EDITORIAL
(from March 03 issue)
LBF continues to grow
While some publishers may have done really well,
nobody could claim that the publishing sector has had a great
year. In spite of that, Alistair Burtenshaw tells us that LBF
has seen an overall growth of over 7% and the Rights Centre
has grown by 16%. It is good to see such a level of optimism
with all that is going on at the moment.
The results of our circulation audit for 2002 have arrived and
the mailing list grew by 6% to an average monthly circulation
of 5,707. This represents steady growth and it is especially
pleasing as much work has been put in to improve the quality
of the mailing list.
On the subject of the mailing list, could I ask those of you
who have not yet subscribed to do so as our initial free distribution
will be phased out. A year’s subscription represents great
value at only £18 and for the next three months we are
donating £5 to the BTBS for every subscription received.
Paul Thorne
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Audited
circulation for the year to 31st December 2002. Average circulation
per issue of 5,707.
Book
People is published by Chappell Thorne
16 Chilham Way, Bromley, Kent BR2 7PR
Telephone: 020 8462 5000 • Fax: 020 8462 9993
ISDN: 020 8462 8076
Email: bookpeople@chappell-thorne.com
Sub
Editor: Paula Arkell
Production: Liz Bingold
Advertising Sales: Jenny Kearl
© 2003 by Chappell Thorne. All rights reserved. No part
of this publication may be reproduced, stored in any retrieval
system, or transmitted, in any form or by any means, electronic,
mechanical, photocopying, recording, or otherwise, without the
prior written permission of the publisher.
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SOMETHING
FOR EVERYONE AT OLYMPIA
Alistair
Burtenshaw, exhibition director, is confident that the new developments,
seminars and events created for 2003 made the Fair an even more
productive and interesting place to be.
Alistair Burtenshaw, Exhibition Director
IT'S TIME TO TALK BUSINESS ... and that's exactly what 13,532
visitors did when they visited London Book Fair.
Achieving a 19% increase on the total visitor attendance
as well as an increase in bookseller attendance of 17%, anyone
who was anyone in the publishing industry could not afford to
miss out on the Springs major publishing event.
A truely international event, the additional marketing focus
to international visitors was rewarded with an increase of almost
20%. London Book Fair 2004 dates - 14 - 16 March 2004
Record International Attendance
There were more overseas visitors at this year’s London
Book Fair than ever before. The record attendance marks a massive
20% increase on last year and is particularly notable in the
current political and economic climate.Just under 5,000 visitors
from outside the UK attended over the three days of the Fair.
Total attendance (not including exhibitors) for the event also
saw a dramatic rise on last year: there were over 13,500 visitors*,
marking a 19% increase on 2002. The number of booksellers was
also up, by 17%, to 3,075.Alistair Burtenshaw, Director of London
Book Fair 2003, said: " It’s incredible that there
have been more overseas visitors this year than ever before
– this in spite of the effect media coverage of impending
war could have had on London Book Fair.
"I’m
equally delighted that the number of booksellers attending has
also substantially increased, reflecting the huge range of books,
services and events on offer to retailers at the Fair. These
figures give a fantastic picture of the state of the international
publishing community and the support the industry gives to the
event."* Total visitor attendance at the London Book Fair
2003 was 13,532, up on 2002 figures by 19%
* Overseas visitors totalled 4,995, up by 19.7% on last year
* Number of booksellers was up by 17% to 3,075
*These figures apply purely to trade, i.e. they do not include
the number of consumer visitors (projected to be 1,000+). They
also do not include revisits on any day or exhibitor personnel.
Total Fair attendance, including exhibitors, are projected to
be in the region of 25,000 (exact figure to be announced shortly).
.
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BOOKMASTER
NEWS FROM TMS TAILOR MADE SYSTEMS
Publishers and book distributors - can’t get no
satisfaction – Many publishers in the UK feel that their
publishing and distribution systems are unsatisfactory.
Publishers and book distributors who are looking for a viable
alternative may hesitate to change to something new, as non-book
specific systems have proven to be unsuitable and expensive
to modify. However, currently available publishing-specific
systems can be deficient in vital areas such as distribution,
and often require modifications.
Nevertheless, the advent of e-commerce, higher consumer expectations
and increased competition are pushing the publishing industry
into modernising its software systems.
If you face the following issues you may need to look at an
alternative solution to your current system:
– Are you still stuck with outmoded facilities?
– Are you spending too much on maintaining your current
system?
– Can your system cope with the changes to the returns
system as proposed by the BIC Returns Committee – and
if not, what will it cost to achieve this?
– Do you have budget constraints yet at the same time
have the challenge of finding ways to improve sales and deliver
books faster to your customers?
If you have answered yes, TMS Tailor Made Systems may be a viable
alternative. This well-established software developer recently
opened an office for the first time in the UK to market its
world-leading publishing system, Bookmaster.
