The scintillating Norwegian publishing scene…

Norway may be a small country with 5.3 million people speaking Norwegian, however, it punches above its weight with its literary scene. Not only do 93% of the population report having read a book in the past year, with 40% having read more than 10 books a year, generating a healthy bookselling market, it is home to a wealth of successful writers whose works travel world-wide.

Norway’s industry benefits from good support from the government, including a scheme for the purchase of new titles for the public library network, a mechanism of fixed book pricing, no VAT on books and collaboration to present Norway as a collective at overseas book fair.

Norway was the Guest of Honour at this year’s Frankfurt Book Fair, which was made possible through a close cooperation between the stakeholders in the industry and the Government.

Here, Kristenn Einarsson, Managing Director of the Norwegian Publishers Association, shares more about Norway, its publishers, highlights from Frankfurt Book Fair 2018 and what to look forward to at the 2020 IPA Conference.

On Norway publishing space…

Emma: How many publishers are there in Norway?
Kristenn: The Publishers Association (PA) has about 100 members, together they represent about 85 percent of the turnover in the market.

Emma: How many new titles are published every year in Norway?
Kristenn: About 10600 (incl textbooks), whereof 6900 published by publishers that are members of the PA.

Emma: Tell us about the bookshops in Norway?
Kristenn: There are about 524 bookshops in Norway, which is remarkable for such a small population. There are four major chains of bookshops: ARK, Norli, Tanum and Akademika.

Emma: How many people read for pleasure in English?
Kristenn: About fifty percent of the readers read in English, which means 45 percent of the population (self-declared).

Emma: Is there an Indian diaspora in Norway?
Kristenn: No.

Emma: What are the key literary events that take place in Norway?
Kristenn: Following are the key literary events in Norway: Lillehammer Literary Festival in May, Kapittelfestivalen in Stavanger in September and several smaller festivals such as God Natt Oslo in September.

Emma: Can you expand on the purchase of new titles scheme?
Kristenn: The Norwegian book purchase scheme is a state-funded program administered by the Arts Council Norway. Every year, between 550 and 1,500 copies of approximately 600 new titles are purchased and distributed to public libraries. The scheme’s main purpose is to safeguard the publication of new Norwegian books, to secure public access to these works and to ensure better revenues for authors. The positive impact of these purchase schemes is indisputable and a key factor in Norway’s exceptionally rich literary ecology.

Emma: Brief us about the mechanism for fixed book pricing?
Kristenn: The fixed book price agreement allows publishers to set the price of a new book on publication. The booksellers and other retailers can then discount up to a maximum of 12.5 percent until May 1 in the following year. This makes it possible for readers to obtain books at a similar price all over the country, and ensures predictability for both writers and publishers

On being Guest of Honour country at Frankfurt Book Fair…

Emma: Norway was Guest of Honour at the Frankfurt Book Fair this year. Can you give us a summary of the activities that were organised for the fair?
Kristenn: During 2019, 185 authors from Norway presented their books at a scene in Germany and a number of Norwegian titles are on the bestseller lists. More than 200 bookshops have been visited by Norwegian authors. 155 Cultural arrangements were arranged as a part of the project. The press coverage has been great, a record we have been told. There were 7600 articles in newspaper, 2000 articles on net, 250 Television coverage and more than 960 radio reportage concerning Norway in October. Over 302,267 visitors visited the Book Fair this year, the highest in the last ten years. The number of private visitors increased by 9.2%. Some of the highlights outside the Fair included the culture program at «The House of Norway» at Museum Angewandte Kunst, Hannah Ryggen Woven Manifestos at Schirn Kunsthalle, Edvard Munch seen by Karl Ove Knausgård at Kunstsammlung NRW and the Norwegian music festival at Mousonturm.

Emma: What were your highlights from the Guest of Honour?
Kristenn: We managed to present many great authors from Norway, besides displaying the importance of literary policy tools to support reading and writing in small language areas and the importance of Freedom to Publish.

Emma: What do you feel are the publishers key takeaways from the fair?
Kristenn: This is not about the book fair in 2019. There has been a build up for the last four years,gradually increasing the number of translations and interaction with the key stakeholders in Germany. Now it is all about who to keep up the momentum in the years to come.

Emma: How do you want to keep the legacy alive from the Guest of Honour programme?
Kristenn: NORLA (the organization for Norwegian Literature abroad) has a strategy for continuing the strong support for the export of Norwegian literature. And inviting the publishers from all around the world to Lillehammer next year is also a way of keeping the flame alive.

On International Publishers Congress (28th – 30th May 2020, Lillehammer)…

Emma: Can you tell us any of the upcoming highlights of the congress which will be its 33rd edition? What will be the major themes?
Kristenn: We have commissioned seven reports to be published covering: 1. Publishers’ Work and the United Nations’ 17 Sustainable Development Goals; 2. Lost Reading and Readers, and the Way Back; 3. What We Know About What Works in Learning Materials; 4. How Is Educational Material Organized Around the World?; 5. A Global Report on Copyright and Publishing; 6. Best Public Policy Measures for the Publishing Industry;and 7. Challenges To the Freedom To Publish. These will be the major topics of the conference. On day two, there will be separate tracks for educational publishers and trade publishers.

Emma: Who should be attending the conference?
Kristenn: We do want to have a broad audience from the publishing industry that will interact in the policy development and sharing of information. The reports will be available before the congress, the reports will be discussed, first by panelists and then in break-out sessions. The findings at both places will be documented in post-congress reports.

Emma: Do you have any advice for Indian publishers who may wish to travel to Norway for the conference in terms of exploring the Norwegian publishing market?
Kristenn: You will meet many Norwegian Publishers at the congress. It is also possible to set up meetings before and after the congress.

Norway and Indian Publishers…

Emma: For Indian publishers looking to work with Norwegian publishers and authors, what do you recommend for collaborations?

Kristenn: We recommend the translation rights schemes, importing Indian English language books into Norway, hosting Norwegian author at Indian literary events and Indian authors at Norwegian literary events.

Organisers of festivals and conferences can apply for NORLA funding to invite Norwegian authors and lecturers to their events. This also applies to universities offering instruction in Norwegian language-related subjects (www.norla.no).

Indian publishers can also look at selling rights to Norway. Norwegian publishers are present at important book fairs such as Frankfurt, London, Bologna and Gothenburg (also Paris, Montreal), they use scouts in important markets such as the USA, UK and Spain). When selling rights, select publishers you want to approach (take a look at bestseller lists, get a grasp on trends), and suggest the right book to the right publisher.

There are two main players for licensing foreign language literature to Norway: SD Books and Vigmostad & Bjørke.

Emma House is an international publishing consultant based in the UK. Her previous roles included Deputy CEO of the Publishers Association UK and Head of International Development at the London Book Fair.

Indian publishers can look at selling rights to Norway. Norwegian publishers are present at important book fairs such as Frankfurt, London, Bologna and Gothenburg (also Paris, Montreal).