|
|
I would like to thank all the organizers of this event for including the participation of Página da Cultura Literary Agency in this meeting.
I want to point out some aspects of the copyright and translation rights sales to Brazil. I will speak in the limited time available on the following topics: the difference between Brazil and Latin America, Brazilian Characteristics, Translations to Portuguese, Editorial forms, Editorial lines, Sales of other rights and sending of sample materials.
The Latin American or Spanish versus Brazilian markets
There is a Brazilian expression that asserts: Brazil is not for beginners.
By introducing this expression I only want to show that in spite of all the economical fluctuations, which Mr. Machado has documented in his presentation, the Brazilian editorial market is expanding, increasing by the year and has very peculiar characteristics.
I plan to focus on the Brazilian editorial market, because it runs parallel to the Latin American editorial market. Brazil constitutes an island of the Portuguese language surrounded by Spanish on all sides.
Also, we cannot assume that the behavior of the Portuguese reader is the same as the behavior of the Brazilian reader, because we know that Portugal is part of the famous European Culture, whereas Brazil is a region which has a variety of typically Polish, German, and Italian regions in the South contrasting with the center of our country which has Russian communities. In short, we are a multicultural nation and São Paulo congregates or represents most of the immigrants.
Nowadays the Brazilian publishing houses are increasingly better structured and managed - more competitive in relation both to domestic and foreign markets. This has brought long-term partnerships between Brazilian and foreign publishing houses. Some agents who are present here this afternoon, upon offering representation in Brazil, must have heard from the publishers the statement that: "We are already working with Record or Companhia das Letras or Campus."
Peculiarities and Unique Factors
The Brazilian editorial market is still characterized by developing and maintaining relationships based on loyalty between foreign authors, editors and publishing houses.
In this sense, in some cases, it is more profitable for the short or medium term for many authors and foreign editors, to maintain their relationships and contracts with a few known Brazilian publishing houses rather than making contacts with new partnerships.
Perhaps one of the reasons for this attitude of maintaining partnerships has its foundations in the fact that in the Brazilian publishing houses the negotiations, commitments and obligations of Publisher and Editor are very often practiced by the same person. Another reason is that our country continues to go through periods of political and economic chaos. Therefore, international publishers feel secure with old friends and long term relationships.
Translations
The fluctuations in the Brazilian currency versus the US Dollar have favored translations into Portuguese from the following languages: French, Spanish and English. In this case, it is not only the economical aspect, which has its influence, but it is also the possibility of more easily finding translators in Brazil for these languages. This special possibility allows the production costs for the foreign books to be comparatively cheaper.
We know that there are translators for the lesser-known languages in Brazil. However, most of the Brazilian publishing houses do not have immediate access to these translators and this has made the sale of translations for lesser-known languages more difficult.
We should here make a suggestion to the Frankfurt Book Fair organizers to create a "Who's Who of Translators" for the countries which are participating to support the publishing houses of the lesser-known languages.
Subsidiary Rights
The most common format of books in Brazil is the Trade Paperback for all fields of knowledge, including the children's books.
The Trade hardcover format is only used when there is a technical production requirement or a special wish to make a different special book. There is no regularity in the publishing of classical books in mass-market hardcover. It happens, but with no pre-established schedule.
The worldwide mass-market paperback romance novels on sale at newsstands are very popular and only explored by two Brazilian publishing houses. One publisher buys the translation rights from international publishers and the other publisher produces titles locally written by Brazilian authors.
The Book Clubs have already had their period of total success during the seventies and the eighties and perhaps some of these companies are planning to come back.
Door-to-door is a very well structured market in Brazil. They deal with cities and regional districts, which have less cultural centers and fewer special book sales outlets.
The co-editions are mostly for the sales to bookshops and door-to-door sales channels.
Anthologies and Textbooks rights and "permissions" are much exploited in many sectors of the publishing industry.
The Pocket Book is still at the beginning of its development and has much room for future expansion. We have around six publishing companies working in this sector currently in Brazil.
Audiobooks, e-books and other digital editions have not yet defined a realistic market segment or niche within the total Brazilian book consumers.
Selected Highlights
The field for business, self-help, esoteric, spiritual and religious books in general are overexploited in Brazil by Brazilian authors as well as by translations of foreign titles.
The field for young adult books for instruction or supplemental class room use (from 7 to 17 years of age) are served by very competitive publishing houses which work from the planning of a book up to the total support for its use in classes by teachers. The publishers in Brazilian focus on the private school teaching network as well as to the public education system. The latter is always larger in sales figures. The Brazilian Government at all levels has been buying large quantities of books for schools and libraries. The best income/profits in this area come from the government purchases. When the translation rights are bought for these titles, then the Brazilian publishing houses prefer to have the rights and possession of the films for printing the local editions.
The area of literary fiction is more published in Brazil than the stories known as "commercial fiction". Perhaps because the price of a book in Brazil does not correspond to the needs of the books labeled "commercial fiction".
A curious case in this sense concerns a cleaning lady of ours, so eager to acquire cheap books, between 50 cents and one Dollar, bought books in English and French which were on sale in a bookstore near our office. Thus, she was still unable to read the books. Upon getting the information that now in 2002, a series of books were being sold at R$1.00, she only stated: "Now also the poor can read."
From Book to Film, Play and TV
The sales of translation, media or copyrights for movies, theater and TV are not necessarily made by Brazilian publishing houses nor by literary agents. When it comes to these last two, there is only the possibility of negotiating and developing the contracts.
Take the folder instead of just the book
During a lecture on the profession of the Editor in São Paulo, we heard the following declaration from an experienced Brazilian Editor: "I publish books - and you also want me to read them?" I use this sentence to complain of the way the foreign publishers or editors offer their works.
It is still very common to mail only one reading copy and nothing else. With no author biography, no summary of the book, no press reviews, or any information about the target market, number of copies sold or planned to be sold in the country of origin etc. When the languages concerned are from the usual major countries in the world then the translation problems are smaller. However, books in Polish, Dutch, Korean among others, or even the reference to a brief Internet research, make a good presentation and review impossible for the Brazilian editor.
An agent with more than thirty years of existence in the Brazilian market, said that in her experience the reading of a book made her anxious concerning the sale of the book. In order to accomplish a good sale she would rather work with author biographies, press reviews etc, instead of the whole book.
Thank you and I welcome your questions for discussion of Brazil and the Portuguese language translations
rights.
|
