Asked about the problems plaguing the Indian publishing industry today, Shobhaa De said, "Marketing, marketing, marketing."
Mumbai's latest literature festival, which kicked off at the National Centre for the Performing Arts (NCPA) on Thursday, took a turn for the obvious with the panel on 'How to get published', where authors such as Shobhaa De and Amish Tripathi held forth.
Asked about the problems plaguing the Indian publishing industry today, De said, "Marketing, marketing, marketing."
She went on to bemoan the lack of commitment on the part of publishers, who, she said, were unwilling to invest in the 'literary stars' of tomorrow. "Publishers cannot sustain themselves on this roster of 10 top authors," said De.
Tripathi took the cue to talk about his well-known rise from insurance salesman to bestselling author. He rattled off Facebook statistics, optimum book lengths, optimum book prices, and his unique marketing techniques - book cover design, video advertisements and handing out the first chapter for free. Tripathi's success clearly was no accident of fate. "But I owe it all to the blessings of Lord Shiva," he said fervently, and a little inexplicably.
The publisher Westland's CEO, Gautam Padmanabhan, was honest, though apologetically so.
"We look at the bottom line," he said, looking at his shoes. "When it comes to literary fiction, we look for quality, and when it comes to, ah, commercial fiction, we look for readability."
"I look for shock and awe," said De to a delighted audience. De also went on to claim, somewhat dubiously that self-publishing is the future of publishing, but with a suitable 'revenue model', which for now, is completely missing. Tripathi took this opportunity to knowledgably chip in with some facts about why eReaders such as the Kindle missed the boat in India, at which the other panellists looked quizzical.
Want to write for De's publishing imprint? Become a ghost writer. De lamented the lack of 'committed' ghost writers in India, writers who could do her celebrity biographies.
"These stars don't even know how to explain their own lives!" she exclaimed pityingly. Tripathi had the last word. "Just write!" he thundered at an audience member who asked about the importance of publishing trends.
"This book means something to your life, not anyone else's. Make sure you don't lose that meaning in your life," he ended, to a smattering of applause.
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