Bellagio Publishing Network  

BPN Newsletter Issue No 23, October 1998 

 
 

NEW PUBLICATIONS

compiled by Rachel Wiggans

An Introduction to Publishing Management, Ian Montagnes, ISBN 1901830063 124pp 1998, Association for the Development of Education in Africa (Perspectives on African Book Development 5), London, $21.50/�11.95 pb. Distributed by African Books Collective Ltd., The Jam Factory, 27 Park End Street, Oxford, OX1 1HU, England. Fax +44 1865 793298, e-mail: abc@dial.pipex.com, on-line ordering: http://www.africanbookscollective.com .

With the liberalisation of textbook publishing policies in much of Africa, and the increasing integration of the private sector in the supply of textbooks to government-financed schools, great possibilities are opening for the development of indigenous publishing industries. This introduction to publishing management is by a highly respected publishing practitioner and theorist. He sets out the basics of efficient, economical and prudent management of time and money in publishing, with a view to equipping African publishers with techniques that will contribute to success, whether they are tendering for contracts or competing in a completely open market. While much of the emphasis is on textbooks, the principles apply to all types of publishing, and to most countries of the world. The premise is that managers need not be skilled in every area of publishing, but do need to know enough about each area to ask the right questions about strategies, costs and cost recovery. Also available in French.

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A Bibliography of Publishing and the Book Chain in Sub-Saharan Africa - 1997, Hans M. Zell (editor), ISBN 190183008X 82pp 1998, Association for the Development of Education in Africa (Perspectives on African Book Development 6), London, $30.00/�16.75 pb. Distributed by African Books Collective Ltd., details p. 19.

This second annual supplement to Publishing and Book Development in sub-Saharan Africa: An Annotated Bibliography, published in 1996, covers for the most part listings for 1997, selectively recording, annotating and classifying new literature on the book chain in sub-Saharan Africa. The 251 entries cover new serials, books, reference sources, reports, papers in edited collections, periodical articles, book sector studies and similar documents, and a select number of unpublished papers and documents. The 1997 annual bibliography now also includes a number of Internet documents. The material is generally arranged by topic, but is indexed both by subject, and by country/region, and author.

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African Publishing Review, ISSN 10297618, 1998, APNET, Harare. Annual subscription inside Africa $30/�20 (airmail $35/�25) outside Africa $50/�35 (airmail $60/�40) from APNET, PO Box 3773, Harare, Zimbabwe. Tel +263 4 706196/7, fax +263 4 705106, e-mail: apnet@harare.iafrica.com

Vol. 7 No 1 includes an interview with the Noma Award winner , Prof Adu Boahen; articles on capacity building challenges, copyright, and publishing.

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Educational publishing in global perspective - capacity building and trends, Shobhana Sosale (editor), ISBN 0821342541 229pp 1998, The World Bank, 1818 H Street NW, Washington, DC 20433, USA. Tel +1 202 477 1234, fax +1 202 477 6391, e-mail: books@worldbank.org.

These papers from a seminar on `Understanding the educational book industry' organised by the World Bank in September 1997, focus on: policies for the provision of educational materials; finance and book trade issues; procurement, protection and copyright; the role of publishing partnerships; and the publishing industry in the twenty-first century. They centre predominantly on publishing in Africa, Eastern Europe and Latin America. Contributors include representatives from publishing houses, publishers' associations, bilateral and multilateral donors and lenders, and funding foundations, and the papers reflect the strong criticisms made at the seminar of the World Bank's textbook procurement procedures as inherently deterring the emergence of local private publishing capacities and the smooth distribution of books. Since the seminar was the first of its kind within the context of Bank lending for education, the page on `lessons of experience for World Bank support for textbook components' is especially welcome; it is helpful to know the knowledge and ideas that potentially shape policy.

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Creative Writing - A Handbook, Norma Kitson, ISBN 0949229482 134pp 1997, Baobab Books, Harare $13.75/�7.50 pb. Distributed by African Books Collective Ltd., details below.

Written in a simple and straightforward style, this practical handbook contains hints and information on the writer's diary, writer's block, conflict and tension, discipline, flashbacks, plots and themes, character and dialogue, description and imagery, poetry, the novel, and short story writing. Exercises and examples accompanying each chapter are drawn from workshop participants and published writers, introducing the reader to a wide range of different styles and works of literature. The author, a founder member of Zimbabwe Women Writers, is herself a noted writer. [end] [BPN, no 23, 1998, pp 18-19.]

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