Philippine Delegation #FBM24 - by Cecilia Manguerra Brainard, Report #1
Hi, I'm Cecilia Brainard, a grantee delegate of the Philippine Delegation going to the 2024 Frankfurt Book Fair. I'll be blogging about the forthcoming Frankfurt Book Fair 2024, or Frankfurter Buchmesse (FBM). This is my first blog report.
What is the Frankfurt Book Fair?
The standard answer is that the FBM is the world's largest book trade fair held annually in Frankfurt, Germany.
Many people don't really understand what the Frankfurt Book Fair is. This seems surprising to me, a writer, who has always wanted to go to the FBM. Some where, some time, during my long career as a writer-editor-publisher, I had heard about the FBM and had the idea in my mind that I'd like to go there one day.
The Frankfurt Book Fair is not the usual book fair where books are sold. The primary market for the FBM are publishers, literary agents, scouts because the main thrust of the FBM is rights selling -- of translation rights, subsidiary rights, publishing rights. Even though the FBM encourages writers and normal folk to visit the book fair, they are not the main players. Books are displayed, catalogues made available, and there are some 100 countries participating during this five-day event. Attendees negotiate publishing rights, license fees, business deals, and network. Perhaps it is because these people are there, that writers may want to showcase their works, or try to find a publisher or agent, although I read an account by an American woman writer who spent quite a lot to go to Frankfurt, her books in a backpack, paid for air fare, hotel, entrance, and meals (prices zoom during the FBM), and she ended up ignored and rejected by the agents and publishers she tried to see.
The Philippines did not always attend the FBM, and I believe it was Karina Bolasco who muscled the participation of the Philippines in the Book Fair. Over the years the Philippine delegation has grown, with some 70 publishers displaying over 700 books in the 2024 FBM. Others who have worked to get Philippine representation at the FBM include Neni Sta. Romana Cruz.
Now, it is the office of Senator Legarda who runs this program, and several government offices participate in making the Philippine represented at the FBM - NCCA, NCDB, DFA, among others.
Because the Philippines is the Guest of Honor (GOH) for FBM2025, there are many preparations, and the delegation to Frankfurt is quite large. I'm estimating there may be some 100 delegates, with perhaps half of those grantees. Noted Filipino authors are showcased in various literary events. The connection that the Philippines emphasizes is Philippine hero Jose Rizal who had lived in Germany and who found a German publisher for his famous Noli and Fili, two powerful novels that contributed to the Fall of the Spanish regime in the Philippines.
The Philippines has scheduled a Press conference on Oct. 17, 2024 and a reception later that day. Last year's GOH (Italy) will pass the mantle to the Philippines on Oct. 20, 2024.
As far as the Philippine delegates are concerned, we've been at this since April. As soon as the candidates were chosen and awarded, we had to work. (I should add that Grantees had to undergo a rigorous selection process. Grantees have to be Filipino citizens in the creative, publishing, literary fields, and they should have several awards/ commendations and strong credits before they can make the cut.)
As Grantees, we had to attend zoom sessions and in-person meetings to learn about rights selling, preparation of promo and other publicity materials, as well as practical matters about the Book Fair - where it's located, how to get there, etc.
So, now after almost half a year of training we are ready for next week's FBM, or as ready as we will be. Some delegates are already in Frankfurt and they are talking about the cold weather, and some are stuck in an airport some where, and some have discovered small inexpensive but delicious Greek restaurants. I leave tomorrow, and it will be a fine adventure.
Stay tuned for more of my thoughts and experiences about the 2024 Frankfurt Book Fair.
Photos show:
The group photo shows the participants of a Webinar "Glimpses into Writing in the Philippines" sponsored by the FBM, NBDB, LitProm on September 25, 2024, at 10 AM CET; Top row, l-r: Cindy Wong, Renato Tranquilino, Carla De Guzman; middle row l-r: Ned Parfan, Sarge Lacuesta; Bottom row l-r: Cecilia Brainard, Julian Fuchs, and Mara Coson.
Here is the link to that Webinar: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=g3WaZ5oD_9U
Here is an excerpt from the 1 1/2 hour webinar, with just Julian Fuchs and Cecilia Brainard - https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=sCMHuZzswFc
The NBDB poster is about a panel discussion on Oct 20, 2024, 1 pm.
tags: #FBM24
