Book Market Research Articles

A Typology of Authorship

Abstract The growing share of self-publishing titles on the book market has sparked debates about their position within the literary sphere. Although some consider self-publishing to be a parallel universe in its own right, our understanding of self-publishing’s links to traditional structures is still evolving. This study showcases three distinct types of perspectives. The first type strategically utilizes self-publishing to build authorial renown and increase their likelihood of securing a contract with a royalty publisher. The second type makes use of self-publishing to measure the quality of authors’ work, assessing the work’s popularity with readers and comparing its quality with that of competing authors and titles. Finally, the third type sees self-publishing as a way to preserve creative autonomy and self-determined authorial work. Drawing further on the broader sociocultural context of these findings, the research contributes to our understanding of self-publishing’s diverse landscape as well as its implications for the contemporary literary sphere.

Research on the Marketing Strategies of International Bestsellers in the Digital Age: A Case Study of It Ends with Us

In the digital age, the rapid development of new technologies and new media has introduced fresh ideas for book marketing by publishers. It has become increasingly important for publishers to utilize new media and technology, understand the strengths and preferred content of various platforms, and develop targeted marketing strategies. The advantages of online marketing, such as timeliness, diversity, strong social interactions, quick feedback, and the ability to integrate with offline activities, can be leveraged to activate user engagement, enhance emotional investment from fans, and strengthen the connection between fans, books, and authors. Using the international bestseller It Ends with Us as a case study, this paper explores new pathways for marketing bestsellers in the digital era.

Research Libraries in Russia: The Past Revisited – Leading to the Future

Abstract The article describes the development of research libraries in the USSR and Russia after Perestroika up till the present and the prospects for the future, including an overview of library automation, changes in collection development and the creation of the post-Soviet book market. The transformation of library mission, the active stand of Russian librarians during the transition time in the 1980s and 1990s, Government and private foundation support for library developments, and the role of international co-operation are also covered.

Digital Migration Infrastructure in return-writing: visualizing the migration landscape of India.

Digitization has carved out the migration patterns of immigrants over the recent years of increased technological interventions in human mobility. Migration infrastructures, which typically refer to the physical, commercial, humanitarian, and governmental modes of operation, are multidimensional in nature. Digital infrastructures are equally important to the physical ones as digital technologies facilitate these migration processes through agents like hardware, software, and mediating actors. Amongst the multiple forms of migration, the concept of return-writing and nostalgia-struck-returnees encompass individuals whose life trajectories run parallel to the homeland. The narrative of return to the homeland emerges aβs a dominant motif in literature due to the rising trends of globalization, the writers' reflection on their own migrant experiences, and publishing trends meeting the demand of the global book market. The objective is to assess the role of digital migration infrastructures in return migrations to India through a close reading of the selected texts and review of postcolonial literary theories by using conditional operation in Python. The study here explores the varied nuances of return migration with a primary focus on the external conditions of travel in migration literature. The paper aims to analyze the genre of return-writing in Indian English literature, through three novels over a period of two decades, i.e., from 2000-2023. The selected texts, beginning with Amit Chaudhuri's A New World (2000), Gun Island (2019) by Amitav Ghosh, and Devika Rege's novel Quarterlife (2023), offer a panoramic view of return migration. These novels are extensive in the time period of technological interventions and in depiction of return migration. The Python code examines the extent of existence of a set of digital migration infrastructure keywords by analyzing the content of the novels and creates bar plots and charts to offer a visual representation of the classification results. The resulting trend traces the increased intervention of Digital Migration Infrastructure in the recent migration literature.

