게시물 상세

Asian Publishers Fellowship Program in Seoul 2017

A special exchange among Asia's publishing editors

 

2017.11.01

 

The Korea Publishers Association, in hand with the Korea Publishers Society also representative of South Korea's publishers, has been hosting conferences of publishing industry experts in East Asia as an external cooperative project. The conferences aim to share business know-how between global publishers and the latest publishing marketing techniques. Particularly, the Asia Publishers Fellowship Program (APS) has been held from 2010 to strengthen international networks through exchanges between publishing industry professionals and create a platform on which South Korea's publications and copyrights can be exported. At the conferences, the excellence of South Korean publications is actively promoted and their exports have grown in tandem with the growing popularity of Korean culture. As of this year, 106 participants from 15 countries have taken part in the program.

 

APS invites participants from over ten countries to Seoul for a four-day visit (five days until 2010) to exchange market information like current issues and trends in the publishing industry and each year, discussions are dedicated to one theme inside which participants share ideas on how to resolve different tasks and hurdles they face. Participating countries include South Korea, China, Japan, Thailand, Taiwan, Hong Kong, Indonesia, Malaysia, Vietnam, Singapore, the Philippines, India, Iran, New Zealand and Sri Lanka.

 

is_01

A ceremonial photograph of the participants for the Asia Publishers Fellowship Program visiting the Korea Publishers Society and officials there

 

APS particularly aims to strengthen not only ties between local publishers and offshore international publishers, but export competitiveness by learning from successful examples of other foreign publishers. It also seeks new ways into offshore publishing markets and building bridges for exports of South Korean publications.

 

This year's APS was held from Sept. 19 to 22 and in addition to three from South Korea, a total of 13 participants from ten countries (China, Hong Kong, Japan, Thailand, Indonesia, Malaysia, Vietnam, Philippines and Singapore) took part in the program and gave presentations on this year's discussion theme, 'How will editors manage writers?' They also exchanged questions and answers to share ideas. Although participants are from different countries around Asia using different languages, they spoke in English during the program to understand each other.

 

is_02

A presentation is being given at a roundtable at the Jijihyang conference room in Paju's Asia Publishing Culture Information Center 

  

The following are themes previously discussed at the program: 'The Age of Digital Publishing: Challenges and Tasks (2010)', 'The Age of Hallyu Publishing: Challenges and Tasks (2011)', 'One-Source, Multi-Use in Publishing (2012)', 'The Vision of Asia Publishing Content (2013)', 'Global Strategy and Vision for Asia's Publishing (2014)', 'In the Age of Proteur Writers, What is the Role of Editors? (2015)' and 'New Trends in Practical Books (2016)'.

 

The program participants stayed in the Hongik University area, famous for its popularity amongst young people, for four days and held expert discussions as professionals working in the publishing industry. They also visited Paju Book City as well as bookstores and publishers the personally experience South Korea's publication and book market scene. For a short while, they were also able to relax and experience South Korea's traditinonal and modern culture during their visit here.

 

On the first day of the fellowship program this year, participants were informed on the program's schedule and given time to exchange greetings with one another. They visited the Korea Publishers Society and had dinner with the executives there before embarking on a trip to Paju the next day. A roundtable session was held there where presentations and debates were held before the participants toured Sakyejul Publishing Inc for a hands-on experience. They were also given a detailed introduction to Paju Book City, which gained much interest from the participants, by a publishing expert there. On the third day, the visitors visited Kyobo Book Centre in downtown Seoul to see how books are sold in South Korea before touring Gyeongbok Palace nearby for a glimpse into the country's traditional culture. In the afternoon on this particular day, an Open Forum event was held at the Changbi Hakdang 50th Anniversary Hall, where four of the program participants gave presentations before publishing industry officials, members of the media and general public.

 

is_03

Fellowship participants look at books at the bookstore on the first floor of Sakyejul Publishing Inc inside Paju Book City

 

is_04

Participants listen to a guide speak before a model of Paju Book City on the first floor of the Asia Publishing Culture Information Center

 

In the evening, the fellowship members were treated to a chicken and beer dinner with participants from the forum and other local publishers. On their last day, business meetings were held with the visitors and South Korean publishers and agencies for possible book deals. The fellowship program came to a close after receiving comprehensive feedback from the participants for the future improvement of APS.

 

is_05

A fellowship participant from the Philippines gives a presentation at the Open Forum

  

APS participants are professionals working in the publishing industry, and usually responsible for either editing or copyrights. Their ages are diverse, from those in their twenties to some in their fifties. Their positions in their respective firms are also different, with some visiting with over five years of experience, or some being the heads of their publishing companies. And although they are all from Asia, participants show varying degrees of cultural differences including history and religion, which also mirrors the differences in publishing markets throughout the continent. There are hopes APS will grow into a bridge connecting publishing industry workers from different regions, countries and cultures like the Frankfurt fellowship program in Germany which invites people from all over the world, as APS has participants from many Asian countries in addition to those from South Korea, Japan and China which currently have top ranking publishing market shares globally.

 

is_06

After a visit to Gyeongbok Palace, fellowship participants pose for a photograph in front of the Geunjeongjeon there

  

The Frankfurt fellowship program, which is now in its 20th year after being launched in 1998, has seen over 300 participants so far from 55 countries. It is held over a course of 15 days, which also includes the Frankfurt international book fair. Participants are invited to visit German publishers and bookstores to learn about diverse book markets and broaden their networks by participating in various events. Every year during the book fair, there are also alumni events for the fellowship.

 

 

 


Written by Lois K. S. Kim (Coordinator & Interpreter of APS)

kbbok

Lois K. S. Kim (Coordinator & Interpreter of APS)

If you liked this article, share it with others. 페이스북트위터블로그인쇄

Pre Megazine

TOP