professional, genuine, so supportive, a great communicator and always easily contactable. Highly recommend!”
Dr Genevieve Von Lob, author of parenting books Five Deep Breaths and Happy Parent, Happy Child
Faber Social
A new iteration of Faber Social – books and music at the heart of independent publishing.
Icon Books
ONIX-feed powered website for Icon Books, an independent UK publisher which produces popular, engaging and sometimes provocative non-fiction for adults.
In 2017, we launched a new version of the site to celebrate Icon’s 25th birthday!
The Future Bookshelf
A home on the web for Hodder & Stoughton’s range of books for writers – including a fully content-managed home page feature the client can update each month.
Nielsen Bestseller Awards
Website showcasing the winners of the new Nielsen Bestseller Awards.
Martina Cole
A new website for Queen of Crime Martina Cole, celebrating the 25th anniversary of the publication of her first novel.
Wasafiri Magazine
We designed and built a new e-commerce website for Wasafiri, the magazine which encourages readers and writers to travel the world via the word. For over three decades, Wasafiri have created a dynamic platform for mapping new landscapes in contemporary international writing featuring a diverse range of voices from across the UK and beyond. Committed to profiling the ‘best of tomorrow’s writers today’ they simultaneously celebrate those who have become established literary voices, offering a creative space for dialogue and debate.
Dr Barbara Oakley
Dr Barbara Oakley is an educator, writer and engineer who asked us to revitalise her web presence after many years of running it herself. We enjoyed the process of devising an information structure which accommodated her roles as speaker, teacher, book author and journalist.
“I’m an electrical engineer and also a popular author with a good eye for design, so I’ve maintained my own website for many years. I finally took the plunge and had Bookswarm remake my site. What an incredible difference! The site is SO beautifully designed and easy-to-use! Bookswarm took my ideas and shape shifted them to bring out exactly what I wanted, but in ways far better than I’d originally envisioned. Really, website design and implementation doesn’t get any better or easier than with Bookswarm – I cannot recommend them more highly!”
Dr Barbara Oakley, author
Folio Society Blogs
We created a new WordPress-based news and blogging site for The Folio Society, which integrates with their main e-commerce site. We replaced two separate WordPress sites which were not mobile-friendly.
Alma Books
Established in 2002, Alma Books now has five imprints, and we have created a single new e-commerce website which encompasses all of the imprints.
“We’re a small independent publishing company which prides itself on being able to do everything in house, so we were initially reluctant to get any old company in to rebrand our online presence. However, Bookswarm aren’t any old company, and they’ve made the whole process unbelievably easy – we were looked after by two people who seem to answer questions immediately (however tedious or obvious), and we’re thrilled with the finished website. They’re also the only tech company I’ve come across which just “gets” books – they took this knowledge and tailored everything to our needs perfectly. On top of the sleek design, transparent way of working and hands-on help, the team have also proved to have an astonishing level of after-care, and are happy to help you acquire the skills to maintain and enrich the site for yourself. Would – and have – whole-heartedly recommend.”
William Dady, Editorial and Marketing Executive, Alma Books
Gerard F. Kennedy
Author website for architect-turned-writer Gerard F. Kennedy.
“I really enjoyed working with Simon; he was extremely supportive throughout. And to my surprise I was able to manage my website very easily. In short the process was painless, and I have a perfect website to prove it. The back up service is excellent. For an IT simpleton like me, that’s important.”
Gerard F. Kennedy, writer
Who Killed Cuthbert Harverville?
Promotional microsite for Faber to celebrate the release of a Christmas-themed P.D. James anthology, The Mistletoe Murder.
K L Slater
Author website for psychological thriller author K L Slater. We already created a website for Kim as a young adult novelist, but she needs to keep her two professional personas separate.
Nomad Books
Fulham-based independent bookshop Nomad Books first opened its doors in 1990 and has evolved with the changing needs of its customers ever since. We designed and built a new website to allow the team to recommend books, show off the shop and highlight events and other offerings.
Atlantic Books
Atlantic Books is an independent British publishing house founded in 2000. Based in the heart of Bloomsbury, they publish quality literary fiction and non fiction. Atlantic are also the home of commercial imprint Corvus, and proud publishers of a selection of books from Grove Atlantic in the US as well as a home to a growing list of fine fiction and non-fiction from Allen & Unwin.
We designed and built Atlantic’s new site to be updated with a feed from their Biblio system, and put their four imprints at the heart of the structure – so each imprint has its own ‘home page’ within the site.
Carmelite Prize
The Carmelite Prize is an exciting award created to recognise excellence in children’s book illustration, with the aim of encouraging and inspiring the next generation of illustrators for children’s stories.
We created a microsite for Hachette Children’s to promote the prize and allow budding illustrators to enter.
