28 Oct 2009, 9:00 am
The Business of Books – Publishing Symposium

 In collaboration with the Singapore Book Publishers Association
9am – 5.30pm

DAY ONE

Beyond Print (Part One) Bookshops RIP: An introduction to new distribution models and how this will affect authors and the trade
9.30am –10.30am

Featuring:  Erik Hartmann (Google), Marianne Bohr (Sr. VP, National Book Network), Peter Gorden (Paddyfield.com)
Moderator: Peter Schoppert (McKinsey)

Bookshops are being marginalized and online retailers are becoming more important. Traditional book distributors will have a shrinking role; trade book publishers will see their roles changing, and many will disappear. Online marketing will become more important. Authors will benefit, in theory, by having fewer barriers to publish and readers should benefit from more choice, but may be faced by decreasing standards of quality. How will this affect authors and the trade in Singapore and beyond?
 
Beyond Print (Part Two) Online Publicity: Making the most of the digital age
11am –12pm

Featuring: Grant S. Clark (author), Erik Hartmann (Google), Marianne Bohr (Sr. VP, National Book Network)

Do you Tweet? Social media is now larger in terms of digital volume than email. How should authors make the most of blogs, personal websites, Twitter, Facebook and other social media products to promote their books? Who foots the bill, author or publisher?
 
Publishers Lunch: Face-to-face meetings with Singapore publishers during the lunch break
12pm – 1.30pm

Singapore’s fiction and creative nonfiction publishing houses will be showcasing their titles and will make the publisher and/or an editorial representative available to answer questions from writers and designers.
 
Hands off my Manuscript: Do publishers add value to authors' manuscripts?
1.30pm – 2.30pm

Featuring: Triena Ong (President, Singapore Book Publishers Association), Lee Jin Pyn (author),  Peter Gorden (Paddyfield.com), Jen Hamilton-Emery (Director, Salt Publishing Ltd)
Moderator: Richard Lord (author/editor)

A discussion on the current and future role of the publisher in the publishing process and how they add value to manuscripts in terms of editing, design, as a literary filter, in shaping a canon of Singapore literature. Why don’t authors just self publish books?
 
Copyright and the Killer Contract: What authors and freelance designers need to know about copyright and author contracts
2.30pm – 3.30pm

Featuring: Chua Hong Koon (Armour Publishing), Paul Wee (CLASS), Kelvin Lee (Samuel Seow Law Corporation)
Moderator: Triena Ong (President, Singapore Book Publishers Association)  

A look at the most important clauses in author contracts, especially with regard to copyright issues and the emergence of new media.
 
The Starving Poet: Do Singapore poets and literary authors make money?
4pm –5pm

Featuring: Kirpal Singh (A/P Literature SMU), Rasiah Halil (author), Cyril Wong (author)
Moderator: Richard Lord (author/editor)

How do literary authors and poets survive? How do they publish their works? Do they make money? Do all literary authors have day jobs and do they need to make money from their writing? What is the role of funding agencies? Will new media and the removal of barriers to publishing help literary authors and the literary scene?

***The programme listed above is accurate at time of print and subject to future changes.


Download The Business of Books Application Form.pdf

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29 Oct 2009, 9:00 am
The Business of Books – Publishing Symposium

In collaboration with the Singapore Book Publishers Association
9am – 5.30pm

DAY TWO
 
The Art of Biography: How to write a biography in Singapore
9.30am – 10.30am

Featuring: Kevin Tan (biographer), Ann Blainey (award-winning biographer), Edda de Silva (biography instructor)
Moderator: Shirley Hew (Exec Director, Straits Times Press)   

How do biographers blend objective and subjective elements? What are the challenges biographers in Singapore face relating to sources, interpretation, organisation and writing style? What sources are available in Singapore such as correspondence, diaries, the press, legal sources and memoirs, what are the legal issues involved?
 
We Eat Durian: Localizing content for children's books
11am – 12pm

Featuring: Shamini Flint (author), Adeline Foo (author), Emily Lim (author)
Moderator: Shirley Hew (Exec Director, Straits Times Press)   

The kid's trade book market is still dominated by books from overseas. How can Singaporean authors produce competitive titles with local content? Do the books need local content? Is local content for kid's books a door-opener to overseas markets or a hindrance?

Publishers Lunch: Face-to-face meetings with Singapore publishers during the lunch break
12pm –1.30pm
  
Singapore’s fiction and creative nonfiction publishing houses will be showcasing their titles and will make the publisher and/or an editorial representative available to answer questions from writers and designers.

Read ASEAN: A comparison of consumer book-buying habits and trends within ASEAN
1.30pm – 2.30pm

Featuring: Hiroshi Sogo (GM, Books Kinokuniya), Vasin Permsup (VP, PUBAT)
Moderator: Peter Schoppert (McKinsey)

How do book-buying habits compare across different markets in the region? Do readers in ASEAN consume books in native languages or foreign publications? Do inter-ASEAN translations play an important role?

Lost in Translation: The process of literary translation
2.30pm – 3.30pm

Featuring: Dan (Select Books)
Moderator: Marysia Jusczakiewicz (Creative Works)

What genres work well for translation? Where are the literary translators? How do publishers and authors control the quality of literary translations?
 
Selling our Heritage: The business of publishing and selling literary translations
4pm – 5pm

Featuring: Jen Hamilton-Emery (Director, Salt Publishing Ltd), Mabel Lee (translator and publisher),  Dan (Select Books)
Moderator: Marysia Jusczakiewicz (Creative Works)

How do authors and publishers market and sell translation rights? Many smaller non-English-speaking European countries have national funds available to foreign publishers to translate their works, should this be encouraged in Singapore? How do we market literary translations within ASEAN?

***The programme listed above is accurate at time of print and subject to future changes.

Download The Business of Books Application Form-1.pdf

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