Immediate release
Issued by Publishing Ireland
PUBLISHERS UNITE TO SAVE LOCAL BOOK INDUSTRY
The great Irish Book Week, a national campaign to help revive the local book industry, which has been very adversely affected by the recession, commences today (Saturday, 24 October)
The latest figure from Nielsen BookScan, which tracks book sales, show that sales of Irish published books have dropped by €3million in the past year. “Compared to other industries, this may not seem like a lot, but the local book market is small, and there is a very low profit margin on books,” said Alan Hayes, President of Publishing Ireland, the national association of book publishers
During the Great Irish Book Week (24-31 October) Irish book publishers will collaborate with booksellers across the island of Ireland, to help attract more people to bookshops and encourage readers to support local authors and publishers.
An independent panel of booksellers has selected 29 new fiction, poetry, Irish language and non-fiction books to showcase the best new Irish books. The list includes books by Joseph O’ Connor, Alice Taylor, Myles Dungan, Eddie Hobbs and many others. Anyone buying a book displaying the special Great Irish Book Week sticker will receive a free 210-page paperback book, which contains extracts from the 29 recommended reads.
Mr Hayes said that publishers and face a bleak Christmas: “At present Irish published books account for only 15% of sales and we face competition form large multi-national book publishers who flood the market with cheap imported books.” He cited the example of Dan Brown’s new book The Lost Symbol, which is being sold for below cost price by some supermarkets.
He added that literature has always been one of Ireland’s greatest export and that despite the industry’s modest size, it contributes greatly to Ireland’s international prestige. “Many of our finest writers, such as Joseph O’ Connor and Eoin Colfer, were given their first break by Irish publishers, before they went on to international fame. Without a vital national book sector emerging authors may never see their work published, and we will be the poorer for it as a nation,” he said.
For a full list of the GIBW titles visit: www.greatirishbookweek.com.
NOTE TO EDITORS:
Alan Hayes, President of Publishing Ireland (formerly CLÉ), is available for interview.
Interviews with a selection of top Irish authors can also be arranged. Please contact Gert Ackermann: M: 086 1769287 E: gert.ackermann@gmail.com. Images on request.
//end
Immediate release: 23 October
Issued by Publishing Ireland
PUBLISHERS UNITE WITH RETAILERS TO SAVE LOCAL BOOK INDUSTRY
The Great Irish Book Week, a national campaign to help revive the local book industry, which has been very adversely affected by the recession, commences today (Saturday, 24 October).
The latest figure from Nielsen BookScan, which tracks book sales, show that sales of Irish published books have dropped by €3million in the past year. “Compared to other industries, this may not seem like a lot, but the local book market is small, and there is a very low profit margin on books,” said Alan Hayes, President of Publishing Ireland, the national association of book publishers.
During the Great Irish Book Week (24-31 October) Irish book publishers will collaborate with booksellers across the island of Ireland, to help attract more people to bookshops and encourage readers to support local authors and publishers.
An independent panel of booksellers has selected 29 new fiction, poetry, Irish language and non-fiction books to showcase the best new Irish books. The list includes books by Joseph O’ Connor, Alice Taylor, Myles Dungan, Eddie Hobbs and many others. Anyone buying a book displaying the special Great Irish Book Week sticker will receive a free 210-page paperback book, which contains extracts from the 29 recommended reads.
Mr Hayes said that publishers face a bleak Christmas: “At present Irish published books account for only 15% of sales and we face competition form large multi-national book publishers who flood the market with cheap imported books.” He cited the example of Dan Brown’s new book The Lost Symbol, which is being sold for below cost price by some supermarkets.
He added that literature has always been one of Ireland’s greatest exports, and that despite the industry’s modest size, it contributes greatly to Ireland’s international prestige. “Many of our finest writers, such as Joseph O’ Connor and Eoin Colfer, were given their first break by Irish publishers, before they went on to international fame. Without a vital national book sector emerging authors may never see their work published, and we will be the poorer for it as a nation,” he said.
NOTE TO EDITORS:
Alan Hayes, President of Publishing Ireland (formerly CLÉ), is available for interview. Interviews with a selection of top authors can also be arranged. Please contact Gert Ackermann: M: 086 1769287 E: gert.ackermann@gmail.com. Images available on request.
//end