Black Horse Westerns
A new website for the Black Horse imprint, which in 2015 became part of The Crowood Press, a family owned publishing house, which is committed to continuing with the Black Horse imprint and to working with both new and established authors and editors.
Chambers
We updated the design of the existing Chambers website and migrated the underlying technology to WordPress for ease of management, whilst retaining the key features of the existing site: the dictionary search and Word Wizard.
A Good Disruption
Campaign microsite for a book about redefining growth in the twenty-first century.
“Disruptive technology is one of the defining economic trends of our age with companies such as Airbnb, Uber and Apple dramatically transforming their industries. But what is the true impact of such disruption on the world’s economies, and does it have the potential to solve global problems such as low growth, inequality and environmental degradation? Why not seize this opportunity and make it a good disruption?”
Summersdale
Founded in 1990, Summersdale is a vibrant publisher that puts its heart and soul into creating exceptional books. They swiftly respond to emerging technology and trends, provide entertaining, informative and innovative content in the genres of travel writing, general non-fiction, health and well-being, and gift and humour. Summersdale produce a diverse range of over 150 titles per year, with a backlist of over 600 titles.
“I’m so proud and delighted with the new Summersdale website. It’s been a long time coming, but has been well worth the wait. I genuinely believe that we have one of the best websites out there. It looks stylish and modern, but it is also very functional. One of the site’s primary functions is to showcase our beautiful books, and they sure look good. Choosing Bookswarm to create our new site was the right choice, they have been magnificent.”
Alastair Williams, Managing Director, Summersdale
Mark Hutchinson Management
MHM is an independent PR and communications agency, based in London, with expertise in profile management and in creating campaigns for the arts, book publishing, food, and business sectors. Clients include Nigella Lawson, J.K. Rowling and Andrea Levy.
Lloyd Clark
Professor Lloyd Clark is currently a senior member of the Department of War Studies at the Royal Military Academy Sandhurst and Professorial Research Fellow at the University of Buckingham’s Humanities Research Institute where he run the post-graduate programme in modern war studies and contemporary military history. Lloyd has lectured around the world to various universities, military institutions and think tanks and his publications include books on the First and Second World Wars as well as more recent conflicts including the Falklands, Iraq and Afghanistan.
We created Lloyd’s website to support his range of activities, including his media work and his latest book, Blitzkrieg.
Jo Thomas
New scrapbook-style author website for Jo Thomas, author of romances about food, love, family and fun.
Sam Angus
Website for Sam Angus, author of children’s stories including Soldier Dog and Hero.
“I wanted to transform my website into something more playful and eye-catching. I had a fairly clear picture in my mind and sent Simon a fairly detailed brief. He was attentive and thorough and keen to interpret what I wanted. I love what he and his team have produced. The new website is fun, yet clean and professional and everything I imagined it to be.
Bookswarm was always efficient, prompt with delivery and patient in dealing with my queries. I will definitely use Simon and his team again.”
Sam Angus, author of historical adventure children’s novels including Solider Dog
Paul Bright
Paul Bright is a children’s writer and poet, who has published many picture books for children as well as poetry for kids. Paul has also written for school reading programmes, CBeebies radio and BBC web sites, and had stories broadcast on CBeebies TV and CITV’s Bookaboo. We designed and built a website to showcase Paul’s work, including his contribution to the official Winnie-the-Pooh sequel The Best Bear in all the World.
Belgravia Books Collective
A new web presences for two linked brands, under the banner of the Belgravia Books Collective:
- Gallic Books (publisher)
- Belgravia Books (bookshop)
This e-commerce website replaces two older websites, and allows the the client’s team to manage everything within one WordPress website.
H for History
H for History is the historical fiction and non-fiction community from Hodder & Stoughton, Headline and Quercus. Bookswarm designed and built this responsive website to allow both books and blog posts to be explored using a range of classifications, including Period and Genre.
“When a project comes along I can work with Bookswarm on I immediately feel more relaxed. Communication on projects from start to finish is outstanding (and so important) which helps to move things along at a good pace and get the results we all want. Simon is always on hand for questions and advice throughout the project, and is incredibly tolerant of the unrelenting change requests and tweaks from our many stakeholders.”
Amy Dolman, Digital Marketing Manager, Hodder & Stoughton
Moonlight Dreamers
Responsive competition microsite for Walker Books, to promote Moonlight Dreamers by Siobhan Curham.
Girl Out of Water
Competition microsite for Walker Books to celebrate and promote the launch of Girl Out of Water by Nat Luurtsema.
Anne Holt
Anne Holt is a journalist, lawyer, politician, news anchor and crime writer, published by Atlantic Books in the UK. This new website promoted Anne and her work ahead of the broadcast of a new television adaptation of her work, Modus.
