English

Again this year, independent publishers will be in Frankfurt. To contact and meet them during the Fair, consult the document below!

Not to be missed, Thursday, 15 October, from 13h to 14h, Hall 3.1 (Weltempfang)
“Independent feminist publishing across borders – a dialogue between 4 feminist publishers from 3 continents” – a round table organised by the Alliance, in partnership with Litprom and the Fair – with Renate Klein (Spinifex Press, Australia), Susan Hawthorne (Spinifex Press, Australia), Colleen Higgs (Modjaji Books, South Africa) and Müge Gürsoy Sökmen (Metis Publishers, Turkey). Facilitated by Juan Carlos Sáez (JC Sáez Editor, Chile).

Preparations for the 5^th edition of the International Bibliodiversity Day are underway all around the world.
The B Day video is available, to be widely distributed around you! You will also find ready-to-use posters here, that you simply need to download and use! Activities and meetings are planned in Mexico, Argentina, Cameroon, Chile, Colombia, Venezuela, Peru, Brazil, Ivory Coast, Egypt, Italy…

Follow B Day activities on this blog and on Facebook. And find out what is happening in your country and/or city!

A celebration - the 21^st September 2015!
Celebrate bibliodiversity with us on the 21^st of September.
For the 5^th International Bibliodiversity Day: picnics, debates, readings, books appearing in unusual places... And coming soon, a video!
Write to us for more information, or to tell us about events going on in your country!

MICA and the Alliance’s Spanish-speaking publishers meeting (Argentina), 2-6 September 2015
In parallel with MICA (Argentina’s cultural industry trade show), 16 Argentinian publishers from Bolivia, Chilli, Colombia, Spain, the Canary Islands, Mexico, Peru and Uruguay will get together in Buenos Aires thanks to support from MICA, the Argentinian Book Chamber and Argentinian members of the Alliance. On the agenda: the implementation of the 80 recommendations promoting bibliodiversity in Latin America and Spain, the creation of a map of Latin America’s public policies...
The publishers will also participate in MICA events: copyright exchanges, co-publishing days, round-table discussions about the concentration of publishing and bibliodiversity...
The program for the Spanish-speaking publishers meeting will be available on the Alliance’s site soon. More information about MICA here!

The International Committee of Independent Publishers meeting - ICIP (Paris) 9-11 October 2015
The ICIP is made up of 6 representatives of the Alliance’s linguistic networks and will meet in Paris for 3 days: the governance of the Alliance, a report and implementation of the recommendations and project resulting from the International Assembly of Independent Publishers, meetings between Alliance partners, freedom of expression and publishing, copyright in Europe and the rest of the world... a busy program!
The CIEI program will be available on the Alliance site soon.

A new website!
A new design, new functions and an improved “Resource Center”: Discover the new Alliance website in November 2015!

The Alliance will be closed from the 10^th to 21^st August. We wish you a great August in the meantime!

17 publishers from West Africa will meet in Dakar for this workshop facilitated by the Digital Lab of the Alliance, and through the support of the International Organization of the Francophonie, in partnership with Wikimedia France, the Afrilivres association and the Senegalese publishers association.
The workshop will include 3 sessions: training on Wikipedia (facilitated by Georges Fodouop and Donatien Foffi, two volunteer members of Wikimedia); the promotion of publishers lists on social networks (facilitated by Nicolas Gary, director of publication of the ActuaLitté Website); the development of Websites for African publishing houses, based on the Web template developed by the Digital Lab of the Alliance (facilitated by Mouhammed Diop, Senegalese developer).

17 independent publishers members of the Alliance will attend the Paris Book Fair, from 20 to 23 March 2015. The Alliance and publishers will also take part in meetings and roundtables… Consult the list of participants and programme through the link below!

And in the margins of the Fair:
Partial meeting of the French-speaking network: 2015 perspectives and discussions on “Freedom of Speech, Freedom of Publishing”
24 March 2015, Centre national du livre (CNL), Paris/ for members of the Alliance only

Meeting with independent publishers or authors from the Maghreb, facilitated in partnership with the Arab and Hebraic World Sorbonne Association (SAMAH)
24 March 2015, 19h00, University of Sorbonne, amphi Guizot (17, de la Sorbonne St - 75005 Paris)

The socio-economic environment, historical approach and political context are only some of the factors to consider in appreciating, in all its complexity and diversity, the notion of an independent publisher. Independent publishers in Chile, France, Benin, Lebanon, or India work in specific contexts that have direct consequences on their activities. However, although the situation differs from one country to another, it is possible to agree on some criteria in order to define what is an independent publisher. Independent publishers develop their editorial policy freely, autonomously, and without external interference. They are not the mouthpieces for a political party, religion, institution, communication group, or company. The structure of capital and the shareholders identity also affect their independence: the takeover of publishing houses by big companies not linked to publishing and implementation of profit-driven policies often result in a loss of independence and a shift in publishing orientation. Independent publishers, as defined by the Alliance’s publishers, are originating publishers: through their often-innovative publishing choices, freedom of speech, publishing and financial risk-taking, they participate in discussions, distribution, and development of their readers’ critical thinking. In this regard, they are key players in bibliodiversity.