Continuous “Planting a seed of interest”: children’s book marketing strategies on Xiaohongshu

Purpose As one of China’s most influential social platforms, Xiaohongshu is considered an underexploited market with significant user traffic. This study aims to build on existing scholarly work on social media marketing by conducting an empirical analysis of Xiaohongshu’s content to explore effective marketing strategies for children’s books. Design/methodology/approach This study uses qualitative content analysis to investigate the marketing practices for children’s books on Xiaohongshu. By systematically coding and interpreting data, the authors identified core marketing strategies and their interactions among publishers of children’s books on the platform. Findings Based on viral marketing and social proof theories, the analysis delineates practices and interrelations among three key marketing strategy components: content creation, traffic navigation and sales conversion on Xiaohongshu. From this analysis, a conceptual model titled “Continuous ‘Planting a Seed’ of Interest: Strategies for Marketing Children’s Books on Xiaohongshu” was developed. Originality/value This research not only corroborates the existing literature on the transformative power of social media in marketing but also extends it by providing a focused examination of how these principles apply to the promotion of children’s books on Xiaohongshu. It also provides practical insights for publishers looking to develop effective marketing strategies.

Kiran Desai and Kazuo Ishiguro: Worlding Diasporic Literature between the Local and the Global in The Inheritance of Loss and an Artist of The Floating World

This paper offers an intertextual reading of Kazuo Ishiguro’s An Artist of The Floating World (1986) and Kiran Desai’s The Inheritance of Loss (2006). It explores how both texts manage the circuits of the international book market as commodities conscious of the stakes involved in addressing a global audience and cognizant of their translinguistic and transcultural vocations. The paper probes the discursive sites built by the two texts while oscillating between the will to defy the discourse of globalization and the urge to comply with the demand for exoticism in the Western mainstream literary market.

Rewriting the Literary Past: D. H. Lawrence and Geoff Dyer’s Antibiography

Abstract Why do memoirists, in order to find themselves, find it necessary to rewrite their favorite authors? This article explores this question by analyzing D. H. Lawrence and Geoff Dyer, who provide a case study for understanding the radical energies that burn beneath the surface of rewriting. The article traces Dyer’s conflicted attitude to memoir and rewriting back to Lawrence, who theorizes rewriting and puts it into practice in his own work, specifically in his Study of Thomas Hardy. If by now the book market is awash in rewrites, that is because rewriting first asserted itself as a contrarian impulse, a radically different way of thinking about the canon that has become second nature.

FEATURES OF MARKETING ACTIVITIES ON THE BOOK MARKET OF UKRAINE

Goal. elucidation of the role and features of marketing activities in the book market of Ukraine. Achieving the goal will be facilitated by the achievement of the following tasks: 1) identification of factors influencing the behavior of consumers of book products; 2) disclosure of key aspects of marketing activity in the book market of Ukraine; 3) establishment of directions for increasing the effectiveness of marketing activities on buyers in the book market. Method. Methods of systematic and comparative analysis were used to identify factors influencing consumer behavior. The methods of analysis, synthesis and comparative analysis were used to reveal the marketing activity in the book market of Ukraine and to study the factors and the degree of their influence on the behavior of the buyer in the book market. Methods of synthesis and generalization were used to establish directions for improving the effectiveness of marketing activities on buyers in the book market. The results. The main aspects of the marketing activities of publishers and book distributors on the Ukrainian book market are outlined, the toolkit of the marketing mix used by market entities is highlighted, which made it possible to formulate the key areas of increasing the effectiveness of marketing activities for sellers of book products, which include: the need for market research; production of a quality marketing book; increasing the number of bookstores; application of merchandising and other methods of maximizing sales; improvement of the personnel policy due to the selection of personnel, systematic improvement of the qualifications of employees; implementation of logical pricing, use of price incentives; provision of activities for the popularization of reading and promotion of book products; development of effective state support measures for book publishing. Scientific novelty. Conducting a theoretical and practical analysis of the use of marketing mix tools in the book market of Ukraine and developed recommendations for increasing the effectiveness of marketing activities in the publishing industry. Practical significance. The results of the analysis are suitable for use in the development of effective marketing programs of Ukrainian book publishers and sellers of book products.

Satire vs Sentiment: Mark Twain, Bella Z. Spencer, and the Subscription Book Market

Abstract: This essay argues that Mark Twain has been overrepresented in scholarship on subscription bookselling, resulting in a corresponding failure to account for fiction's relationship to this popular nineteenth-century practice. Though Twain's The Gilded Age (1873) is often described as the first novel sold by subscription, I recover an earlier example: Tried and True (1866), a Civil War romance by Bella Zilfa Spencer. Reading the novel's mode of distribution as integral to its treatment of gender, race, and geography, I demonstrate the potential for literary study which gets lost somewhere between subscription bookselling's bad reputation and Mark Twain's good one.