Academy of New Zealand Literature
The Academy of New Zealand Literature / Te Whare Mātātuhi o Aotearoa is a writer-led initiative developed to help New Zealand’s active practitioners sustain themselves – creatively, intellectually, psychically, practically – through a writer’s life.
Bookswarm developed the brand identity for the Academy and applied it to new website that was designed to present a contemporary picture of the New Zealand literary scene.
Get Coding!
Get Coding! is the essential guide to coding for kids from the expert coding community Young Rewired State. The book helps kids learn how to write code and then build their own website, app and game using the programming languages HTML, CSS and JavaScript. The website we built to accompany the book provides every piece of code they need to complete their missions.
“I really enjoyed working with Bookswarm. Kjell was great at explaining how the website would be designed and built, and was very helpful throughout the entire process. We’re really pleased with the end result. Thanks, Bookswarm!”
Daisy Jellicoe, Editor, Walker Books
Live Fast, Lose Weight
Microsite for Instagram-based competition in support of the launch of Charlotte Crosby’s cookbook Live Fast, Lose Weight.
Nicos Hadjicostis
Website for world traveller and writer Nicos Hadjicostis, designed to support and promote his book Destination Earth.
Saraband
New website for independent publishers Saraband, winners of the inaugural Saltire Scottish Publisher of the Year.
“When we decided to give our website a makeover, we were very keen to work with someone who truly understood the needs of a publisher, and Bookswarm have been second-to-none in that regard. From the off they ‘got it’ – both in terms of how our new website needed to be intuitive to use for us as publishers, and in terms of how it performed for readers and the wider books industry.
Simon and his team have been superb to work with and we’re delighted with the final website – it really does look better than we could have hoped for.”
Sara Hunt, Publisher, Saraband
Cityread London
Cityread London is an annual celebration of literature that aims to bring reading to life for the whole capital. Each April, Cityread asks London’s citizens, workers and visitors to pick up a book – the same book – and read it together. Taking the chosen novel as a starting point, a month-long programme of book groups, film screenings and other events takes place across all 33 London boroughs in libraries, bookshops, museums and other venues.
Hoopoefiction.com
Website for Hoopoe, the new fiction imprint of The American University in Cairo Press.
“Working with Bookswarm on both the branding and website development of our new fiction imprint, Hoopoe, was both a pleasure and a breeze. The Bookswarm team understood our needs with least effort and promptly came back with ideas that were just what we were looking for but could not conceptualize ourselves. They combine technical experience with creativity, and love for books with a deep understanding of the publishing industry. You can’t wish for a more innovative, supportive, and responsive team!”
Tarek El-Elaimy, Marketing Manager for North America, The American University in Cairo Press
InterVarsity Press
E-commerce website for imprint of SPCK.
Six Tudor Queens
Campaign microsite for Alison Weir’s new Six Tudor Queens series, which will encompass all six of the wives of Henry VIII in six books.
Rebel of the Sands
Parallax-based microsite for Alwyn Hamilton’s debut YA novel The Rebel of the Sands, published by Faber. The site is designed to evolve and be updated as future books in the trilogy are published. Features include a video gallery and a social media aggregator which gathers all Twitter content using the hashtag #rebelsands.
Post-launch, we updated the site for the second book in the series, Hero at the Fall.
Anatomy of a Soldier
Microsite commissioned by Faber for Harry Parker’s Anatomy of a Soldier.
Captain Tom Barnes is leading British troops in a war zone. Two boys are growing up there, sharing a prized bicycle and flying kites, before finding themselves separated once the soldiers appear in their countryside. On all sides of this conflict, people are about to be caught up in the violence, from the man who trains one boy to fight the infidel invaders to Barnes’s family waiting for him to return home.
We see them not as they see themselves, but as all the objects surrounding them do: shoes and boots, a helmet, a trove of dollars, a drone, that bike, weaponry, a bag of fertilizer, a medal, a beer glass, a snowflake, dog tags, an exploding IED and the medical implements that are subsequently employed.
Anatomy of a Soldier is a moving, enlightening and fiercely dramatic novel about one man’s journey of survival and the experiences of those around him. Forty-five objects, one unforgettable story.
The Solidarity Project
Author website for academic, political campaigner and green activist Jonathan Boswell, who is currently working on a new book about solidarity.
“I wanted a website to promote a set of fairly radical social ideas (which will feature some way ahead in a book I’m still writing). I thought this might be outside Bookswarm’s brief, but they’ve been very responsive and creative. Some basic ideas I had on shape and colour were worked up nicely. I’ve greatly appreciated their patience with a non-techy like me, their efficiency and general aplomb. The result, I and others think, is fitting and attractive. I have no hesitation in recommending Bookswarm with enthusiasm.”