Solidarity publishing partnerships, collaborative spaces, resource centre, Intercultural and face-to-face meetings... discover the programme of the Alliance in 2015!

The world (of ideas) is wounded

After the attack this Wednesday, January 7^th 2015 against the French satirical magazine Charlie Hebdo, the 400 publishers of the International Alliance of Independent Publishers offer their most afflicted condolences with friends and family of the victims.

Today more than ever, solidarity is essential —we think about the journalists, cartoonists and publishers from all around the world who risk their lives for freedom of expression. We also hope that these attacks will not serve to feed more islamophobia and xenophobia in Europe.

We will continue with determination and conviction, as we have expressed it in the Declarations of Dakar (2003), Paris (2007), and Cape Town (2014), to work with journalists, authors and creators to struggle against any form of suppression of the word, and to foster fair speech.

9 January 2015, 400 independent publishers from 45 countries in the word,
members of the International Alliance of Independent Publishers

On 23 October this year, the “Terres solidaires” reading Committee selected the next two titles to be published in the collection.

As every year, the committee, composed of book professionals and mediators in Africa, held a continent-wide virtual meeting. After several hours of exchanges and discussions it is, once again, two great African literature novels that were selected: Léonora Miano’s La saison de l’ombre (initially published by Grasset publishers in 2013, 2013 Fémina prize winner) and Hubert Haddad’s Palestine (initially published by Zulma publishers in 2007, 2008 Cinq Continents prize winner). These two novels will be available in Africa in 2015 and 2016 respectively, at a price adapted to local readers’ purchasing power, through an African publisher collective that will copublish these books.

Click here for more information on the other 9 titles published in the “Terres solidaires” collection, as well as on the collection’s publishers and countries where books are distributed.

The Alliance wishes to thank and acknowledge the exceptional work of the reading committee members:
• Saïd AFOULOUS (journalist, Morocco)
• Layla CHAOUNI (Le Fennec publishing, Morocco)
• Élisabeth DALDOUL (elyzad publishing, Tunisia)
• Yasmin ISSAKA-COUBAGEAT (Graines de Pensées publishing, Togo)
• Ludovic KIBORA (journalist, Burkina-Faso)
• Rachid MOKHTARI (journalist, Algeria)
• Jean-Claude NABA (Sankofa & Gurli publishing, Burkina Faso)
• François NKEME (Ifrikiya publishing, Cameroun)
• Serge POUTH (journalist, Cameroun)
• Felwine SARR (teacher, researcher and bookseller, Senegal)

Since its creation, “Terres solidaires” collection is supported by the International Orgainsation of the Francophonie.

Cross-sectional analysis of data collected in 12 countries, by Luc Pinhas, University of Paris 13 Villetaneuse (France)

In a comprehensive cross-sectional study that enriches our knowledge of public book policies in French-speaking sub-Saharan Africa, Luc Pinhas discusses the similarities and differences that exist between 12 countries in the region. While some very interesting developments for local book production and the local book chain should be acknowledged – cf. the preference given to local actors by the Ivorian law of 2015 – the legislative and regulatory frameworks would certainly benefit from being strengthened to support and strengthen the local book economy.

Contents:

• Preamble
• Methodology
• Introduction
• Legal framework
• Taxation and market regulation
• Professional organisation
• Administrative organisation
• Direct support for the book
• Conclusion

This analysis is to be found in a special issue of the Bibliodiversity Journal on “Public book policies” available in paper and digital versions (in French).
See also the analysis on “Public book policies in Latin America”, published in September 2019.

To complement these analyses, see the mapping of public policies and in-country support mechanisms here: publicbookpolicies.alliance-editeurs.org

Data collection in the 11 countries of sub-Saharan Africa and Madagascar as well as in Latin America, cross-sectional data analyses and online mapping were supported by the Fondation de France and the SDC Switzerland.

Read the article here.

References:
The myth of the ‘book famine’ in African publishing, Review of African Political Economy
DOI : 10.1080/03056244.2020.1792872
Elizabeth le Roux (2020)

Abstract:
The publishing industry in Africa is usually described in terms of ‘booklessness’, ‘hunger’ or ‘famine’. But does this language of scarcity reflect the realities of book production and consumption? In this paper, the concept of ‘book famine’ is analysed as a central frame of discourse on African books, using a survey of existing documentation. Two ways of responding to book famine – provision and production – are identified, and the shortcomings of book aid (provision) are contrasted with strengthening local publishing industries (production). It is argued that the concept has become a cliché that is no longer relevant and that African publishing, while variable, is responding to local needs.

