Children`s conference: how to grow the market 10 10

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18.09.15
CHILDREN’S
CONFERENCE PREVIEW
www.thebookseller.com
Children’s conference:
how to grow the market
QUESTIONS
WE ASKED...
Tom Fickling
Editor, The Phoenix
Why do you think there is a resurgence of interest
around illustrators and illustration at the moment?
I don’t think kids are having a resurgence in their interest,
just publishers. Kids have always loved illustration. As
adults we carry around all this world-weary ennui and
forget that when we were younger we were more “Woah
spaceship! Cool!”. lllustration-led events are so captivating
and interactive. Kids love drawing and doodling and they
love watching it too. At Phoenix 75% of those who attend
our events go on to buy our books. I’m not sure many
publishers can say that. But also we have some simply
brilliant illustrators in the UK. People such as Chris Riddell
show that being a storyteller doesn’t just mean writing,
it’s illustration too.
2
How popular are comics in the digital age?
More popular than ever. I never bought into this
“physical things are dead” nonsense. It was one of those
silly predictions, like everyone who said the Segway was
the next big thing. You go to France, the US or Japan and
everyone is reading comics. Both physical and digital.
Online, offline, on every device, in papers, books . . .
In our experience children love picking up a paper comic
and curling up in the corner somewhere to read it. And
rather brilliantly we find that parents love seeing their
kids do that too.
3
Is the internet a threat to comics?
The internet is only a threat to authoritarian dictatorial
regimes. For everyone else it’s a glorious source of
communication and information (and cat gifs).
4
What can publishers learn from the comic book world?
That given a choice most reluctant readers will pick up a
comic over a novel every time. Like Art Spiegelman said:
“Comics are a gateway drug to literacy.” The only trouble
with comics is that you don’t get many new and original
ones because they are quite expensive to make.
CHILDREN’S
PRE-SCHOOL
TOP
10
BY CHARLOTTE EYRE
Publishers and authors
should look to create
online content in order
to widen the reach of
their intellectual property
(IP), speakers from The
Bookseller’s Children’s
Conference have said
ahead of this year’s
event. However, in
a period when
children’s print
book sales are
growing ahead of
the wider market,
others stressed
the importance
of print books as
the foundation of the
business.
This year, the conference
is focused on extending
the reach of stories. The
event, which takes place
on 29th September, is
titled “Invention and
Reinvention—Growing
the Children’s Market”,
and includes speakers
from Penguin Random
House, Bonnier, Walker and
Waterstones.
Dylan Collins, the c.e.o.
of SuperAwesome who is
appearing on a panel about
using IP, said publishers
needed to exploit their
brands across multiple
channels. “If you look at the
trends about where the kids
are, they are consuming
content across all different
types of channels, so why
would you make it more
difficult for the audience to
engage with your brand?”
The publisher’s role of
nurturing the author hasn’t
changed, he said, but what
has changed is where that
author needs to be. “Authors
want to reach as much of
the audience as possible
so publishers’ skillsets and
remits have to widen.”
Walker communications
manager Paul Black, who is
featuring in a session entitled
“Making the Most of a
POS LAST TITLE
AUTHOR
PUBLISHER
ISBN
1
2
3
4
5
6
7
8
9
10
Donaldson, J & Scheffler, A
Donaldson, J & Monks, L
-
Fletcher, Poynter and Parsons
Kerr, Judith
-
Donaldson, J & Scheffler, A
Donaldson, J & Scheffler, A
Donaldson, J & Scheffler, A
Donaldson, J & Scheffler, A
Scholastic
Macmillan Children’s Phidal
Red Fox
HarperCollins Children’s
Ladybird
Macmillan Children’s
Alison Green
Macmillan Children’s
Macmillan Children’s
9781407144689
9781447275954
9782764323519
9781782951797
9780007215997
9780723299318
9781447273400
9781407108827
9781447273424
9781447273431
1
New
4
3
6
5
8
Re
10
9
The Scarecrows’ Wedding
What the Ladybird Heard Next
Frozen:My Busy Book
The Dinosaur That Pooped the Bed!
The Tiger Who Came to Tea
Goodnight Peppa
Tales from Acorn Wood: Fox’s Socks
Stick Man
Tales from Acorn Wood: Postman Bear
Tales from Acorn Wood: Hide-and-Seek Pig
*Week ending12th September 2015
Heritage Brand”, agreed that
a book cannot succeed by
itself. “If you were to just have
the book as your channel
to consumers it would very
quickly be swallowed up by
all the other activity out there.
“I think you have to start
with your book then spiral
out from there on your
activity—always keeping
the source at the centre.”
Author C J
Daugherty decided
to take on much
of her own brand
building herself by
creating a YouTube
series based on
her YA book series
Night School (Atom).
Daugherty, who will talk
about her experience, said:
“YouTube is a big part of my
marketing plan. I make my
own book trailers, absorbing
the cost of production in
order to control the quality.”
For Daugherty, authors
must extend their own
brands because “big
publicity pushes [from
publishers] are expensive
and publishing budgets are
getting smaller”.