Jonathan Boswell, Author and Academic
Christopherus Homeschool Resources
WooCommerce-based site for Christopher, specialist educational publisher of Waldorf-inspired parenting and education materials and resources.
Elly Griffiths
Website for Elly Griffiths, author of the Dr Ruth Galloway Mysteries, and the Stephens & Mephisto novels.
“It has been pleasure to work with Bookswarm. Simon took the time to find out exactly what I wanted, even though I wasn’t sure myself at the outset! The result is a website that really reflects my books. Simon and his team were creative, helpful and efficient. Highly recommended.”
Domenica de Rosa, author who writes as Elly Griffiths
Colin Matthews
Website design for composer Colin Matthews OBE. Colin studied at the Universities of Nottingham and Sussex, and subsequently worked as assistant to Benjamin Britten, and with Imogen Holst. He collaborated with Deryck Cooke for many years on the performing version of Mahler’s Tenth Symphony. Since the early 1970s, Matthews’ music has ranged from solo piano music through five string quartets and many ensemble and orchestral works.
“I don’t think Bookswarm has worked with a composer before, and Simon’s initial surprise at having to deal with well over 150 works rather than a handful of books quickly gave way to enthusiasm and unfailing support at every stage. This was no easy website to build, but the result is something both very stylish and easy to use – I couldn’t be happier!”
Colin Matthews OBE, Composer
Modern Books
Modern Books is a new imprint which publishes beautiful and original non-fiction for mindful and creative living.
SPCK Publishing
SPCK is the mission agency which works through publishing. Their mission is to promote Christian ideas and values; we do this by publishing, and supporting the publishing of, books and resources for people for people of all denominational and faith backgrounds.
We created a new e-commerce website with WordPress and WooCommerce, encompassing both SPCK’s charitable and publishing activites. Orders are submitted to Macmillan Distribution (MDL) for fulfillment.
Peter Fisk / Gamechangers
Peter Fisk is a global thought leader on growth, innovation and leadership. Peter is a keynote speaker, bestselling author and expert consultant. He is founder of the specialist consulting firm GeniusWorks, and Professor of Strategy, Innovation and Marketing at IE Business School.
We created two websites in one for Peter – a general site representing Peter as author, speaker and consultant, and a site for his latest book project, Gamechangers, published with Wiley.
We also created a number of videos in support of the new book.
Kelpies
Kelpies are Scottish books for children everywhere. The Kelpies imprint is published by independent publishing company Floris Books, which is based in Edinburgh, Scotland. We created this responsive, e-commerce site for them using WordPress and WooCommerce, integrating with their distributor, Booksource, to seamlessly send out orders.
Karen Rose Cityscape
Commissioned by publisher Headline, Karen Rose Cityscape allows fans to explore the work of internationally bestselling, RITA-award winning, author Karen Rose via an interactive map, and to see which characters feature in which books.
Katy Birchall
Website for Katy Birchall, author of the It Girl series, published by Egmont.
“I feel so lucky to have been able to put my website in the hands of Bookswarm. Their vision for The It Girl brand was spot on and I could not be happier with how the website has turned out, it’s exactly what I wanted. Simon and the Bookswarm team are incredibly knowledgeable and made the process ridiculously easy for me. I would highly recommend them.”
Katy Birchall, author of The It Girl (Egmont)
Octopus Bespoke
Octopus Bespoke offers custom content solutions, with an exceptional archive of premium recipes and photography, and can hand pick collections and formats to exactly fit clients’ needs. We created a microsite to summarise the offer and tantalise the tastebuds with a selection of their mouthwatering photography.
Predator Cities
Microsite for Philip Reeve’s genre-busting Predator Cities series, which begins with Mortal Engines.
Books from Scotland
BooksfromScotland showcases the best books of Scottish interest around, including the latest children’s, fiction and selected non-fiction titles, as well as titles from publishers based in Scotland.
Bookswarm developed a new Books from Scotland brand identity and a new website to showcase the Scottish titles, as well as developing a technical strategy to help easily identify which titles should include, based on processing of bibliographic data from Nielsen.
The William Morris Society
The William Morris Society was founded in 1953 to make the life, work and ideas of William Morris (1834-96) better known. Morris was an artist, designer, craftsman, writer and socialist who was a revolutionary force in Victorian Britain.
We designed a new website for the Society, launched on its 60th birthday, working with a new brand identity designed by Pentagram.
“From the very beginning Bookswarm fully understood our brief. We felt completely at ease working with, and handing over to them, and feel that they have helped above and beyond what we would have expected. The dedication and creativity that they brought to the initial meetings enthused us with confidence and the beautiful, clear and practical site that they have created for us reflects William Morris’s aesthetic and approach perfectly. We are beyond happy with the work they have done and would recommend working with them to any interested party – we felt supported and treated as individuals and no question was too small!”
