16 October 2014 Book industries – industry meetings at the Conrad Festival

Receiving the prestigious title of the UNESCO City of Literature is not only an honour and prestige. It is an on-going commitment to develop and support creative circles and literature-related milieus. The series ”Book Industries” is a response to the postulate that support should be given to all groups involved in the functioning of literature and the book, being an important element of the creative economy which was part of the application to the UNESCO. At the Conrad Festival, experts in publishing and bookselling industries along with new media specialists will talk about the present condition of the book market, methods of upgrading skills of people involved in developing the framework for the market operation, as well as the role of new media, including the blogosphere, in promoting readership as an important support instrument to the book market.

Traditional bookshops more and more often lose when competing with network giants or internet sales. This problem affects not only the Polish book market. However, our western neighbours have found a solution by consistently supporting bookshops to be transformed into cultural centres meeting diverse clients’ needs and creating an added value by offering more than just a book buy. The international group of bookselling experts, including German experts, some from the staff of Berlin’s leading Dussman network, will try to answer difficult questions about the future of the traditional publishing market, about whether the markets of printed and virtual book are mutually exclusive and whether the top-down regulation of the book market and the so-called fixed price book are advisable solutions. The panelists will also include Directors of the National Centre for Culture and of the Book Institute, Krzysztof Dudek and Grzegorz Gauden, President of the W.A.B. publishing house Beata Stasińska along with booksellers from Krakow and Wrocław. This part of the festival is co-organised by the Polish Institute in Berlin, the National Centre for Culture and the Krakow Festival Office.

Another important area at focus of the Conrad Festival includes libraries as places for the most egalitarian and gratuitous access to literature. Experts and experienced trainers will meet with 25 librarians from all of Poland under the series of training courses: Library Initiatives, Library Activities (BIBA). Librarians selected in the national competition will take part not only in training courses and workshops but also in most author’s meetings with the Conrad Festival guests.

The Conrad Festival will also offer a closed workshop for creators of new media and forms of literary criticism, i.e. increasingly popular literary blogs. In the band “From blogger to writer” participants will learn how, what and for whom to write to become known and visible in the blogosphere. The workshop will be run by two popular bloggers: Agnieszka Kaluga (http://zorkownia.blogspot.com) and Jarosław Czechowicz (http://krytycznymokiem.blogspot.com). The workshop is organised by the City of Literature Foundation and the Krakow Festival Office.

Open offer for Festival audience

The agenda of the ”Book industries” does not only consist of closed industry meetings, at which eminent experts will debate about the future of the publishing market and the methods of promoting readership. There is also a series of meetings addressed to all those interested in book as a commodity.

During four meetings with representatives of the leading independent publishing houses, organisers of the Conrad Festival will suggest a look at the book from the side of its material form, graphic design, typography, paper quality, publisher’s address, price, binding, blurbs, addressees and editorial notes, as well as other matters which might seem of secondary importance. We invited people involved in design, publishing and printing of books to the debate on this subject. In the series of meetings with the audience entitled ”A book: how do you make it?” Monika Sznajderman from the Czarne publishing house (23 October), the owners of the Dwie siostry publishing house (24 October), Krystyna Bratkowska from the NISZA publishing house and Zuzanna Łazarkiewicz representing the ZMOWA association (25 October) and Przemysław Dębowski, designer of the finest Polish book covers (26 October). The author of the series and the host of all meetings will be the journalist and columnist Marcin Wilk. Admission to all events under the series ”A book: how do you make it” admission is free. The series is co-organised by the City of Literature Foundation.

Lokator is the official Festival’s bookshop and a partner of the Conrad Festival. During the Festival week (20-26 October) the bookshop will have its seat at the Festival Centre in Pod Baranami Palace. You are welcome!

In the course of the Festival some selected Krakow bookshops will encourage visitors to participate in the event using specially arranged festival showcases. It is also worthwhile to visit a municipal library where sample collections of books by authors present at this year’s Festival will be awaiting the readers.

Detailed programme:

FOR BOOKSELLERS

25 October at 10:00 am, the ICE Kraków Congress Centre will host the discussion panel entitled: Direction: Bookshops

Recently the book-selling market has shown strong fluctuations and unpredictability – the internet sales have a competitive advantage over traditional bookshops, which are left to their own resources in the market reality and are seeking their new functions and meanings with greater or smaller success.

