Harry Bingham continues to receive interesting comments on his blog Toasting Napoleon, on what he has dubbed "The Murder Wars". The latest comes in the post Publishing Most Foul where he draws attention to Jane Jakeman's comment in a previous post, where she referred to the Harrogate Crime Writing Festival's approach to the marketing of crime fiction and its authors. Jakeman wants to open our eyes to the reality behind the scenes and suggests that Harrogate's approach to enlisting authors for panels and events is no different to publishers' approach to bookselling within bookselling chains. Jakeman declares that the authors you see on stage there are just like the ones you see front-of-house in your book chain. It's because the publisher has paid for what is, effectively, promotion. Thus it's those publishers who can afford it, those who have a budget, who have their authors on stage. Smaller publishers and their authors suffer again.
I'm setting out for Harrogate tomorrow and will do some research while there. I didn't fall off my chair at Jakeman's comments because, while I have enjoyed the festival for the past three years, I've not left without some measure of dissatisfaction (notably for visits 2 and 3). Harrogate is not embryonic, but it is still in development and I've returned and enjoyed it, allowing them some slack. It will be interesting to do some critical analysis after this year's experience.
Comments will remain moderated while I am away, so if you leave one after tonight, don't expect to see it until early next week some time, when I'm back and able to review them - not as soon as you'd think. (If you leave a comment totally unrelated to the post in question, just because you want to market something through a link - don't expect to see it at all.)
Enjoy your weekend. I hope the rain stays away as much as possible. Have fun! And I'll leave with a post about Diane Wei Liang's Paper Butterfly, later today.
Lastly, book trade weekly Publishing News is to close. The last edition will be that of July 25th. This has to be my shortest subscription ever. Sad to see them go and sorry that a few will lose their jobs. I hope you find alternative work elsewhere and soon. I enjoyed reading the publication: first online and then in print. The press release says a lot about the publishing trade today and the alternatives for marketing. Another scenario to exmaine in the near future...
Sharon, thanks for leaving a comment and clarifying the situation on author payments/publisher promo spend which I picked up from another blog (at which you have also corrected misperceptions, I note). I very much enjoyed Harrogate this year and consider it perhaps the best year to date (in respect of my own personal enjoyment, as opposed to events). This was my fourth experience, which is why I drew that earlier focus.
I will contact you in the near future with some further direct comments and feedback. Congratulations to you and your team on a well-organised Festival this year!
Posted by: crimeficreader | 26 July 2008 at 18:21
Hope you enjoyed Harrogate this year. We are always looking to improve so do contact me at the office to discuss.
In addition, I'd like to put right the comments that the publishers pay for them to attend. In actual fact the Festival pays the authors to attend in addition to covering expenses.
Programming is down to the Programming Chair, a rolling position, this year Simon Kernick and next Laura Wilson. A voluntary post supported by the Programming Committee.
Sharon Canavar - Operations Director
Posted by: Sharon Canavar | 21 July 2008 at 13:38
Debi darling who again? ;-)))
Posted by: crimeficreader | 16 July 2008 at 19:58
Hope you have a great time in Harrogate. And also wanted to say how uplifting your comments on Harry's blog are - you give us all hope, knowing that such intelligent readers as you are out there blowing our genre trumpet.
(And I'm not just saying that because you call me your darling in his comments box!)
Posted by: Debi | 16 July 2008 at 18:37