Alice Woodhouse, Society Manager, The William Morris Society
Patrick Ness
Website for bestselling author and twice winner of the Carnegie Medal, which includes the ability to create and apply different visual themes to different pages.
Helen Bell
Website for Helen Bell, author of the Ilmaen Quartet.
“The team at Bookswarm gave me a site that met my brief perfectly and went well beyond, with support and advice on areas I hadn’t considered – or hadn’t considered I would be able to manage so easily! They opened my eyes to all the options, and provided training and guidance that make the site really work for me and my books.”
Helen Bell, author of The Ilamen Quartet
Lisa Gardner Case Files
A UK digital presence for bestselling crime-writer Lisa Gardner. Redesigned and relaunched in November 2016.
Stephen King Books
A home on the web for international multi-million selling author Stephen King’s Books – focused on the UK, Australia, and New Zealand, and commissioned by his publishers in those territories, led by Hodder & Stoughton.
Kim Slater
Author website for Kim Slater, whose YA debut Smart was described by the Guardian as “a remarkable first novel.”
“I commissioned Bookswarm after seeing the other fabulous author websites they had designed and I also had a personal recommendation from another Macmillan author. Bookswarm made the whole process so easy, their prices are very competitive and the ongoing support is second to none. I recommend their services unreservedly.”
Kim Slater, author of Smart (Macmillan Children’s Books)
Smith & Baxter
Smith & Baxter is a small and friendly PR agency specializing in food, drink, books, arts and lifestyle.
Sheila O’Flanagan
Responsive website for Sheila O’Flanagan, number 1 bestselling author of contemporary women’s fiction.
Grub Street
Grub Street is an award-winning small, niche independent publisher, publishing only books on cookery and military aviation history. We created a responsive e-commerce site using for Grub Street using WordPress and WooCommerce.
Crimefiles
Crime fiction community website for Hachette publishers Headline, Hodder & Stoughton and Quercus, showcasing their combined crime list as well as staff and guest blogs and a regular podcast.
“When a project comes along I can work with Bookswarm on I immediately feel more relaxed. Communication on projects from start to finish is outstanding (and so important) which helps to move things along at a good pace and get the results we all want. Simon is always on hand for questions and advice throughout the project, and is incredibly tolerant of the unrelenting change requests and tweaks from our many stakeholders.”
Amy Dolman, Digital Marketing Manager, Hodder & Stoughton
Patrick Gale
New website for Patrick Gale, author of novels including A Perfectly Good Man, The Whole Day Through and the Richard and Judy bestseller Notes From An Exhibition.
“Having designed me a stylish website, which is simplicity itself for me to maintain and update, Bookswarm have always been wonderfully speedy and a pleasure to deal with when I’ve needed some radical change making to the site’s structure or functions. I’d recommend them highly to any other writers or creative types who need a website and don’t want to know too much about what happens under the bonnet…”
Patrick Gale, author of Richard and Judy bestsellers Notes From An Exhibition and A Perfectly Good Man
Royal Society of Literature
For nearly 200 years, the Royal Society of Literature has celebrated and nurtured all that is best in British literature, past and present.
Bookswarm has created a new responsive website to allow them to showcase their work and the great names among the RSL Fellows.
This was updated in 2017 to reflect the launch of the RSL’s Literature Matters campaign.
“Working on our new responsive site with Bookswarm has been an absolute joy. Simon and team have realised our brief perfectly, keeping the look and feel of our previous site whilst refreshing it and adding new, interesting features. They have been patient with us, as we are a small team, and understanding of our particular needs.”
Annette Brook, Communications Manager, Royal Society of Literature
Fun With Humphrey
Website for the long-running and hugely successful series of Humphrey the Hamster books written by Betty G. Birney and published by Faber. Includes user generated content functionality allowing users to upload jokes and pet pictures. As Humphrey would say, fun-fun-fun!
The Buried Giant
Microsite commissioned by Faber for the launch of Kazuo Ishiguro’s first novel in ten years, The Buried Giant. The site aggregates content from Twitter, Instagram, Google+ and Flickr with the hasgtag ‘theburiedgiant’, bringing together all the buzz for this much anticipated book.
Tinder Press
Blog and catalogue website for Headline’s fiction imprint Tinder Press, a place where classy, intelligent writing thrives.
Karen Maitland
Website for Karen Maitland, author of medieval thrillers including The Vanishing Witch, Liars and Thieves, Falcons of Fire and Ice, The Gallows Curse and The Owl Killers.
Jill Mansell
Website for bestselling author Jill Mansell.