“Être éditeur au Maroc : la pensée au triple défi du marché, du droit et des libertés” / “To be a publisher in Marocco”
Kenza Sefrioui (En toutes lettres, Marocco)

In Morocco, it is very difficult to be a publisher, due to the conjunction between the lack of economical development of the sector and a long history of hostility of the authorities toward intellectuals, which destructured the fields of knowledge and culture. En toutes lettres’s experience, a young independent publishing house based in Casablanca and specialized in narrative journalism and humanities, proves the need to take the triple challenge of market, law and freedoms, and to invent new forms of solidarity between publishing, press, research and civil society, in order to rebuild a pole of production of critical thinking.

Read here the article (in French).

RELIEF – Revue électronique de littérature française 14 (1), 2020, p. 32-48
DOI : doi.org/10.18352/relief.1065
ISSN : 1873-5045 – URL : www.revue-relief.org

Download the report produced by APNET (African Publishers Network) in April 2020.

“Francophone African books are still very often published by French imprints, which can make them hard to get at home. But there is a growing push for change...

When Cameroonian author Daniel Alain Nsegbe first saw his debut novel for sale in his home city of Douala, the price was so high “you would have to ask someone to stop eating for two days in order to buy the book”. It was around 16,000 CFA francs (£20); the average monthly salary in Douala is £150. The book, Ceux qui sortent dans la nuit (Those Who Go Out at Night) was published by Grasset, a French imprint. [...]”

Read here the article by Olivia Snaije, published in The Guardian, 14 May 2020.

An unprecedented mapping of policies supporting reading and books in 22 countries, which can be consulted and downloaded online: publicbookpolicies.alliance-editeurs.org

Arising from the observation of the lack of data on public book policies in regions where the member publishers of the Alliance operate, particularly in Latin America and sub-Saharan Africa, the public book policy mapping project is the result of several years of collaboration between book and publishing professionals, academics and experts on public book policies. It relies first and foremost on the investment and involvement of the Alliance’s member publishers, who are its primary actors. It is one of the flagship projects of the Bibliodiversity Observatory.

The mapping proposes several items: one entry per country (country fact sheets listing existing mechanisms for public support for books at the national level); a regional entry (comparative data through cross-cutting analyses). It is interactive and evolving: the fact sheets presenting the institutions and national public book policies can be amended and modified as the systems evolve. This mapping is thus intended to be extended to new countries in both regions, or even to integrate a new region in the long term (the Arab world in particular). For now, the mapping exists only in Spanish and French for lack of financial means to carry out a translation into English. The Alliance hopes to find the necessary funds to translate the mapping into English soon.

The objectives of the mapping are to:
• make available data on the public book policies of the respective countries;
• offer an overview of public book policies, freely accessible, consultable and reusable by professionals and public authorities;
• promote dialogue and exchanges between public authorities and publishers;
• develop advocacy tools for independent publishers;
• contribute to the establishment and consolidation of public book policies in developing countries (among others, for a greater circulation of books and ideas, for the appropriation of digital tools by book professionals, for balanced exchanges between North and South);
• affirm the role of civil society (book professionals and particularly independent publishers) in the development and implementation of public book policies.

The Alliance warmly thanks the partners of this project: the Fondation de France and the Swiss SDC.

See the complementary issue of the Bibliodiversity journal “Public book policies”.

Press release

• « Quelles politiques publiques en faveur du livre ? », Publishers & Books, numéro spécial OAPE/AIEI, May-June, 2020
• « Quel avenir pour le livre dans l’après-Covid ? », The conversation, June 3, 2020
• “Cartografía de las políticas públicas para el libro en América latina, y en África subsahariana y Madagascar”, Valor de Cambio, June 3, 2020
• « En Afrique subsaharienne, le secteur du livre lourdement impacté par la pandémie », Le Monde Afrique, May 27, 2020
• “Mapping Book and Publishing Policy in Africa and Latin America”, Publishing Perspectives, May 21, 2020
• « Politiques publiques du livre : une cartographie en ligne pour la bibliodiversité », News Mada, May 20, 2020
• « Cartographie des politiques publiques du livre à travers 22 territoires », ActuaLitté, May 13, 2020
• « Cartographie des politiques publiques du livre », En toutes lettres, May 13, 2020
• « Cartographie des politiques publiques du livre », Fédération internationale des coalitions pour la diversité culturelle (FICDC), May 2020

If you have any questions, please do not hesitate to contact the Alliance team at: equipe@alliance-editeurs.org

Publishing & the Book in Africa: A Literature Review for 2019
The fifth in a series of annual reviews of select new literature in English that has appeared on the topic of publishing and the book sector in sub-Saharan Africa. Extensively and critically annotated and/or with abstracts, the present list brings together new literature published during the course of 2019, a total of 156 records.

