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There was a time when the word ‘writer’ evoked a rather unflattering image – a man (it had to be a man for some reason) in ill-fitting kurta pyjama, unshaven and unkempt, toiling away at a rickety table on a tome. Today, say writer and what a different image comes to mind! Writers are celebrities by their own right, commanding a fan following no less than movie stars. Writers represent an intellectual status symbol – being seen with a Vikram Seth in hand is much cooler than being spotted in a designer wear!
India is writing like never before. Take for example the pulsating blogging scene. From architecture to food, from travel to feminism, we have bloggers who know their subject, and who have considerable readership base. Corporate houses have woken up to the advertising potential of bloggers: what could be more powerful than having a popular blogger review a product? In fact there have been instances where publishing houses have signed up bloggers for book deals.
Pundits have projected double-digit growth trends for publishing industry in India. This is evidenced by the burgeoning literary fests and book fairs. We have Booker and Man Asian winners amidst us; and we also have the books that read like draft Bollywood scripts – both categories having their specific market. With the advent of self-publishing technology, bringing out a book has never been more easier. But with all that, are we reading more quality books from Indian authors? Isn’t it a mystery that despite such a spotlight, we still don’t have an Indian Ian Fleming, Stephen King or JK Rowling?
It appears that ‘publishing’ by itself is not yet organised as an industry. Unlike retail, IT or manufacturing, publishing is not governed by standard structure and processes. The scene within is chaotic, with teething problems in distribution and retail. There is hardly any reliable statistics that show market trends in this fragmented space.
This blog hopes to deconstruct the publishing world. If you’d like to see a post on any specific area of Indian publishing, please do leave a comment here. I’ll try and put up a post based on your request.
More importantly, enjoy this blog :)
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