Five Children on the Western Front
Competition microsite for Faber in conjunction with Red Letter Days. promoting the Kate Saunders’ follow-up to E. Nesbit’s iconic Five Children and It.
Robert Hale
Responsive site for Robert Hale, independent publishers since 1936. The site has four themed sections for Robert Hale’s four imprints – Robert Hale, J.A. Allen, NAG Press and Buried River Press.
Robert Hale is now part of The Crowood Press.
Jennifer Gray
Website for award-winning author of children’s books Jennifer Gray, creator of Atticus Claw and Chicken Mission (Faber) and Guinea Pigs Online and Puppies Online (Quercus).
“Bookswarm made everything straightforward. My author site is great to look at, well-designed and easy to find your way around. Excellent WordPress training and support guaranteed to give even the most reluctant operator like me the confidence to add content and manage the site by themselves.”
Jennifer Gray, author of the Atticus Claw series for children (Faber)
Marcus Chown
Website for scientist, communicator, author, journalist and broadcaster Marcus Chown.
“Bookswarm are extremely patient and do an extremely good job”
Marcus Chown, author of Quantum Theory Cannot Hurt You and We Need to Talk About Kelvin (Faber)
Michelle Harrison
Responsive author website for Michelle Harrison, award-winning author of the Thirteen Treasures Trilogy.
“Bookswarm were quick to understand the kind of look and the level of functionality I wanted for my website, and delivered it quickly and professionally. I’d highly recommend them.”
Michelle Harrison, author of the Thirteen Secrets trilogy (Simon & Schuster)
Faber Modern Classics
‘Definition of a classic: a book everyone is assumed to have read and often thinks they have.’
Alan Bennett
A responsive one-page microsite for the launch of Faber’s Modern Classics list. Designed and built in one week from initial briefing.
Simon Scarrow
Responsive author website for Simon Scarrow, number one bestselling author of the Cato and Macro novels and many other historical best-sellers.
D.D. Everest
Author website for D.D. Everest, author of Archie Greene and the Magician’s Secret, the first in a new series.
“Bookswarm did a brilliant job with my website – from initial design though to final implementation. After one conversation with Simon I had total confidence in them and they didn’t disappoint. Their genuine love of books shines through in every thing they do.”
D.D. Everest, author of Archie Greene and the Magician’s Secret (Faber)
The Hunger Games
Creation of a new responsive website for The Hunger Games books, for Scholastic Children’s Books UK. Scholastic can set the site to use either the Classic or Rebel theme.
“The team at Bookswarm were brilliant and totally understood what we needed out of The Hunger Games website. Simon was quick to point out things that could work better even from the first chat and was tweaking and fixing things even after the job was complete. The whole process couldn’t have been smoother and that’s all down to Bookswarm’s attention to detail, great ideas and endless patience.”
Fi Evans, Marketing Manager, Scholastic UK
Charles L. Carson
Responsive website design and build for US thriller writer Charles L. Carson.
“With two eBooks on Kindle and a third on the way, and after reviewing too many US based author website developers who touted phenomenal sites but without portfolios that supported their claims, I ran across Bookswarm. Simon’s philosophy matched mine exactly – have a website that mirrors the feeling of the books. I was in Honolulu and, obviously, Simon was in the UK. But, two Skype calls and numerous emails later, the result was purely wonderful. He captured the feeling of my work perfectly. I cannot say enough in support of his creative spirit.”
Charles L. Carson, author of the McManus Thrillers
Harriet Evans
A new home on the web for Harriet Evans and her writing, to coincide with her move to new publishers Headline.
Memoirs of a Neurotic Zombie
Website for Memoirs of a Neurotic Zombie, by Jeff Norton, published by Faber.
Memoirs of a Neurotic Zombie is narrated by the hilarious Adam Meltzer – pre-teen, worrywart, and now zombie. Adam’s family gets the fright of their lives when he turns up at their door … three months after his funeral.
Soon Adam’s back at school trying to fit in and not draw extra attention to himself, but when he sees his neighbour Ernesto transform into a chupacubra, and the beautiful Corina (Adam’s number one mega-crush) turns out to be a (vegan) vampire, undead life is never going to be the same again.
Ed Sheeran: A Visual Journey
Responsive campaign website for Octopus Publishing Group in support of Ed Sheeran: A Visual Journey.
With words by Ed Sheeran and illustrations by his childhood friend, artist Phillip Butah (who produces artwork for Sheeran’s albums and singles), and accompanying photos, Ed Sheeran: A Visual Journey is an exclusive, fully authorised, first-person account by Ed of how he became an internationally renowned singer-songwriter.
