Cuba’s book market is very different from that of other Caribbean islands – the publishing houses are state-run and books are heavily subsidized, sold at rates far below the costs of production. Yet, the Havana Book Fair has many lessons for Caribbean publishers, booksellers and governments. Here’s our top 10.

1.     Make Books a National Priority
Every decision concerning the Havana Book Fair – from the programming to the funds committed – is based on the central belief that books and reading are critical to national development. “The mission of the Havana Book Fair is to give people access to books,” says Aida Bahr, Vice President of Cuba’s Instituto del Libro (Book Institute) and member of the Caribbean Literature Action Group. “[It is for] cultural purposes, not commercial purposes. It’s a cultural investment.” Cuba also sees the presentation of its books and authors on the international stage as a critical element of defining and extending its national identity and brand in the international arena. “The book is the main [channel] of communication and human knowledge,” says Edel Morales of El Instituto del Libro. “We must make sure that Cuban voices are heard.”

2.     Go Big (Or Your Audience May) Go Home

It’s been called a beast, a monster, a spectacle. By whatever name, the Havana Book Fair cannot be ignored. The sheer scale of the event is part of the secret of its success, making it a fixture both on the domestic cultural calendar and on the international publishing scene. Creating that kind of scale requires a delicate partnership between the public and private sector and local organizers, but the rewards in cultural and commercial terms are impressive.

3.     Plan Activities for Everyone

The Havana Book Fair’s programming isn’t just large. It’s diverse and deliberately so, designed to bring out a wide cross-section of the public. The mammoth schedule of 100+ activities per day includes talks, book launches, children’s events as well as conferences for writers, publishers, historians, social scientists, literature experts and other academics; and a staggering schedule of concerts and cultural events. Each year focuses on a guest country and two outstanding Cuban writers and the programme includes numerous panels and activities related to the literature and culture of the guest country and the work of each writer. The breadth of activities helps to ensure that Cubans of all kinds come out to the fair.

4.     Act in Unison

Every year, Cuban publishers plan their editorial calendars to release new titles at the fair. That collective effort drives anticipation for the fair, as the audience knows there will be many new books to look forward to. Bahr credits the anticipation and excitement for new books for the record turnouts to the fair each year.

5.     Offer Special Prices and Products to Drive Sales

Many of the participating international publishers at the Havana Book Fair use the event as an outlet for selling overflow stock. They come to the fair with steeply discounted prices designed to drive quick sales. They also bring the kinds of books they know will sell well in Cuba because they aren’t available in the local market, e.g. titles on American entertainment; hard cover or brightly illustrated children’s books, dictionaries and specialized books for professionals. Understanding what local buyers want and planning accordingly helps to ensure strong book sales.

6.     Take the Books to the People
The Havana Book Fair takes place at the Cabaña fortress as well as eleven other sites around Havana and then tours throughout the rest of the country for two weeks – a deliberate, though exhausting effort to make sure that activities are held in every single province of the country. The result: national awareness and participation and a month-long focus on books that has a spill-over effect for the rest of the year. “It’s the only cultural event that gets to everywhere and is respected by everyone,” says Bahr.

7.     Use Books to Drive Tourism
The diverse programming of the Havana Book Fair also helps to attract visitors to Cuba. This year, the visiting country focus on Angola brought more than 100 representatives from that country to the island; hundreds of other international publishing representatives come to the fair to participate in the many events or to exhibit and vend their books. It’s a chance for Cuba to attract new visitors, many of whom may end up returning for future visits.

8.     Think Regionally
Organizers of the Havana Book Fair coordinate closely with their Latin American counterparts to ensure that the schedules of their book fairs do not conflict with each other, allowing them to promote all the fairs at each event, increasing momentum and opportunities for regional networking. Their regional coordination also allows them to share best practices and market knowledge, helping them to raise book sales and reading levels across the region.

9.     Market Collectively
Cuba’s Cámara del Libro (Chamber of Books) takes the lead role in organizing the fair as well as a year round calendar of local book promotion activities. But it doesn’t stop there. The Chamber also plans Cuba’s participation in international book fairs, marketing the island’s authors in groups related to the genres in which they write and the interests of the target publishers and markets. Sure, that’s easy to do when the publishing houses are all state-run. But the collective efforts yield economies in research, event participation fees and marketing that Caribbean publishers can emulate.

