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In this course, students will be introduced to the world of book publishing in the digital age, and will gain thorough knowledge both with regard to the material as well as the ‘symbolic’ production of texts. Since the 80s, economies of scale have lead to the emergence of large media conglomerates and internationally strengthened the position of book distribution chains. At the same time, the role of literary agents became more dominant. This has influenced the publication of literary texts. Traditional functions of publishers have been text acquisition, financial risk-taking, text assessment and quality control, sales and marketing. In the course we will step by step follow the process of book publishing and distributing from the viewpoint of the individual publishing house against the backdrop of its legal and economic context.
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The arrival of the digital text, of electronic ways of distribution and of shifts in the public’s media preferences have overthrown traditional business models in the book publishing world. At the same time, traditional ways of taste-making by qualified and respected literary judges are being challenged by the advent of social media, self-publishing and the ‘cult of the amateur’. In this course, the consequences of these trends will be illustrated and discussed. A number of guest speakers from the world of publishing will be invited to comment on current trends, such as the rise of small-scale publishing initiatives and new approaches in the marketing of texts.
Career orientation
Through the course materials and the lectures by guests with a background in various sections of the book publishing world, students will get an insight of the daily practices and dilemmas in publishing and of the rapid changes which take place in this field over the past few years.
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