In the book, Ed explores his early musical experiences and influences as well as his time recording and touring, right up to the release of his second album, ‘x‘. The book reveals what drives and inspires Ed as he continues to evolve as an artist, while coping with stratospheric success, and is an honest account of what it takes to make it in the music business.
Virginia Bergin
Author website for YA novelist Virginia Bergin. Redesigned in 2017 to provide a more flexible design that could accomodate standalone novels as well as Virginia’s first series.
“Bookswarm … know how an author’s site needs to work. They know about books. They know about design. They know about websites. (And a whole load of other stuff). I am a very happy customer!”
Virginia Bergin, author of The Rain (Macmillan Children’s)
Penny Vincenzi
Author website for multi-million bestselling author Penny Vincenzi, commissioned by publishers Headline. Updated in August 2018.
“Working with Bookswarm on [Penny Vincenzi’s website] was a completely positive and painless experience – you made everything as easy and straightforward as possible and everyone is thrilled with the result.”
Jo Liddiard, Head of Marketing, Headline Publishing Group
Rachel Blum, poet
Rachel is a poet who lives in in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania.
“Working with Bookswarm made creating my poetry website such an easy and enjoyable process. Simon graciously blended my ideas with his own artistic vision to produce a site that is perfect for sharing my work. Their reliable accessibility contributed to my ease throughout the project.”
Rachel Blum, poet
Clare Furniss, Mk1
Author website for Clare Furniss, author of The Year of The Rat, described as “a truly amazing read” by Children’s Laureate Malorie Blackman.
“I couldn’t be happier with the website Bookswarm created for me. The fact that Bookswarm are experts in creating author websites means they really know how to ensure that your site does exactly what you need it to. Simon was incredibly helpful and patient, and created a website that exceeded all my expectations. It’s clear and easy to navigate and it looks fantastic.”
Clare Furniss, author of The Year of the Rat (Simon & Schuster)
Cornerstones
Cornerstones is one of the founding UK literary consultancies, set up in 1998, with a reputation spread by word-of-mouth with agents, publishers and writers.
We wanted the website to emphasise this depth of experience and know-how.
Zaid Al-Ali
Author website for writer and academic Zaid Al-Ali. Zaid is quoted regularly in the international press on Iraqi developments and on constitutional reform issues in the Arab region, including in the New York Times, the Financial Times, the BBC, National Public Radio, the Guardian, and the Daily Telegraph, amongst many others.
“Bookswarm’s experience in creating author-related websites is really invaluable. Not only did they design the website for me, they actually helped me understand what it was that I wanted for my own website, which was not an easy thing to do considering that I had not thought this through myself. Bookswarm made the entire process intelligent, swift, and professional and it was a pleasure to have worked with them.”
Zaid Al-Ali, author, The Struggle for Iraq’s Future (Yale University Press)
bookbridgr
bookbridgr lets book bloggers request books, exclusive content and author interviews direct from the publisher. It gives bloggers first access to dozens of front and backlist Headline titles (both in physical and ebook formats), while also allowing them to request a huge amount of extra book content for their blogs, join an author blog tour or request interviews with new and bestselling authors.
“Building bookbridgr with Simon and his team was awesome. From initial wire-framing right through to implementation and launch, he was on hand at every moment to build, fix, tweak – and most importantly to put my mind at ease throughout the process.”
Ben Willis, Publicity & Digital Campaigns Manager, Headline Publishing Group
The Girl With a Clock For a Heart
Promotional microsite for crime debut The Girl With A Clock For a Heart, by US author Peter Swanson, commissioned by Faber. This is a responsive site – desktop users see a clock-face but mobile users see a more space-efficient digital clock!
George Foss never thought he’d see her again, but on a late-August night in Boston, there she is, in his local bar, Jack’s Tavern.
When George first met her, she was an eighteen-year-old college freshman from Sweetgum, Florida. She and George became inseparable in their first fall semester, so George was devastated when he got the news that she had committed suicide over Christmas break. But, as he stood in the living room of the girl’s grieving parents, he realized the girl in the photo on their mantelpiece – the one who had committed suicide – was not his girlfriend. Later, he discovered the true identity of the girl he had loved – and of the things she may have done to escape her past.
Now, twenty years later, she’s back, and she’s telling George that he’s the only one who can help her…
Squishy McFluff
An imaginary friend
is a wonderful thing.
What giggles! What games!
What adventures they bring!
Well, Ava’s a girl
who knows all about that . . .
Meet Squishy McFluff,
Her invisible cat!
We had great fun making this site for Pip Jones’ new series of children’s books about an imaginary moggy (or is he imaginary?).
Tania Unsworth
Author website for children’s writer Tania Unsworth, author of The One Safe Place and The Secret Life of Daisy Fitzjohn.
This website was updated at the start of 2017 to reflect Tania’s increased emphasis on school visits and her changing social media profile.