Bookmaster is the world’s most widely used publishing
system and almost all of Bookmaster’s 80-plus publishers
worldwide, from small to large publishers, use the same standard
version of Bookmaster. And, according to TMS, because Bookmaster
is a close fit to the requirements of most publishers, it can
normally be implemented with few or no modifications, making
it a cost-effective yet highly advanced publishing and distribution
software solution. To find out more email marketing@tms.
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DIFFICULT
TIMES FOR US BOOK MARKET
Initial estimates show bookstore sales in 2002 grew
around 1%, lagging the retail sector generally where growth
for year was around 3%. Sales for the fourth quarter of 2002
were down over 3%.
Although Borders and Barnes & Noble reported small overall
sales increases for the quarter, both saw similar declines in
like for like fourth quarter sales with superstores down 3%
and mall stores down 6%. This year started poorly on the retail
front and forecasts for the libraries are not hopeful, with
reductions being reported in materials budgets and book purchases
being cut disproportionately to protect journal budgets.
What can publishers do against this backdrop? If you don’t
have a local distributor, then finding one should be high on
your list of things to do as selling directly from the UK is
becoming increasingly difficult. While library budgets are down
this sector still has considerable spending power and can be
easier to sell into than the retail market. If you don’t
have the resources to do your own marketing and promotion in
the US then you should look for a ‘full service’
distributor who should, among other things, provide sales and
marketing support for your titles, use your name in their promotions,
supply data downloads to the numerous online retailers and data
‘warehouses’, help with shipping to the US and ideally
take the credit risk for sales they make.
Learn more on selling in the US by contacting ISBS, email stewart@isbs.com
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BOOK
DEALS FROM PROFILE AND RANDOM HOUSE
Supermarket
sweep at Profile books
Profile Books has signed up Judi Bevan's new book, Trolley Wars,
which tells the story of the cut-throat competition between
the supermarkets, and especially now for Safeways.
Bevan's previous book, The Rise and Fall of Marks & Spencer,
sold over 30,000 copies and was WH Smith's Business Book of
the Year in 2002. It was also the basis of a TV documentary
screened in autumn 2002.
'The supermarket wars make the UK book trade look positively
civilised,' says Andrew Franklin, Profile Books MD.
Further information from ruth.killick@profilebooks.co.uk
Debut novel sold to Random House for over £100,000
Random House bought UK and Commonwealth rights to Rolling the
Dice by debut novelist Emily Giffin (excluding Canada) for over
£100,000 in a best bid battle, with Michael Joseph/Penguin
the underbidder. Random House will publish the book as a paperback
original with a substantial marketing campaign in summer 2004.
St Martin's bought the book in the US, with Warner the underbidder,
and will publish it in hardback in spring 2004.
Rolling the Dice tells the story of Rachel Miller's quest to
find happiness and be a good person. Up until this point, her
life has followed a fairly predictable pattern - no pitfalls,
no wrong turns, no drama. But all this changes when she falls
in love with her best friend Darcey's fiancé. It's a
funny, acutely intelligent novel about friendship, love and
self-knowledge - and will appeal to anyone who has ever wanted
to reinvent themselves.
The author is a 30-year-old American litigation lawyer who,
after spending four years working for one of the top NY law
practices, decided to escape a cut-throat 15-hour-a-day position
and move to London determined to fulfill her dream of becoming
a writer.
For more information please contact Lorella Belli at LBLA. Tel.
020 77278547 Fax. 0870 7874194 E-mail. info@lorellabelliagency.com
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LIGHTNING
SOURCE/IBM EXPANSION
Lightning
Source UK Ltd. and IBM have put into service an additional high
speed digital print line to give publishers greater capacity
in meeting the needs of their customers.
The next generation of on-demand print solutions from Lightning
Source UK capitalises on an already established foundation of
advanced technology and robust solutions. The installation of
an additional IBM Infoprint 4100 print line is expected to boost
Lightning Source UK print capacity by more than 50% to keep
pace with the increasing demand of its products.
Print-on-demand book sales have soared in the US, and Lightning
Source and IBM are poised for the growth that is expected in
the UK. For example, CAP Ventures European On Demand Printing
& Publishing Consulting Service has forecast that the entire
print-on-demand market in Europe will grow from $17.8 bn in
2001 to $36.7 bn in 2006 at a compound annual growth rate of
15%.
For more information, visit www.lightningsource.com or www.ibm.com/printers.
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NEW
APPOINTMENTS FOLLOW BIDDLES/IBT GLOBAL PARTNERSHIP
Biddles Managing Director, Mick Read (left)
with IBT Global president, John R Paeglow III.
Biddles, one of the UK's leading single and two-colour book
manufacturers, has announced a reciprocal partnering agreement
with top US digital book manufacturer, IBT Global based in Troy,
New York.
