It's an open secret that one of the most innovative and most important parts of general book publishing is in the children's arena. We are very proud that Macmillan Children's Books has been in the forefront of creativity for the last decade and has grown faster than almost any other children's publisher, matched only perhaps by our colleagues at Priddy Books.

Yesterday we announced a major coup in children's publishing, the Ugenia Lavender series from Geri Halliwell. Coverage of the announcement has been extensive and there is much more to come. Congratulations to everyone in the team who has worked so hard to win this programme and thanks in advance for all the work that still needs to happen.

One of the best books published by Picador is John Lanchester's Debt to Pleasure. He is also a journalist and has written an extremely interesting and cogent piece on copyright in a digital age. It's a shame he spoils it by arguing for a legally imposed (but almost certainly legally unenforceable) minimum royalty rate which would have no effect but to increase rancour and bureaucracy.