“I can’t recommend Bookswarm highly enough for writers looking to create a website. They were understanding, patient, incredibly creative and best of all knew exactly what I needed.”
Tania Unsworth, author of The One Safe Place (Orion Children’s Books)
Spying on Democracy
Website to promote Heidi Boghosian’s Spying on Democracy and provide interested readers with additional content and resources.
Hanif Kureishi
Author website for novelist, playwright and screenplay writer Hanif Kureishi CBE.
Überpreneurs.com
Website for authors Peter Andrews and Fiona Wood and their book Überpreneurs, about the challenges facing mankind in the 21st century and 36 extraordinary individuals who are addressing and resolving all of these issues.
“Such good grace! Even though we Aussies were slaughtering the Poms on the cricket pitch, Simon responded to our queries at all hours of the day and night, building an absolutely brilliant website and delivering it ahead of our very tight deadline.”
Peter Andrews, author, Überpreneurs (Palgrave Macmillan), with Fiona Wood
1001 Series Facebook Quizzes
A set of four Facebook applications for Octopus Publishing Group’s 1001 Series. The apps are all powered by a WordPress CMS, allowing the client to quickly and easily refresh the range of possible answers and providing a solid foundation for the rapid roll-out of more quizzes in future.
Shannon Selin
Responsive website design for Shannon Selin, Canadian author of historical novel Napoleon in America. We also created a logo for Shannon to use on her business cards and on the books themselves.
“Simon Appleby and the Bookswarm team immediately understood what I was looking for in an author website, and came up with a design and functionality that fully meets my needs.”
Shannon Selin, author, Napoleon in America
Three Hares Publishing
Brand creation and website design for startup publishing house Three Hares.
Aimer Media
Aimer make apps and work with book publishers to be part of the response to the challenge of digital in publishing. They’ve found that existing forms of publication contain much more structure and “cleverness” than can be seen on the printed page and work with publishers to make great apps.
Bookswarm created a new, responsive website for Aimer to showcase their extensive portfolio, including integration with Apple’s App Store API to automatically pull through app icons, prices and more.
Rory Muir’s Wellington
Sports Book Awards
The British Sports Book Awards exist to highlight and give prominence to the very best sports books published in the previous calendar year.
Agile Marketing
Agile Marketing is a small team of dedicated individuals around the country who deliver campaigns for publishers, retailers, media partners and sponsors.
Afterliff.com
WordPress-based site to celebrate all things Liff, to co-incide with the release of Afterliff, the brilliant successor to Douglas Adams’ and John Lloyd’s 1983 classic The Meaning of Liff, which features over 900 essential new definitions.
Peter Watson
Design and build of a WordPress-based website for award-winning author and journalist Peter Watson.
“My collaboration with Simon Appleby was so friction-free and productive that, had he been a woman, I would have asked him to marry me.”
Peter Watson, award-winning author and journalist
Jo Simmons / Pip Street
Author website for Jo Simmons, creator of 7+ children’s series Pip Street.
“Bookswarm have a strong understanding of the role websites play within the publishing industry and, specifically in my case, within the world of children’s fiction. They created a site that perfectly captured the playfulness of my stories, was easy to navigate, colourful and intelligently designed.”
Jo Simmons, author of the Pip Street books for children (Scholastic)
Little Histories
WordPress-based site for Yale University Press that includes integration with both the Little Histories Twitter feed and with relevant articles from the YUP blog, as well as a database of some of the remarkable people featured in this expanding series of books.
Patrician Press
Branding and website design for startup independent publisher
Ali Knight
Website for Hodder & Stoughton crime author Ali Knight
Raymond Khoury
Website and for New York Times #1 Bestselling thriller writer Raymond Khoury. First designed by Bookswarm in 2011, and re-designed in 2013.
“Redesigning my website was a very enjoyable experience right from the minute I sat down with the Bookswarm team. Truthfully, I can’t recommend Simon and the Bookswarm team highly enough.”
Raymond Khoury, New York Times Bestselling Novelist, author of The Last Templar (Orion)
Saltyard Books
Two generations of this website for Hodder & Stoughton non-fiction imprint Saltyard Books
Pam Evans
Website for established family saga author Pam Evans.
“I can’t speak highly enough of Simon Appleby and the team at Bookswarm. They built a beautiful website for me and Simon was always available to help me learn how to use it.”
Pam Evans, family saga author
Saul David
Website for historian, novelist, lecturer and broadcaster Saul David.
“Bookswarm’s classy design has transformed my website. It looks great, is simple to navigate, and – vital for a non-techno like me – even easier to update.”
Saul David, Historian, Novelist and Broadcaster (Penguin / Hodder & Stoughton)
