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One of Türkiye’s long-established book celebrations, the 42nd International Istanbul Book Fair, is taking place at the Tuyap Fair and Congress Center in Beylikduzu. Continuing until Dec. 21, the fair offers books to readers with discounts ranging from 25% to as high as 50%.
This has sparked competition in the publishing world. While the book fair is underway, online book platforms are also offering discounts of up to 50%, effectively turning into a virtual fair. This situation benefits book lovers who have been complaining about rising book prices due to the paper crisis and the economy.
Speaking to Türkiye daily Press and Publishing Association Chairman and Celik Publishing House owner Halil Celik noted that there is competition between online platforms and fairs during fair periods, saying: “Internet sites do not want to lose customer traffic, so they go for discounts. Now, readers who come to the fair also check online book sites when buying books. If they find the book cheaper online, they definitely tell us. When the reader insists, we also have to sell at the same price as on the internet.”
Despite this, it appears that online discounts have not discouraged readers from attending book fairs. Publishers say that visitor numbers at book fairs, which declined after the pandemic, have increased this year. Halil Celik said, “We have reached a great level of visitor density at the fair. We like the liveliness.”
However, Yeditepe Publishing House General Manager Mustafa Karagulluoglu said, “After the pandemic, we developed an enthusiasm for fairs, but we overdid it a bit,” and continued as follows: “There are an estimated more than 150 events held under the name of fairs in Türkiye. However, some of these do not really have the characteristics of a book fair. Some mayors start these initiatives just so it can be said that they ‘organized a book fair.’ This naturally has negative consequences. But large fairs like TUYAP are not like this. There is a cultural atmosphere here.”
With the Turkish Literature Abroad(TURLA) project, Turkish literature is opening up to the world. Within the framework of the project, which has been carried out since 2017 by the Press and Publishing Association with the support of the Ministry of Culture and Tourism, publishing catalogs are prepared and presented to publishers at fairs abroad. In addition, publisher meetings are held at the stands of Türkiye at international book fairs.
Within this framework, over the past four months, a total of 55 foreign publishing houses from South Korea, Italy, Mexico, Argentina, and Bulgaria were hosted at the Türkiye national stand, and more than 200 bilateral meetings were held with Turkish publishers. In the “Online Publisher Meetings” conducted through TURLA, more than 120 bilateral meetings have been held since September.
Answering Türkiye daily’s questions at the project’s evaluation meeting held the other day at Cagaloglu Booksellers Bazaar, Press and Publishing Association Deputy Chairman Yusuf Unal said that the Turkish works sold abroad the most through copyright agreements are in the children’s books category.
Unal stated that interest in Turkish literature has increased through Turkish TV series. “We are making an effort to promote all of Turkish literature abroad,” he said.
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