Demystifying East Asian language monograph publishing: Contemplations on the current status, challenges, and opportunities

Abstract

Library budgets are being restructured to reflect a growing trend that shifts resources from print to electronic media. This trend has been further accelerated by the ongoing global COVID-19 pandemic. However, this e-preferred trend could potentially weaken the collective purchasing power of North American East Asian collections and consequently slow advances in the field of East Asian Studies in the long run. Humanities and social sciences scholars and students utilize significantly more books and book chapters than journal articles in their research outputs and prefer print materials, as evidenced in surveys and citation analyses studies. This article surveys the state of the monograph publishing landscape in East Asia, with a focus on China, Japan, and Korea. Drawing on existing statistics, interviews with leading vendors, and librarians' perspectives, the authors explore major issues and deficiencies in East Asian e-book publishing, and make recommendations for future improvement. We conclude that East Asian studies librarians must battle the trend toward e-centric collection development approach to ensure a well-curated collection that reflects the concept of equity, diversity, and inclusion.