10.  Have Fun!
The first thing you notice at the Havana Book Fair is that everyone seems to be having a good time. As Peter Gutteredge of the Caribbean Book Company puts it, “This isn’t a book fair anymore. [It’s] the largest Cuban social event of the year – with a book fair inside. It’s a fantastic setting where Cuban families come and [enjoy themselves].” That vibe is key for creating a generation of readers who associate books with fun and pleasure. 

“Some of the best parts of the book fair are the things we don’t plan,” says Jésus David Curbelo, another of the organizers. “They happen naturally when you put good books in front of people.”

Young writers from Latin America met at the Havana Book Fair to discuss alternative strategies for sharing their work.  Representatives from independent publishing houses in Chile, Mexico, Ecuador, Puerto Rico and Argentina discussed the challenges of self-publishing, alternative publishing and Latin America’s innovative cardboard movement. There were no representatives from the English-speaking Caribbean. Don’t worry. CaribLit is already working with the Havana Book Fair to change that. (See our related story on the Alba Narrativa award.) In the meantime, here are the highlights of the Latin American Young Writers’ chat:

New Ideas, Old Materials
Across Latin America the youth voice is largely one of resistance and protest. Many of the publishing projects discussed were born out of social movements. Young people also find it very difficult to get published by traditional publishing houses, which tend to focus on more established, well-known authors. The region’s cardboard movement has been a major outlet for sharing the youth voice. Libros cartoneros (cardboard books), are handmade books, bound in recycled cardboard. They first appeared in Argentina in the early 2000s and have since become popular throughout Latin America. They are published by small, independent presses, sometimes subsidized by the government, with the goal of promoting writing and making literature more accessible. The intent, explains Ecuador’s Freddie Alaya, is not to compete with the traditional book distribution model. “The main interest is political. It’s a way to give an answer to social needs.”

Thinking Beyond the “Book”
Other examples of strategies for sharing young writers’ work in Latin America rest on a re-thinking of the concept of the book. While the ebook market is evolving, young writers are also developing new conceptions of the physical book to appeal to their market. Dario Cemino from Argentina tells of one young writer who released his “book” of poetry like a pack of cigarettes with each poem rolled on a piece of paper. “We work with the book as an object, a work of art, “says Mexico’s Manuel de Jesus. Thinking of the book as an art piece can help to attract attention and reach new audiences.

Creating New Distribution Channels
Getting into traditional bookstore channels can be difficult for young authors, especially those who choose to self-publish. Creating new distribution spaces for books can provide a valuable outlet and help to build and retain an audience. For Argentina’s Dario Cemino, alternative bookstores are an important ally for young writers.

Cemino’s La Libre bookstore carries a diverse range of titles from Argentina’s growing self-publishing community, allowing young writers a space where their voices can be heard and they can create a community.

Cemino also recommends a more human approach to bookselling. While the traditional model of selling books through stores separates the writer from the reader, Cemino notes that many young Argentinian authors take the books directly to the reader, some selling books from their backpacks as they move around the city. Argentina’s Independent Book Fair also gives its young authors an outlet for reaching readers.

It’s Not Just About the Money
While the returns from the projects described may be low, they provide an outlet for young people’s views and allow for books that would otherwise be ignored to be published. Chile’s El Hecho De, for example, published a book of poems from inmates based on winning submissions to prison poetry contest. The books were then made and distributed to the prisoners.

“Young literature [in Latin America] is very political,” says Ecuador’s Freddie Alaya. Alaya notes that for many young writers, the motive is not to generate profit, but to give young people a voice in the political conversations.  “To create change, you have to have social recognition. [Books] create a dialogue between what is marginal and what is official.”

Is there a market for English language books in Cuba? The Caribbean Book Company says yes.

For 14 years, Peter J. Guttridge and his wife have built a business exclusively on the Havana Book Fair. The company sells English-language books at the fair, tapping into the growing interest in English language content. It now represents more than 120 publishers and imprints including all the major UK publishers. For many of these publishers, it’s a chance to sell into a market that they would otherwise not be able to reach.

