International publishing

As the ongoing trade war between the United States and China rumbled on early this year, some interesting book industry statistics were coming out of the People's Republic. In January, OpenBook, the Beijing-based industry data monitor, announced that retail sales in China had jumped 11.3% to RMB89.4bn, or around $13bn.

Escapism and connection-this is what buyers at the Frankfurt Book FairWorld's largest trade fair for books; held annually mid-October at Frankfurt Trade Fair, Germany; First three days exclusively for trade visitors; general public can attend last two. are betting readers want. Descending on Germany against the backdrop of a tumultuous and disheartening news cycle, the tastemakers in the publishing industry spent big on a handful of women's fiction titles, and a bunch of memoirs.  Read more

Successful self-published authors are tapping into larger markets, which include many other retailers beyond Amazon. "Less is more" is a cute phrase for minimalists, but don't limit yourself when it comes to online retail options for worldwide book sales.

Can a ‘gateway to worldwide subscription services' for self-published authors up the ante for those services? Two Danes think curating indies is the way forward.

International publishing this season lies downwind of hot blasts of political potentials that many feel could be damaging to various countries' books industries and their readerships. Welcome to a Summer of Insecurity.