‘amaBooks’ to market local literature abroad

THE book industry in Zimbabwe has over the past few years been characterised by limited sales of books other than school texts. Against this backdrop, Bulawayo-based publisher of creative writing, ‘amaBooks, is looking outside the country’s borders.

THE book industry in Zimbabwe has over the past few years been characterised by limited sales of books other than school texts. Against this backdrop, Bulawayo-based publisher of creative writing, ‘amaBooks, is looking outside the country’s borders.

BY SHARON SIBINDI

The publishing house has started exploring ways of ensuring the availability of products across the world online and increasing readership by selling rights so that publishers in other countries can promote the books and reduce transporting costs. Speaking to the paper in Bulawayo, one of the directors of ‘amaBooks, Brian Jones, said last week, together with co-director Jane Morris they were at the South African Book Fair in Johannesburg where they met South African publishers and booksellers.

They were part of the Goethe Institute’s Invitation Programme to the fair, where African publishers gathered together to discuss ways of working together to enhance the book industry across the continent.

“We certainly do not neglect sales within Zimbabwe, it remains our primary market, but the work of Zimbabwean writers deserves a wide readership throughout the world,” Jones said.

“Nowadays, it is becoming increasingly important for writers to get involved in helping to publicise their work, both inside and outside of the country.”

He said some of their published writers — Togara Muzanenhamo and John Eppel — who coauthored a poetry anthology — recently travelled to each other’s provinces to launch the anthology, Textures.

Muzanenhamo then headed for Europe to take part in both the Poetry International Festival in Rotterdam, Netherlands, and one of the United Kingdom’s prominent literary festivals, the Ledbury Poetry Festival.

He was there to promote both Textures and his UK publications, and to interact with some of the world’s leading poets.

Jones said Tendai Huchu’s second novel, The Maestro, The Magistrate and The Mathematician, had been published in Zimbabwe, but had not yet been officially launched as he is based in Edinburgh, Scotland.

“Tendai’s work will reach a wider audience through rights of the novel being sold to publishers in Nigeria, the United States and the United Kingdom. The book is to be translated into German and Italian,” he said.

“Tendai will be actively promoting his novel in Edinburgh over the next few months through an event at the Royal Overseas League during the Edinburgh Festival — the United Kingdom’s foremost arts festival — and later at the Radical Independent Book Festival,” he said.

In November, Huchu will travel to Nigeria to showcase the book at the Aké Arts and Book Festival, one of Africa’s leading festivals.

“Last year, Bryony Rheam, whose debut novel, This September Sun, was first published by ‘amaBooks in 2009, took part in Aké,” Jones said.

Jones said the discussion focussed on building bridges between African peoples, especially along language, ethnic lines and charting new paths with the aim of creating synergy and cultural cross-fertilisation on the African continent.

“We certainly believe that books published in Zimbabwe should be available across the continent and vice-versa — there are so many common issues and experiences,” Jones said.