Antibooks v. Novels — Just Guess Who's Winning

In the Sydney Morning Herald, Sherman Young argues against buying “antibooks,” those book-like objects that convince us to buy them for their hook. “A hook that contains a life-changing promise, a movie tie-in, a catchy, timely premise or an author who is famous for just about anything except writing.”

Antibooks may have the same physical form as books, but they don’t contribute to book culture, a culture centred on ideas and a long, thoughtful conversation about life, love, politics, philosophy and what it means to be human. Book culture demands a commitment of time from authors, publishers and readers; a commitment measured not in minutes and hours, but in longer intervals like months or years. Antibooks make no such demands.

It’s not surprising that sales and production numbers for antibooks far outpaces Australian fiction, but man, these are some sobering figures:

Hence the antibook. In 2006, Spotless, a collection of house-cleaning hints, sold 238,000 copies and the CSIRO Total Wellbeing Book sold 150,000. These antibooks are not meant to be read all the way through, nor will they make any lasting contribution to book culture. But they sell.

By comparison, real books don’t sell. A great Australian novel might move 1000 copies, a number which makes profit somewhat difficult. [. . .]

The state of the novel is one yardstick by which the health of book culture can be measured. In Australia in 2004, 32 Australian novels were published by mainstream publishers, down from 60 in 1996.

Thirty-two. Thirty. Two. Wow.

Young references in passing the role that independents play in publishing Australian fiction, and if there’s anyone out there with info about good Australian indie presses, please let us know. I’m curious as to what’s being published there, especially since Australian literature gets basically no attention here in the States.

(To give credit where it’s due I first found this on the Literary Saloon.)