“The Cuban market can be difficult,” says Guttridge, noting that as the reason for limited competition in English-language books to Cuba. The large audiences (20,000 per day on average over 10 days) make it possible to run a viable business based almost solely on sales at the fair.

“This isn’t a book fair anymore,” says Guttridge. “The Havana Book Fair is the largest Cuban social event of the year – with a book fair inside. It’s a fantastic setting where Cuban families come and [enjoy themselves]. English is the second language here, so we have quite a following year after year. Especially those with children doing English language courses.”

In addition to its direct-to-consumer sales at the fair in February, the Caribbean Book Company sells English-language books in Cuba year-round through its arrangements with local importers, which in turn supply books to bookstores and specialty outlets. The company promotes its catalogs in Cuba and then takes orders.

 “There’s a thirst for books here,” says Guttridge. “After the basics of food, clothing and housing, books come pretty high up.” Guttridge cites the example of a dictionary that sold 5,000 copies in seven days. He notes that children’s books and specialty books on music, arts and the military have also done well.

To get into the Cuban market, Guttridge recommends that Caribbean publishers develop agreements with Cuban importers. 

“It’s not easy, but it’s an interesting market. People forget that this is the largest population in the Caribbean -- 11.2 million people. Plus there are 2.5 to 2.8 million tourists, which can only grow. A lot of them are English-language speakers. There is a huge tourist market that is completely untapped.”

What’s next for the Caribbean Book Company? Gutteredge is looking for an exit strategy. “This is a business we got into by accident,” he says.

“We’d love to find a buyer for it.”

Contact information for the Caribbean Book Company.

One of the highlights of this year’s Havana Book Fair was Lecturas en La Red (books on the network): an impressive digital collection of electronic books available for reading and download at the fair.

Organized by Cuba Literaria, Cuba’s digital publishing house, the collection boasted 1,500 titles available online for the duration of the fair. Visitors to the fair were able to download as many books as they liked to their jump drives or portable devices. The collection covers a broad range of disciplines including fiction, children’s books, science, arts, the social sciences, essays and journals as well as visual and audio projects. The works are classics from the public domain and original titles from contemporary authors who have made their work available for free. Some of the ebooks are also made available for sale through ruthtienda.com, a Cuban and Belgian company that serves as a partner to Cuba Literaria.

“Cuba’s participation in the world of new technologies is very recent, especially for writers,” says Paola Rigal Collado, Director of Cuba Literaria. “[ebooks] are a way for writers to promote their work.” The partnership with ruthtienda.com also gives Cuban writers a rare chance to promote their books in foreign markets. Thus far, Cuba Literaria has published 22 ebooks. Other Cuban publishing houses, including Letras Cubanas, have also begun to release digital titles.  According to Collado, Cuban publishers are increasingly embracing ebooks because they cost less to produce and have a lower impact on the environment.

The response from the Cuban public has been strong. “The general public is always happy with free access [to books],” says Collado. “People here are always willing to read.”

While private internet access is not common in Cuba, electronic books have long been popular. Cubans are able to access ebooks through the many computing clubs across the island.

Cuba Literaria also operates the website cubaliteraria.cu, a portal for Cuban Literature. Its goal is to promote the collective work of the island’s authors and to report on the most important happenings in the literary word at the national and international level.

Cuba Literaria plans to expand into the production of multimedia products, animation, audiobooks and educational video games – all subsidized by the state. The agency is also interested in bilingual books and products to meet the growing interest in English language content.

For more information on Cuba Literaria, visit cubaliteraria.cu.

Translators play a key role in making literature accessible across borders. As Caribbean publishers struggle to broaden their reach, selling into other language markets in the region opens up new possibilities. What are the keys to successful translation? Leading Cuban literary translators at the Havana Book Fair share their thoughts.

Master the languages 
“Translation is a mixture of artistry and craftsmanship,” say our experts. Capturing the essence of a text requires keen understanding of both the source language and the language of the translation. For example, language choices can reflect social class. Translators need to know how to make those distinctions.

Focus on the writing
Translators have to bear in mind that the reader doesn’t care that she’s reading a translation. She wants a good story, told well. Fluent, skilled writing is essential for a good reader experience.