A wide group of panelists , including Directors of the National Centre for Culture and of the Book Institute, Krzysztof Dudek and Grzegorz Gauden, Beata Stasińska, booksellers from Krakow and Wrocław, as well as a group of leading German booksellers visiting the Conrad Festival and the Book Fair will discusses the following issues:

– What is a bookshop of the future: a single-function specialized shop or a multi-directional cultural centre, attractive place for business meetings, play space for children and place for intellectual recreation for adults?
– Are the markets of printed and virtual book mutually exclusive? What does (or doesn’t) a top-down regulation of the book market (e.g. the Lang Law) offer?
– How to promote good local bookshops?
– How to promote Polish literature abroad?

The meetings will be moderated by representatives of the Polish Book Chamber: Bogdan Szymanik (BOSZ publishers) and Jerzy Okuniewski (Książnica Polska). Admission to the meeting is free, reservations to be sent to the following e-mail address: kzwirski@biurofestiwalowe.pl

The event is organised by the National Centre for Culture and the Krakow Festival Office in cooperation with the Polish Institutes in Berlin and Düsseldorf and the Suhrkamp publishing house under the programmes Krakow – UNESCO City of Literature and the National Programme for Readership Development.

FOR PUBLISHERS

23 – 26 October, A book: How do you make it 

Venue: De Revolutionibus Books & Cafe

During four meetings with representatives of the leading independent publishing houses, we will take a slightly different look at the book, not through its content but rather its cover, paper quality, publisher’s address, price, binding, blurbs, addressees and editorial notes, as well as other matters which might seem of secondary importance. What will then the book become for the cultural policy, the economy or power? Every meeting within the series A book: how do you make it? will focus more or less on the selected issue:

(NOT) EVRYTHING FOR SALE

23 October at 3.00 pm we invite you to the meeting with Monika Sznajderman, co-owner of the CZARNE publishing house.

WATCH OUT, A CHILD!

24 October at 4.30 pm we will hold a meeting with Ewa Stiasna, Joanną Rzyska, Jadwiga Jędyas, the owners of the DWIE SIOSTRY publishing house.

SMALL MATTERS

25 October at 3.00 pm Krystyna Bratkowska from the NISZA publishing house and Zuzanna Łazarkiewicz from the ZMOWA association bringing together small publishing houses will meet with festival participants.

CHALLENGE: DESIGN

A meeting with Przemysław Dębowski, a designer of book covers for all major publishing houses in Poland, co-owner of the KARAKTER publishing house, will be held on 26 October at 3.00 pm.

The author of the concept of the series and the host of all meetings will be Marcin Wilk, journalist and columnist, author of a volume with interviews entitled W biegu...(On the run...)

The series is co-organised by the City of Literature Foundation.

Admission to all festival events under this series is free.

FOR LIBRARIANS

BIBA – national project: Library Initiatives, Library Activities

The BIBA -- the national project Library Initiatives, Library Activities -- is addressed to librarians and prepared in cooperation between the Book Institute and the EMG publishing house. BIBA is expected to raise the participants’ skills in organising cultural life, promoting one’s own establishments and events held there and a better insight of dominant contemporary trends in literature and arts. Under this part of the festival, 25 librarians from all over Poland, selected in the national competition will participate in training, workshops and authors’ meetings.

FOR BLOGGERS

Blogging workshop

The Conrad Festival will also offer a closed workshop for enthusiasts of new media, entitled From blogger to writer. From books to a blog, or how, what and for whom to write to be well known in blogosphere. The workshop will be run by two popular bloggers: Agnieszka Kaluga (www.zorkownia.blogspot.com) and Jarosław Czechowicz (www.krytycznymokiem.blogspot.com). The workshop is organised by the City of Literature Foundation and the Krakow Festival Office.

The Conrad Festival is Poland’s largest event devoted to literature. The motto of the 6th Festival is: Shared Worlds. The Festival is a joint project of the City of Krakow, the Krakow Festival Office and the Tygodnik Powszechny Foundation.