Read the pre-print version here.

The final print/online version to be published in The African Book Publishing Record, vol. 45, issue 2 (May 2020).

Reprinted with permission of the author.
Copyright © Hans Zell Publishing Consultants 2019

This chronological timeline sets out some of the key dates, events, and landmarks in the history and development of indigenous publishing in Sub-Saharan Africa. It also includes details of the major conferences, meetings or seminars on African publishing, held in Africa or at venues elsewhere, since 1968. An earlier version of this chronology first appeared in The African Publishing Companion: A Resource Guide, and has now been updated through to the period up to 2019, and considerably expanded to also include publication of a number of benchmark studies, conference proceedings, journals, and reference resources on the African book world.

Read here the pre-print version on Academia.edu, 21 October 2019.

Final version, to be published in African Research & Documentation. Journal of SCOLMA (The UK Libraries and Archives Group on Africa), no. 136 (2019)

Reprinted with permission of the author.
Copyright © Hans Zell Publishing Consultants 2019

“Minority languages”, the new issue of the Bibliodiversity journal, coordinated by Nathalie Carré (Institut National des Langues et Civilisations Orientales, Inalco) and Raphaël Thierry (independent researcher)

Contact the Alliance team to get a free digital version of this issue.

Bibliodiversity is co-published by Double ponctuation and the International Alliance of Independent Publishers.

See all the other issues of the journal here (“Public book policies”, “Self-publishing”, “Publishing and commitment”, “Translation and Globalization”...)

Presentation
More than half of the languages spoken in the world are in danger of disappearing; if nothing is done, UNESCO estimates that 90% of languages will have disappeared in the course of this century. Languages are an essential part of a people’s culture, yet they are much more than just a tool for communication; they offer a unique view of the world and of the people who live in it. What can the publishing sector do – and is already doing – to help preserve and sustain these minority languages? This book attempts to answer this question through academic articles and testimonies of book professionals who, together, propose a novel approach to the subject.

In the light of their publications, the book analyses the situation of several minority languages - Haitian Creole, Corsican, Innu, Yiddish, Kikuyu, Basque, Malagasy, Náhuatl, etc. and shows that solutions are possible when the actors in the book system are mobilised.

Summary:

• Publishing in minority languages – On diversity of publishing languages in a
  globalized context / by Nathalie Carré (Inalco, France) and Raphaël Thierry
  (independent researcher, France)

• Creole publishing in Haiti – Obstacles, initiatives and development prospects /
  by Sandie Blaise, Duke University (United States)

• The spread of Yiddish poetry in German speaking world – The case of bilingual editions / by Caroline Puaud, Paris Sorbonne University

• Write and publish in Madagascar – How to reach the world? / by Dominique Ranaivoson, University of Lorraine (France)

• Make minority languages dialogue (online) – The example of intergenerational collaboration in East Africa / by Pierre Boizette, Paris-Nanterre University (France)

• Normativity, diversity and dynamics of creation in the contemporary Basque literary field – Study of its operating trends through the literary trajectory of Eñaut Etxamendi / by Itziar Madina Elguezabal, Bordeaux-Montaigne Doctoral school (France)

• Locate, catalog, make visible – The place of minority languages in collections of the University Library for Languages and Civilizations Studies (BULAC) / Interview with Marine Defosse, Soline Lau-Suchet and Nicolas Pitsos, librarians at BULAC (France)

• “As long as the language circulates, we will have books to produce” / interview with Bernard Biancarelli (Albiana Publishing, Corsica/France)

• “Publishing must grow the world” – Mémoire d’encrier and the languages of the world / interview with Rodney Saint-Éloi, Mémoire d’Encrier Publishing (Quebec / Canada)

• “Saving a language is a task for all of us” / by María Yolanda Argüello Mendoza, Magenta editions (Mexico)

• Public book and reading policies for indigenous languages in Chile. Intervention (updated in 2020) in the Parliament of Books and Speech / by Paulo Slachevsky, Lom Ediciones (Chile)

• Save, transmit – An example of transcription-translation from oral literature
  of some Vietnam’s peoples / by Mireille Gansel, translator, writer

• PEN’s commitment to Linguistic Rights – The importance of writing, publishing and reading in marginalized languages / interview with Peter McDonald (University of Oxford) and Carles Torner (PEN International), July 2018, Oxford and London

These recommendations and proposals are taken from the 80 recommendations & tools in support of bibliodiversity; they are built on the principles upheld in the 2014 International Declaration of independent publishers.

These recommendations are based on the experiences and practices of the International Alliance of independent publishers: they mainly focus on publishing partnerships between publishers from the South, given that support for publishing in these countries is often weak or inexistent, and between publishers of the South and North, given that these exchanges are few.