Understand the cultures 
Translating literature is more than interpreting word by word. You have to translate from one culture to another culture, not just from one language to another. New translators need to immerse themselves in the culture of both the original language and the target, reading widely to understand the cultural context of the original and the fidelity of their expression. 

An inaccurate translation, or even the slightest cultural misstep, can ruin the spirit and tone of the work. The risk is particularly great in secondary translations (when a text is being translated from a translation, not an original.)  Referring to and understanding the culture of the original text is important for getting it right. 

Over time, good translators develop a wide understanding of the literature in which they work, opening up other opportunities.

Respect the form
Like writers, translators may not excel in every genre. Being good at translating essays doesn’t necessarily give you the skills to translate poetry. It’s important to have a strong relationship with the editor and, perhaps, a master in the genre. An exchange of ideas leads to a stronger final text. 

Respect the author
The golden rule of translation is this: respect what the author says in the given moment and the given historical context. As Julio TravIeso, one of Cuba’s literary translators tells us:  “I am not the author. I am just his tongue. You don’t have the right to violate the spirit of the author.” Where the full context of an idea or expression can’t be conveyed simply, Travieso recommends using footnotes to explain locations and important characteristics of the source language. 

It’s the attention to maintaining the integrity of the original that makes translators essential. Says Travieso, “Translations help us move past our local and national boundaries. [They’re] necessary for building a universal culture.”  

The organizers may not be focused on making a profit, but lots of business still gets done at the Havana Book Fair. Many international publishers come to the fair looking to acquire foreign rights to Cuban titles and/or to publish Cuban authors. Bahr estimates that about two thirds of the participating international publishers are selling heavily discounted stock into the Cuban market, while the others are looking for publishing deals and contracts. Here’s what Caribbean publishers need to know:

1.     Interest in Caribbean Culture
In 2012, the Havana Book Fair recognized “the Caribbean” as the country of honour; a generous conceptual definition of the region that swept from Louisiana in the North to Bahia in the South. “Cuba is a Caribbean country, but many of our readers are not familiar with the non-Spanish speaking Caribbean,” says Jesus David Curbelo. “For many of our readers, it was a whole discovery.” Many Caribbean titles were republished for the Cuban market, representing, for many, their first Spanish translations.


2.     Growing English Language Market
Cuba has 20+ universities with a large market for instructional materials. Regulatory changes now permit the licensing of private English-language tutors, also expanding the market for English materials.

3.     Demand in key areas
According to Bahr, there’s strong demand for titles in areas Cuban publishers don’t handle. (It’s worth noting that all of Cuba’s 172 publishing houses are state-run. That places certain limitations on the kinds of books published, which creates opportunities for external publishers to meet.

Bahr says that entertainment books, highly illustrated children’ s books, enhanced books (with CDs, sounds, puppets etc.) tend to do well. Dictionaries and specialized instructional books for professionals are also recommended. Sports books, especially football books, are also popular.


4.     Opportunity for South-South collaboration
The Havana Book Fair is a great place for making contacts both with the Cuban literary and publishing community and the large numbers of international visitors. Havana attracts large representation from South and Central America as well as Africa. Publishers seeking co-publishing arrangements that can’t make the hike to London or Frankfurt can take advantage of the networking possibilities in Havana.

 5.     Price sensitive market
While Cuba’s population of 11 million and its 100% literacy rate might make it attractive, the market is extremely price-sensitive. Local books are heavily subsidized and are deliberately offered to the public at well below the price of printing them. Bahr says it’s not unusual to see kids’ books on sale for less than 0.5 CUC (Cuban convertibles. The exchange rate is 1 CUC: 0.87USD). Foreign publishers are advised to offer deals, as in the example of the kids’ books, three for 5 CUC. Bahr notes that specialized titles can fetch higher prices.

6.     Prize available
The Alba Narrativa Literary Awards is now in its fourth year. The Awards honour works in English and republishes the winning book in Cuba. The Award has been undersubscribed each year. For more information, visit www.cubaliteraria.com.

What does it take to pull off a month-long marathon of book-related events? In Cuba’s case, the answer is a web of state agencies dedicated to the development, promotion and distribution of Cuban books. Key among these is the Instituto Cubano del Libro (Cuban Book Institute), the Cámara del Libro (Chamber of Books) and the Agencia Literaria Latinoamericana (Latin American Literary Agency ).