Catherine Stokes, head
of sales and marketing at
Nosy Crow, said her strategy
was to “push the Nosy
PUB DATE
RRP
ASP
Aug 15 £6.99£4.42
Sep 15 £11.99 £7.05
Oct 13 £7.99 £4.46
Aug 15 £6.99 £4.44
Feb-06 £6.99 £4.19
Aug 15 £6.99 £4.11
Jan 15 £5.99 £3.50
Sep-09 £6.99 £4.24
Jan 15 £5.99 £3.64
Jan 15 £5.99 £3.48
18.09.15
THE BOOKSELLER
CHILDREN’S
CONFERENCE SPEAKERS
Catherine Stokes left will be talking about joint
branded publishing with Kate Wilson, Nosy Crow’s
m.d., and Katie Bond, publisher at the National
Trust.
Dylan Collins is appearing on a panel
discussion about knowing and growing intellectual
property.
Laura Main Ellen will give her bookseller’s
perspective to the panel on how bookshops and
publishers can work together.
Rachel Williams will speak about the importance
of print in relation to Quarto’s new imprint Wide
Eyed Editions.
C J Daugherty will describe how she turned her
YA book series into a YouTube brand.
Crow brand beyond the
book”, citing its recently
launched online shop of
illustration prints, but said
the importance of the
print book was paramount,
adding “getting the book
itself right is still the most
important thing”.
Quarto publisher Rachel
Williams, who launched the
Wide Eyed Editions imprint
last year, agreed, and said
reading on paper had
advantages over consuming
content digitally.
She said paper “boasts
unique advantages for
UNITS
4,425
2,867
2,436
2,426
1,999
1,946
1,738
1,730
1,687
1,615
CHILDREN’S
CONFERENCE PREVIEW
www.thebookseller.com
CHILDREN’S & YA
FICTION
TOP
10
concentration, enjoyment
and critical thinking”, and
that the fact that print
minimises multi-tasking
(readers are more likely to
jump between screens than
jump between book and
screen) is an advantage.
For Laura Main Ellen, lead
children’s bookseller from
Waterstones Piccadilly, print
books are often a welcome
release from the dominance
of screens. “I spend so
much time on Twitter and
YouTube, I like putting my
eyes to paper. It’s the same
for children. “
COMMENT: ADVANTAGES OF
THE INTERNATIONAL MARKET
I
was at a dinner recently when Harry
been left
Potter came up in conversation.
unscathed
There were people from four different by the global
countries around the table, but although
economic
C le m enti n e Ga is m
we’d each read them in our own language, downturn,
an
the Harry Potter books had been a major
and publishers
part of growing up for all of us. Assisting
everywhere are being more
in the creation of shared emotional
selective. Not all British books have
experiences that unite people across
international appeal and no two markets
cultural boundaries is one of the best
are the same; as rights sellers we need to
parts of working in international rights. As
keep constantly up to date with changing
the children’s and YA sectors are currently
market conditions worldwide. Cultural
performing so well against overall
and religious differences mean that taste
market performance
can differ significantly
worldwide, the
between countries
present climate offers
and, in some markets,
particularly exciting
we need to work with
Translation
opportunities to
local publishers to
deals offer an
maximise international
overcome political
opportunity
growth in children’s
conservatism and
to export the
publishing. Alongside
create opportunities
UK’s creativity
the financial reward
for children and
and culture to
from translation deals,
teenagers to
readers around
international sales can
understand each
the world
be used to underwrite
other’s worlds.
investment in picture
Once found, though,
book talent as costs
translation deals
are shared by several publishers. In an age
offer an opportunity to export the UK’s
where technology and social media are
creativity and culture to readers around
making the world increasingly connected, the world. International sales enable
children and teenage readers are able to
children who grow up on opposite
engage with authors and publishers more
sides of the globe to inhabit the same
than ever, and as marketing and PR move
worlds and share cultural and emotional
increasingly online, publishers can coexperiences, bringing us closer together.
operate across geographical and linguistic
borders to maximise a book’s success.
Clementine Gaisman handles rights for
Despite the positive outlook for
children’s and young adult titles at the
the children’s book market, securing
Intercontinental Literary Agency and will be
international deals is not without its
talking about international markets at The
challenges. No translation markets have
Bookseller’s Children’s Conference .
‘‘
POS LAST TITLE
AUTHOR
PUBLISHER
ISBN
1
1 The Shepherd’s Crown
2 New How to Fight a Dragon’s Fury
3
2 Paper Towns
4
3 Girl Online
5
6 Listen to the Moon
6
9 Gangsta Granny
7
7 Demon Dentist
8
5 Paper Towns
9
8 Katy
10 Re Harry Potter and the Philosopher’s Stone
Pratchett, Terry
Cowell, Cressida
Green, John
Sugg, Zoe
Morpurgo, Michael
Walliams, David
Walliams, David
Green, John
Wilson, Jacqueline
Rowling, J K
Doubleday Children’s
Hodder Children’s Books
Bloomsbury
Penguin
HarperCollins Children’s
HarperCollins Children’s
HarperCollins Children’s
Bloomsbury
Puffin
Bloomsbury
9780857534811
9781444916584
9781408867846
9780141364155
9780007339655
9780007371464
9780007453580
9781408848180
9780141353968
9781408855652
*Week ending12th September 2015
15
PUB DATE
RRP
ASP
UNITS
Aug 15 £20.00 £11.64 13,764
Sep 15 £12.99 £8.36 6,609
May 15 £7.99 £4.58 4,576
Aug 15 £7.99 £4.89 4,149
Aug 15 £6.99 £4.81 3,242
Feb 13 £6.99 £4.37 2,745
Feb 15 £6.99 £4.38 2,724
Dec 13 £7.99 £6.06 2,207
Jul 15 £12.99 £8.06 2,192
Sep 14 £6.99 £5.01 2,118