Role of information tools in the book market

Role of information tools in the book market

Serijinės literatūros vertimai Estijos laikraščiuose XX a. pradžioje (1900–1940 m.)

The paper explores the serialised novels and stories in the two leading Estonian daily newspapers, Päewaleht and Postimees, the majority of which were translations. The approach, combining book and translation history, is driven by the two issues debated in the media in 1900–1940: the desire to distance from the dominant German and Russian cultural influences and search for a new orientation; the categories of literature serialised in newspapers including the proportion of popular literature (genres like mystery, thrillers, romance, etc.) and the concern of intellectuals about its growth. The study uses the years 1906–1911 and 1928–1933 as a sample for content analysis of the feuilleton sections of the two newspapers in order to examine the changes in source literatures and the category of literature. The results demonstrate that German literature still dominated the serialised fiction translations at the beginning of the century, although many other literatures were used as sources. In the independent Republic of Estonia, in the 1920s and 1930s, Anglo-American literature occupied the leading position in accordance with the general cultural orientation. Still, German had not become marginal, and the range of other source literatures was quite diverse. The proportion of popular literature, mystery novels, and romance above all, started to increase in Päewaleht since 1906, becoming dominant in the 1920s and 1930s. Postimees also started to include some mystery and thriller novels in the selection, but in general, remained true to its preference for literary fiction. Thus, the agency of the Editors-in-Chief and editorial boards can be seen in the choice of works. The overall abundance of translated popular fiction in the book market and periodicals caused the protests of writers and educational circles that culminated with the suggestion to introduce a translation tax, which was, however, abandoned.

Can Bookstagrammers Make a Book More Recognizable? The Case of “Bookstagram Tour” in Romania

An essential element of everyday is the digital presence of consumers in the Internet marketplaces. Moreover, social media platforms are becoming an important part of 21st century commerce and mark a modern way of doing business. Thus, being in a world that is evolving in terms of social media and digital marketing, this article delves into the significant impact of Bookstagram influencers on the visibility and popularity of books. In other words, this article aims to take a close look at the “Bookstagram Tour” phenomenon in Romania, analyzing how bookstagrammers can increase the recognition of a book through their platforms. Starting from an exploratory-descriptive research, we highlight the examination of interactions, post likes and engagement metrics of posts related to a specific online book tour. The study aims to quantify the influence of bookstagrammers in promoting literary content, marking that such a promotion technique succeeds, both in the short and long term, in strengthening the relationship between influencer and consumer and increasing the number of digital interactions. This exploration is key to understanding the changing dynamics of book marketing and readership in the social media age, where influencers hold substantial power in shaping public opinion and determining trends in the literary world.

Farmers’ Boys and Doomed Youths: Producing the Poet in the Print Culture of the Romantic Era

ABSTRACT Two of the ten bestselling poets of the nineteenth century were almost completely excluded from the twentieth-century canon. Robert Bloomfield (1766–1823) and Henry Kirke White (1785–1806) were huge successes in the expanding print culture of the Romantic era. Their publications were influential on many of the poets who were admitted to the canon. Nevertheless, they have become so obscure that their influence—powerful on Clare, Keats, and Shelley for example— has been almost entirely forgotten. So has their role in shaping the cultural figure of the Romantic poet and their impact upon the publishing of poetry in a period when bookselling was transforming into a sales-driven mass market. Both were from the laboring class; each was publicized commercially because it was, supposedly, amazing that they had become poets at all, considering their social origins. They happened to be excellent poets but, in an early manifestation of PR, they were as much branded as phenomena as they were advertised for excellence. In this article I shall explore how this packaging worked and what it shows about the selling of books, the construction of a cultural image of the poet, and the influence of their poetry on aspiring poets.