Edel Morales, poet, novelist and Vice President of el Instituto Cubano del Libro and one of the key players on the organizing committee of the Havana Book Fair explains that the purpose of the Book Institute is to organize and implement Cuba’s publishing and literary policies. The Institute organizes weekly book events and runs eight publishing houses that release more than 300 titles per year. The Institute also arranges the distribution of several million titles around the country, through a network of more than 300 bookstores. It promotes Cuban books and authors internationally through the Cuban Chamber of Books and the Latin American Literary Agency. Cuba participates annually in about 30 international fairs mainly in Latin America, but also in Europe, Asia and Africa.

“It’s part of our book policy,” explains Morales. “It seems natural that the book should move around the country, around our linguistic community and then, through translations, [throughout the world.] The book is the main [channel] of communication and human knowledge, so it is important for the country to participate and promote our books and authors in the international arena. We have an important presence in Latin America, a relatively important presence in Spain, and in other parts of the world we try to be present.”

Maintaining a dominant presence in their linguistic community is a key part of the Cuban government’s focus. The Havana Book Fair is one of the main fairs in the Spanish speaking community. As part of the Centro Regional para el Fomento del Libro en America Latina y el Caribe (Regional Centre for Book Promotion in Latin America and the Caribbean -- CERLALC), it participates in a network of Latin American book fair organizers.  CERLALC is an inter-governmental agency under the auspices of UNESCO, headquartered in Columbia. It coordinates state policies on the promotion of books and reading. Through their participation in CERLALC, the fairs throughout Latin America are planned in succession, creating a circuit of events in which all countries can participate and reducing the transportation and coordination expenses of moving books, authors and publishing representatives around the region.

Morales notes that the fairs throughout Latin America are organized in many different ways. For example, the Havana Book Fair is run by the Instituto del Libro, a state organization, whereas the Guadalajara Book Fair in Mexico is organized by the University of Guadalajara. The Buenos Aires Book Fair in Argentina is organized by La Fundación del Libro, a private institution.  Morales notes that in all cases, there is a mix of private and state entities and that strong communication exists between the organizing entities throughout Latin America.

That communication allows organizers to learn best practices in book fair hosting from each other as well as to learn the policies and practices that affect book marketing, distribution and sales in each country, such as customs policies, tariffs and taxation. “The ultimate goal”, says Morales, “is to have higher levels of reading across Latin America. It’s both a cultural interest and a commercial interest.”

 Edel Morales’ top three tips for hosting a successful book fair:
1.     Focus on the readers. The goal is to have a vivid, dynamic book fair, with intelligent dialogue between authors and readers. Morales notes that Cuba’s highly educated population gives it a distinct advantage in programming book-related events.


2.     Focus on the books. Morales underscores that content is what matters. Publishers should focus on creating books that transmit knowledge, culture and pleasure.

3.     Focus on the writers. The writer should feel that the fair is their space, says Morales. They should be happy to participate. These are the main pillars on which the fair is built. Morales notes that buy-in must be sought from the government and private companies, but in all cases, they should understand that the main pillars are the readers, the writers and the culture.

Translation by Vladimir Dominguez.

Major Latin American Book Fairs

Bógota International Book Fair
Bógota, Colombia
April 18 – May 1, 2013

Buenos Aires Book Fair
Buenos Aires, Argentina
April 25 – May 13, 2013

Sao Paolo International Book Biennial
Sao Paolo, Brazil
August 9 - 19, 2013

Guadalajara Book Fair
Guadalajara, Mexico
November 30 – December 8, 2013

Havana Book Fair
Havana, Cuba
February 2014

From its tiny base in Cuba, Ocean Sur Press has generated an impressive catalogue of more than 300 titles in just seven years. A spin-off of the Australian publisher, Ocean Press, Ocean Sur publishes books on Cuban history and politics, including the writings of Che Gevara and Fidel Castro. The company now generates strong sales in Cuba, particularly to the large market of tourists and sells well throughout Latin America, the United Kingdom and the United States. It’s US distribution network now spans more than 2,000 bookstores. It has also been able to parlay its book rights into films including Motorcycle Diaries, the 2004 film directed by Walter Salles and Steven Soderbergh’s 2008 film, Che: The Argentine/Guerilla.

