PublishingNext: A solid success by Leonard Fernandes, co-founder of Cinnamon Teal Publishing

Publishing Next was conceptualised to provide an uninhibited platform for deliberations and discussions about the future of the publishing industry in India. This year the conference explored issues that were necessary to sustain a thriving publishing industry.

After months of preparation and endless trepidation on how it might go, the second edition of Publishing Next concluded last Saturday. Judging from the numbers that attended and the satisfied voices that emerged, dare we say that it was quite the success.

The objective of Publishing Next was to create a forum that would discuss topics related to the “future of publishing” – not just technologies that impacted publishing but also trends in consumer preferences and publisher practices, changes in the environment that necessitated certain paradigm shifts and disruptions whether in the form of new technologies or business processes.

This we set out to achieve by bringing together speakers and attendees that engaged in the practice of different aspects of publishing. Among those who attended this time were publishers (of books both in English and Indian languages), authors (both published and self-publishing), digital content and e-reader developers, book marketers and retailers,columnists, service providers such as editors, translators and literary agents,graphic book developers and illustrators, print experts, magazine editors, members of various bodies such as NCAER, even investors.

That such a diverse group of people should be interested is perhaps because we chose topics that would appeal to different sections of the publishing sector. Among the panel discussions and workshops that generated the most passionate discussions were those on academic publishing, Indian language publishing, the preservation of oral traditions and book distribution issues. That said, the other panel discussions and workshops generated no less heat. Given the parallel track of events, one constant refrain was the inability of many to choose which session to attend. Even the insight talks, introduced for the first time, got a lot of attention and were very well received.

From the discussion, it seems like many issues affecting publishing are perennial in nature. Distribution remains one of them, so does the inability of the tech community to address the concerns of the publisher. The publishing community, in turn, are no longer awed or intimidated by the “spectre” of e-books, they realise that e-books are here to stay and will co-exist with printed books. But they, the publishers, have genuine concerns and get few answers.

We are happy with the way the conference turned out – that the discussions were intense and thought-provoking and that the conversations will perhaps continue long after the conference concluded. We do hope that those affected will continue to search for answers, many of which have been hard to find.

As told to Mihir Joshi, PrintWeek India by Leonard Fernandes, organiser, Publishing Next