Dostoevsky in a Free Application: the Publishing Project of Adolf Marx in the Notebooks of Anna Dostoevskaya

The publication of the Complete Works of F. M. Dostoevsky became the main deed of his widow. Over the course of 10 years, book publication has been stable and profitable for the writer’s family. In 1893, the publisher of the weekly “Niva,” A. F. Marx, offered Anna Grigoryevna to sell him the literary rights to Dostoevsky’s works for printing them as a free supplement to his magazine. Dostoevskaya devoted a chapter of published memoirs to this transaction, but her unpublished notebooks contain additional information about both the external side of the agreement with Marx (lists, dates, notes) and the inner world of the publisher during this period (memories, experiences, doubts, comments). This article introduces into scientific circulation the materials of A. G. Dostoevskaya’s notebooks about family meetings about the sale of literary rights, details and curious stories related to the signing of an agreement with Marx. Ultimately, the deal with Marx was not as profitable as it seemed at first. It divided the publishing activities of the writer’s widow into “before” and “after” the contract: the time after the return of copyright was marked by a sharp decline in demand for Dostoevsky’s works due to the surplus of the Complete works of the Marx publishing house on the book market. The contract with “Niva’s” publisher turned out to be one of the essential circumstances in the process of termination of A. G. Dostoevskaya’s publishing activities in 1910. Despite the adverse consequences of the deal with Marx for the Dostoevsky family's book business, the writer’s widow remained friendly with “Niva’s” publisher, as evidenced by the documents provided in the article: her letter to him about the donation and publication of three letters from Dostoevsky to his brother Mikhail, as well as the mentions of the name of Marx and his publications in notebooks.

一般論文] 한성도서주식회사의 출판활동과 식민지 책시장의 역학

This article is an attempt to consider how much freedom of publishing the colonial publishing organization was able to have under the structural pressure exerted by the colonial book market. For this purpose, this article focused on Hanseongdoseo Co., Ltd. Hansungdoseo Co., Ltd. was the first publishing organization founded as a corporate organization. However, the structural pressure on the book market gradually increased due to various external factors such as the censorship of the Japanese Government-General of Korea, the disallowance of reservation publishing, imperialism of knowledge culture, material shortages, and the policy of eradicating the Korean language. The literary centralism of Chosun language books, which reached its peak in the late 1930s, was the result. Hansungdoseo Co., Ltd. was also not free from that pressure. However, Hansungdoseo Co., Ltd. tried to adhere to its own consistent publishing policy. In short, the uniqueness of Hanseongdoseo Co., Ltd.’s publishing activities, and furthermore, the freedom of publishing pursued by the colonial publishing organization, must first be found in the fact that literature was not completely brought to the fore during the period of literary centralism of Chosun language books.

Militarization of the Ukrainian Publishing Market During the Russo-Ukrainian War since 2014

RESEARCH OBJECTIVE: The purpose of the article is to analyse the impact of the Russo-Ukrainian war, which has been ongoing since 2014, on the Ukrainian publishing industry and to characterize the transformations that the book market has undergone as a result of the full-scale invasion in 2022. THE RESEARCH PROBLEM AND METHODS: The article examines the transformations that have taken place in book media as a result of the military conflict. The research used bibliographic searches, statistical research, the comparative method, desktop research, as well as the methods of typology, observation, generalization and analogy. THE PROCESS OF ARGUMENTATION: The events of Russia’s war against Ukraine have become a serious challenge for the Ukrainian media system and have impacted the book publishing industry in particular. Therefore, changes in the publishing landscape and in publishing houses’ business models are analysed. RESEARCH RESULTS: The article describes the main changes that the publishing market in Ukraine has undergone as a result of Russian aggression. On the basis of statistical data, the authors analyse the dynamics of changes in the number of publishers and the increase in the number of military books. The authors focus on the emergence of a new literary phenomenon, namely veteran literature, and the emergence of a significant number of veteran publishers. Changes in the business models of publishers are analysed. CONCLUSIONS, INNOVATIONS, AND RECOMMENDATIONS: The war has had a significant impact on the organizational structure of the Ukrainian publishing industry. This includes the moving of publishing facilities to other territories, changes in infrastructure, transition to other publication formats, entering new markets, etc. This experience could be useful for developing problem-solving strategies in this segment of the media industry.