Ocean Sur’s catalogue also includes titles on Latin American thinking, politics and revolution, including books on Chile’s Pablo Neruda and Martinique’s Franz Fanon. The company also publishes books under its Open Memories category, which commemorates the lives of freedom fighters and leading thinkers around the world, such as Malcolm X, Martin Luther King, Helen Keller and Albert Einstein.

Ocean Sur’s Yvonne Muñiz, a former art critic with a background in Caribbean art, thinks there are strong opportunities for publishers from the English-speaking Caribbean to mine the politics and history of the region in similar ways.

“In the Caribbean, you have to work the roots,” says Muniz. “You have to start with the history. You have to go against the many myths that have been imposed on the Caribbean. You usually find information on the beauty of the Caribbean. But behind that there is a history that needs to be written and rewritten.

“We should go back to our first thinkers. The topic of race is very important in our culture. There are histories that have been put into silence. The world is not aware of the cultural richness of our countries in the Caribbean.”

Muñiz thinks that the rise in electronic readers and tablets give Caribbean publishers the opportunity to package new works on history, politics and culture in fresh and interesting ways.

“We live in a world of images,” she says, calling for publishers to integrate major texts with relevant photography and illustrations. “Vernacular architecture, ruins, paintings, traditions, cuisine --  all are attractive to other markets. Colour is important. Covers are important.”

Muñiz notes that maintaining an active, current website and supporting social media platforms is critical for Caribbean publishers who wish to reach the international audience. She also recommends generating a regular newsletter and sending Advance Information sheets to distributors for all new releases.

“Caribbean content sells,” says Muñiz. “Our countries are very much loved by people around the world. There are many niches that have not yet been exploited.”

Translation provided by Vladimir Dominguez. Learn more about Ocean Sur Press.

CaribLit talks to Daniel Garcia Santos, Director of the Latin American Literary Agency

Talk to anyone in the Caribbean publishing industry and the absence of a literary agency is high on their list of challenges. In fact, the creation of a regional literary agency was one of the recommendations that emerged at the first meeting of the Caribbean Literature Action Group in Port of Spain in 2012.

One potential model for what such an agency would look like is the Agencia Literatura Latinoamericana (Latin American Literacy Agency), an arm of the Instituto Cubano del Libro (Cuban Book Institute). It was created in 1985 to represent the rights of Cuban authors. The objectives of the agency are to promote Cuban literature abroad and to represent authors in negotiations with foreign publishers. Cuba has had a national copyright law since 1977 and is a signatory of the copyright conventions of the World Trade Organization.

With a small staff of seven, including four experts in copyright law, promotion and representation, the agency represents the rights of the authors and facilitates the payments of their royalties. It undertakes a year-long programme of activities designed to identify new opportunities for writers – tracking trends in publishing in existing and emerging markets for Spanish-language literature, analysing the catalogues of international publishers and watching their moves to identify those who may be interested in Cuban authors. It develops and maintains the necessary relationships with foreign publishers, introduces new Cuban authors to publishers, negotiates the most advantageous contracts for the authors and manages the payments of their royalties. 

“We maintain relationships with foreign publishers and promote groups of authors according to the genres in which they write,” says Daniel Garcia Santos, the agency’s director. “Once we identify any interest in publishing a certain work in a certain country, we negotiate with the publisher and we protect the authors’ royalties.”

The agency has a promotion catalogue which is disseminated to the international publishing community. While the Havana Book Fair is its major forum for showcasing the work of Cuban authors, it maintains an active presence at international book fairs and promotes different groups of Cuban authors according to the profile of each fair.  “We have a tradition of participating in these fairs so we understand the differences and the interests of each market,” says Garcia Santos. “If we’re going to a fair for the first time, we try to gain some minimum knowledge of the market and then try to select the right authors for that fair. We do promotion in advance so that our attendance is effective.”

Garcia Santos cites as a key example the Frankfurt Book Fair, which he calls a critical space for the promotion of literature and the negotiation of international rights. The agency participates every year.   For Frankfurt, the emphasis is on young Cuban writers who have won literary prizes and received strong critical reviews. For the Guadalajara Book Fair in Mexico, the agency prioritizes the winners of Cuba’s most important writing prizes.  