In a move which will see Biddles offer the simultaneous print
of short-run book orders both sides of the Atlantic, publishers
will enjoy increased operating efficiency with a faster route
to market and the elimination of expensive export and warehousing
costs.
As a result of the agreement, Biddles increases the company's
digital print capability threefold and gains access to IBT Global's
in-house expertise in digital jacket and cover production. Biddles
is offering publishers one point of contact via a dedicated
account management team.
Biddles has appointed two key staff following the company’s
recent partnership with IBT Global. Both with established careers
in the industry, Justin Drayton joins as account controller
and Gareth Padgett as sales executive. Based at Biddles' King's
Lynn site, Justin is responsible for managing customer orders
both sides of the Atlantic. He will also oversee the production
control of jobs manufactured on the digital web and also offer
in-house expertise in digital jacket and cover production.
Drawing on his experience as an apprenticeship served, litho
printer, Gareth will ensure the smooth transition of IBT Global
UK customers from the company's current Barking operation to
the Biddles' King's Lynn site.
For further information contact Biddles sales team on 01483
502224 or visit the Biddles website at www.biddles.co.uk
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MADELINE
ALBRIGHT, HENRY LOUIS GATES, JR., AND ELLEN DEGENERES AT BOOKEXPO
AMERICA
BookExpo America (BEA) has announced
speakers for its special events, including its annual celebrated
Book & Author Breakfasts, at the next book convention which
will be held at the Los Angeles Convention Center in Los Angeles,
May 29 - June 1, 2003.
The speakers appearing in the morning on Saturday, May 31 are
Henry Louis Gates, Jr., Jhumpa Lahiri, and Gerry Adams, and
the breakfast will be hosted by Noah Adams. The speakers participating
in the morning program on Sunday, June 1 are Madeline Albright,
Maxine Hong Kingston, and Michael Moore.
This year’s Saturday Book & Author Luncheon will have
a political slant, as some of the nation’s top commentators,
including Al Franken, Molly Ivins, Bill O’Reilly, and
Tucker Carlson, will participate in a lively discussion of their
forthcoming books. On Sunday, June 1 Jonathan Lethem, Dennis
Lehane, Anita Diamant, Suzan-Lori Parks, and Cristina García
will speak at a Book & Author Tea from 10:30am – 12pm.
“The Heard Word”: BEA’s Audio Book & Author
Tea, which is annually hosted by the Audio Publishers Association,
will take place on Saturday, May 31 and will feature Alisa Valdes-Rodriguez,
T. Jefferson Parker, and Doris Roberts.
As previously announced, Ellen DeGeneres will address the book
industry in a solo comic benefit performance at 9:00pm on Saturday
evening, May 31 at The Wiltern. Proceeds of BEA’s Evening
with Ellen will benefit the Book Industry Foundation, which
is comprised of the American Booksellers Foundation For Free
Expression (ABFFE) and the Association of American Publishers
Get Caught Reading campaign.
“This year’s special events are notable not only
for the range of speakers participating at BEA, but also for
the wealth of knowledge these speakers bring to their individual
areas of interest,” notes Greg Topalian, vice-president
and show manager for BEA. “BEA’s speaker program
is a highlight of convention activity and I am always pleased
and grateful to see that publishers recognise this by submitting
their most interesting authors for consideration. We try to
balance our final selections with authors who are not just well
known, but who may also have something of an interesting personal
nature to share. This year, many of the authors participating
in our speaker programme are distinguished not just by who they
are, but by what they have done, and we look forward to hearing
their observations based on their unique set of experiences.”
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WRITE
FIRST TIME - A NEW COURSE FROM PTC
The Publishing Training Centre
introduces a new course this spring – Write First Time.
The course has been designed for people who are not professional
writers, but who nevertheless find themselves doing a good deal
of writing on a day-to-day basis.
It deals with the essentials of creating text for a variety
of literature, from reports, features and newsletters to text
for illustrated books.
The course differs from most writing courses, in that instead
of focusing on copywriting skills for marketers or creative
writing skills for budding novelists, it directs its attention
to the skills needed for what might be termed ‘everyday’
writing.
Producing clear, simple written communication is a task requiring
a distinct set of skills, just as important to grasp, but often
overlooked. Skills such as knowing what style to use for which
purpose, how to make effective use of rhetorical techniques,
how to make a visual impact and when it’s best to keep
things simple.
The course is taught by Andrew Steeds, tutor on the Copy-Editing
Skills, Rewriting Workshop and grammar courses. It takes the
student through each stage of writing from the planning stages,
through to the process of revision, ironing out grammatical
and structural issues along the way.
Write First Time is an extremely practical course based on the
premise that everyone can produce effective original text with
confidence once they are armed with the knowledge, advice and
tips that the course provides.
It takes place on April 7-8 at Book House in Wandsworth, £590+VAT.
For more information visit www.train4publishing.co.uk or call
020 8874 2718.
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