Read on Twitter
Publishing in Pakistan: A Thread.
Reverie press's announcement of friend Osman Haneef's forthcoming book made me think of this.
Pakistan has historically lacked a clear path and community for writers to mature from aspiring to professional.
Reverie press's announcement of friend Osman Haneef's forthcoming book made me think of this.
Pakistan has historically lacked a clear path and community for writers to mature from aspiring to professional.
Lack of writing conferences, workshops, & interaction w pros, the ones who 'made it, is v noticeable. In contrast, in the US I was able to attend writing workshops run by agents, editors, professional writers, & panels on writing sci-fi, horror, fantasy, and realism. +
I learned terms like 'submission guidelines', 'manuscript format', 'elevator pitch', and more, and was able to get feedback from professionals (real pros who were selling stories and novels daily) and could hone my craft. +
This is what I think we should all want for Pakistan: a rich, vibrant literary scene; where fans, readers, and aspiring writers are able to directly communicate with pros and learn from them; where books are sold more than cigarettes; +
+ where all sorts of ideas take ground in a fertile soil that is of OUR MAKING.
This could be in the form of workshops (think LUMS Writing workshop and the Rising Dust Workshop 2014), craft talks delivered online +
This could be in the form of workshops (think LUMS Writing workshop and the Rising Dust Workshop 2014), craft talks delivered online +
+ literary conferences with panels devoted to craft talks and the business of writing to demystify it; or bringing writers from all over the world physically or via Zoom. +
+ Kitab (Pvt) Ltd, Folio, ALA, Reverie -- we need small and mid-presses to vet and acquire and nurture talented writers and artists. We need to pay the artists and writers a decent amount. We need to create quality product and showcase and distribute that product. +
We need more writing prizes akin to Salam Award and the Zeenat Haroon Memorial Award. We need to do annual anthologies that celebrate the best Pakistani fiction of the year (think Best American Short Stories 2020 etc)+
Most of all, we need readers to realize that a good quality book, say a hardcover, takes around 500-600 rupees per copy to be published.
Say you sell it for Rs. 1500. Distributors take 50% of the retail price. Then there's GST and other taxes. +
Say you sell it for Rs. 1500. Distributors take 50% of the retail price. Then there's GST and other taxes. +
The publisher and author are left with hardly 100-200 rupees for themselves. Now imagine working a year to produce a book. Say you sell 1000 copies. You end up making 1000 x 100 = 100,000 rupees for that entire year's work.
Why would you want to write professionally then? +
Why would you want to write professionally then? +
If you want the Pakistani literary scene to thrive--if you want the next George R R Martin or Stephen King to rise from the ranks of Pakistani writers--if you want to continue reading books that represent YOU, Pay. The. Writer. +
"Pay the writer" is what science fiction legend Harlan Ellison used to say. Please remember that. Support the writer. Help spread word. Be kind and supportive (as much as you can) to younger writers.
And the entire community will help you.
(end)
And the entire community will help you.
(end)
cc @ohaneef