“Our agency is given top priority, because it is important to the state to promote our literature and protect our authors,” says Garcia Santos. “We try to get contracts which are as beneficial as possible for our authors. When authors negotiate individually with publishers, sometimes the negotiations aren’t as beneficial.”

The agency retains a percentage of the royalties it negotiates for its authors (to a maximum of 15%). What the agency generates over the course of a year depends on the number of contracts it’s able to negotiate, the authors signed and the genres in which they work. Garcia notes that soap opera scripts are a strong income area, generating $30,000 to $40,000 in revenue.

The agency now has a wide network of relationships with international publishers and has built deep institutional knowledge of which areas and markets are most accessible for Cuban literature.

“The international market is very difficult. Inserting yourself and Cuban authors who are not known is very difficult. We work very hard to find areas where we can insert contemporary Cuban authors. Some of our authors are very well known and the requests come. But there are many others that we have to promote.”

Garcia Santos calls for more collaboration between Spanish-speaking and English-speaking Caribbean publishers.  “Sometimes we are a little isolated. We should establish relationships among publishers across the region. We have a common culture. We should have communication channels, systems that allow us to share the knowledge we have of these areas. That’s the only way we have access to these markets which are distant and difficult. Communication is of the essence.”

When asked how other Caribbean islands can follow Cuba’s model for negotiating international rights, Garcia Santos recommends developing a Caribbean organization for driving international promotion and rights sales. “It’s difficult for the author in isolation to access this world. An institution that has a cultural interest and an interest in the promotion of our literature should make the effort.”

Translation provided by Vladimir Dominguez.

Among the many publisher-to-publisher deals happening at the Havana Book Fair, Canada’s Fernwood Publishing was on hand to negotiate two way exchanges with Canadian publishers. When CaribLit caught up with Fernwood CEO, Errol Sharpe, he was in close discussions with Agencia Literatura – the agency responsible for negotiating Cuban rights sales and authors’ royalties. Fernwood is looking for Cuban books to publish in Canada as well as opportunities to get the books it has published about Cuba into the Cuban market. CaribLit asked Sharpe about the opportunities for Caribbean publishers to sell books in Canada.

 “Fernwood is one small company and one of very few publishing critical, and in some cases, revolutionary books,” says Sharpe. “The idea is to publish books that stimulate debate and discussion on critical social and political issues, like class and class analysis, criminology, development and international studies, race relations, social movements and politics.” The company also has a small fiction programme; all of the books deal with social issues.

In 2012, Fernwood published Jamaica in the Canadian Experience, an edited volume of essays by Jamaicans living and working in Canada, released to commemorate the island’s 50th anniversary of independence. The book was well received in the Canadian market. While the company has not published many titles from or about the English-speaking Caribbean, Sharpe notes that there’s strong interest in Caribbean content in Canada, particularly at universities with Caribbean studies programmes. The company is open to exploring co-publishing arrangements with Caribbean publishers, particularly for titles related to critical analysis of Caribbean politics. For example, Sharpe is interested in publishing a book on ALBA – the Bolivarian Alliance for the Peoples of Our Americas, the trading bloc launched by the governments of Cuba and Venezuela in 2004 in response to the Free Trade Area of the Americas. 

Authors who wish to propose book ideas to Fernwood can make submissions directly on the Fernwood website. 

For Caribbean publishers trying to sell books in Canada, Sharpe says that distribution and gaining retail presence can be a challenge. He estimates that 75% of the Canadian retail trade is dominated by one bookstore chain, Chapters. “It can be quite difficult for small publishers to get in.” He notes that electronic books are gaining ground but market penetration is still quite low, especially in the academic market. 

For authors and publishers interested in breaking into the Canadian market, Sharpe recommends studying the market closely. “Get online and look at the Canadian publishers. See what they publish. Find a publisher that’s working with material similar to yours. Many Canadian publishers are interested in Caribbean fiction.”  Sharpe also recommends that interested authors follow each publishing house’s submissions guidelines closely. “Be sure to give the publisher exactly what they ask for. For example, if the publisher requests a book proposal, don’t send a manuscript.”

To learn more about Fernwood Publishing, visit fernwoodpublishing.ca.