Publishing: From Manuscript to Bestseller

Course goals

In this course, students will be introduced to the world of book publishing in the digital age, and will gain thorough knowledge both with regard to the material as well as the ‘symbolic’ production of texts. Since the 80s, economies of scale have lead to the emergence of large media conglomerates and internationally strengthened the position of book distribution chains. At the same time, the role of literary agents became more dominant. This has influenced the publication of literary texts. Traditional functions of publishers have been text acquisition, financial risk-taking, text assessment and quality control, sales and marketing. In the course we will step by step follow the process of book publishing and distributing from the viewpoint of the individual publishing house against the backdrop of its legal and economic context.  

Content

The arrival of the digital text, of electronic ways of distribution and of shifts in the public’s media preferences have overthrown traditional business models in the book publishing world. Traditional ways of taste-making are being challenged by the new forms of authorship and readership, not least on social media. In this course, the consequences of these trends will be illustrated and discussed, while paying particular attention to their consequences for writers from marginalised communities who were previously underrepresented in the book market.

Through the course materials and the guest interviews, you will get an insight of the daily practices and dilemmas in publishing and of the rapid changes which take place in this field. For foundational knowledge, we will work closely with Simone Murray’s Introduction to Contemporary Print Culture: Books as Media (2021). We will also study and discuss current developments as they happen and make comparisons between different national book markets – feel free to also to bring up your own expertise on the context you are most interested in!
 

Additional information

As you become familiar with the international field of publishing, you will practice skills in critical reading, research, writing and interviewing. We will focus on the fields that are most relevant for your internships and future careers.