A Colonial Book Market: Peruvian Print Culture in the Age of Enlightenment

A Colonial Book Market: Peruvian Print Culture in the Age of Enlightenment

Impact of E-Marketing on Book Purchase Tendencies: An Empirical Study on University Undergraduate Students

Purpose: This study investigates the effects of e-marketing on customer behaviour in book purchases regarding e-mail marketing, social media marketing, and mobile marketing. It also examines the factors influencing the book-purchasing decision and how each e-marketing channel affects customer behaviour. These findings will be essential context for book industry marketers and stakeholders.Methodology: This quantitative analysis was drawn from survey data in which 205 university undergraduate students from 3 public universities were participated. It is designed to determine the customer's level of acceptance of this or that e-marketing strategy. Regression analysis has been employed to test the relationship between e-marketing strategies and book-buying behaviour, and cross-tabulation has been used to detect demographic patterns.Findings: Unlike social media and mobile marketing, e-mail marketing does not affect consumers' intent to purchase books. Regression analysis shows the significance of concentrated marketing campaigns in influencing consumer behaviour.Practical Implication: The study's insights might help those in the book sector improve their online advertising campaigns. Opportunities in the digital book market are increasing, and publishers and merchants may exploit them by targeting specific customer categories with tailored content.Originality: This study contributes to the existing literature by highlighting the different e-marketing strategies that affect people's decisions to buy books and the demographic factors that play a crucial role in creating these effects.

Blockchain -Enhanced Dynamic Pricing Strategies in Book Redistribution: Balancing Profitability and Fairness

Dynamic pricing strategies in book redistribution is an online platform designed for the buying and reselling of second-hand books. The platform employs a dynamic pricing strategy facilitated through direct negotiation between sellers and buyers. By using technologies like React, Node.js, MongoDB, and Express, along with blockchain and smart contracts, its main aim is to balance profitability and fairness in book transactions. Specifically, the platform aims to enhance the efficiency and security of book redistribution processes and prevent fraud, including counterfeit books, to ensure trust in transactions. Each book on the platform is uniquely associated with a blockchain token, effectively mitigating the risks associated with fraud and counterfeit transactions. Smart contracts play a crucial role by enabling secure and transparent monetary transactions between parties involved in buying and selling books. Moreover, the platform fosters fair pricing through direct negotiation and provides a user-friendly interface that supports manual searches and negotiations. By integrating these technologies and functionalities, the platform not only enhances the overall efficiency of book redistribution but also promotes a secure environment that encourages trust and fairness among its users.

Exploring the Impact of Digital Platforms on Publishing: A Bibliometric Analysis

Abstract Platformization is a phenomenon arising from the process of digitalization and affects businesses of all types throughout the world. While platformization closely relates to digital business models, it also influences the traditional models to some extent, concerning the marketing and distribution functions. This paper focuses on the implications of the new media on the generation, dissemination, and reception of content in publishing. Specifically, the study examines the effects and implications of the platformization processes, and the role played by digital ecosystems in the value chain of the publishing business and the structures of the book market. For the current study, the research carries out a network analysis of scholarly literature on the integration of digital platforms in publishing using VOSviewer. It declared to provide an understanding of the field’s conceptual directions, determine key articles, and depict the developmental process of this phenomenon. The paper contributes to the understanding of the primary discourses; the literature review reveals the research gaps and potential development. The contribution of this research shall be useful for both theorists and practitioners in the field. It can help practitioners analyze the current processes in the publishing industry’s transition to digital formats and inform policy decisions. It can also help small and medium companies within creative industries that possess characteristics that are akin to publishing and other businesses clustered within the book market niche category. Given that current trends and potential directions for development and innovation in today’s rapidly developing digital environment are traced and practical recommendations and further research questions are outlined in this study, it helps to get a detailed understanding of how platformization in the context of the publishing industry is addressed in the academic literature.