Vom 4. bis 19. Oktober 2008 besuchen 16 Fellows auf Einladung der Frankfurter Buchmesse die Verlagsbranche in Frankfurt, München und Berlin. buchmarkt.de stellt Ihnen täglich einen der Teilnehmer vor.
Rochelle Venables ist Lektorin bei Transworld Publishers in London www.booksattransworld.co.uk. Auf dem Buchmarkt Großbritanniens beobachtet sie u.a. einen Trend zur „misery memoir“ (wahre Erzählungen traumatisierter Kindheiten) und den „Richard & Judy TV book club-Effekt“.
buchmarkt.de: Bitte beschreiben Sie uns Ihren Verlag …
I’m a Senior Editor at Transworld Publishers, acquiring upmarket fiction and non-fiction for the Doubleday imprint. Transworld Publishers is a trade publishing company owned by Bertelsmann, and is a division of the Random House Group; Doubleday is a hardback imprint, and publishes such bestselling authors as Terry Pratchett, Kate Atkinson and Monica Ali. Transworld Publishers is particularly well-known for its success on the bestseller lists, and the company boasts authors such as Dan Brown, Andy McNab and Sophie Kinsella.
Mit welchen Schwierigkeiten haben Sie auf dem Buchmarkt Großbritanniens zu tun?
Most striking about the UK book market at the moment is the predominance of brand names. One look at the bestseller lists will show how prevalent those brands are. Whether it’s celebrity-led product, such as Katie Price’s dominance of both the adult and the children’s bestseller lists, or indeed literary ‘brands’ such as Ian McEwan, it’s becoming increasingly difficult to make a non-brand author break out in a significant way.
We also have the Richard & Judy TV book club ‘effect’. As a Richard & Judy pick, a book can expect to sell well into the six figure bracket – which is great if it’s a book from your list! But the net result is that other titles can be squeezed out as the trade gives over a disproportionate amount of space and spend to front and backlist Richard & Judy titles. The power of the Richard & Judy recommendation is still a force to be reckoned with.
The UK’s obsession with ‘misery memoir’ (true tales of traumatised childhoods) continues, although a glut of these titles has led to the beginning of a decline, much the relief of many. With their uniform white covers, miserable children and appalling titles, it’s an area that some publishers feel uncomfortable exploiting, despite the sales potential. Sales of these titles have largely been led by the supermarkets, which has perhaps been the most striking change in the book retail market in recent years.
As sales through supermarkets (and e-tailers like Amazon) grow, the high street chains are finding it harder to compete. The growing power of this sector inevitably has an effect on how, and what, we publish, with hardback literary fiction in particular becoming harder to sell. Big issues include the high discounts commanded by supermarkets, and of course the UK trade is still troubled by a high returns rate from all retailers.
But it’s not all doom and gloom! Prizes are still an important part of the literary landscape in the UK, and it’s been heartening to see independent presses like Tindal Street and Quercus thrive in this area with titles like “What Was Lost” and “The Tenderness of Wolves”. I think the success of these smaller presses and their ability to compete with the corporate giants is important: it reminds us of what we’re all in it for, and that quality will win out …
Welche Erwartungen haben Sie an das Fellowship-Programm und die Frankfurter Buchmesse 2008?
I’m very excited about the Fellowship programme. On a professional level it’s becoming increasingly important to be more internationally-minded and to think outside of the home market, and I’m hoping that the relationships I forge with my international contemporaries might result in some interesting joint projects.
I’m keen to hear about the challenges in other markets and companies, and hope we can share some tips and advice, and take those experiences back to our respective positions. To have such a deep insight into the German book market will be fascinating, and I feel really privileged to be able to take part. I’m hoping to learn a lot, and I’m sure what I do learn will be put to good use back home. On a personal level I’m sure it will be great fun to spend so much time with people connected by their passion for books.
I think the fair itself will be frantic, and no-doubt caffeine fuelled! I’m looking forward to the buzz of it, and to meeting people who I’ve been emailing for years. It makes such a difference meeting people face to face. Though I must confess, I’m finding tales of the epic drinking that takes place in the Frankurter Hof rather frightening…
Das Fellowship Programm wurde anlässlich des 50. Jubiläums der Frankfurter Buchmesse 1998 ins Leben gerufen. In den vergangenen zehn Jahren hat sich ein enges Netz innerhalb der internationalen Verlagsbranche gebildet. Über 165 Teilnehmer aus 45 Ländern konnten bereits von diesem Programm profitieren. In diesem Jahr wird es von Martina Stemann von der Frankfurter Buchmesse organisiert und vom ehemaligen Fellow Laurenz Bolliger vom Berlin Verlag begleitet.
