Frankfurt Dispatches: Rosemary’s Recap of the Book Fair

We’ve got a recap of Frankfurt Book Fair courtesy of VP of Marketing and Sales Rosemary Carlough typing furiously on her Blackberry at Prague airport.

Another Frankfurt Book Fair ended on Sunday and our Rights Director has gone from Lost in Translation to Lost in Germany for a much deserved break. She will report on translation trends in a future blog post, but in the meantime I thought I would share an overview.

Hall Eight, the English language hall, was decidedly less full this year. Our stand has been J923 for a number of years now, and many of our neighbors have been the same—until this year. The stand next to us was gone, replaced by extra seating for tired feet. Another stand that had been near us for years also seemed to have disappeared, but then the company was discovered in a small shared space, clearly a cost-saving measure. The cafe areas also appear to have more seating than in previous years, another sign of less booth space sold.

On the other hand, the march of technology has moved to Hall Eight. Google has been in Hall Eight since it started coming a few years back, but this year there was an even bigger section of E-content folks and Hot Spots, where they could make presentations. And Code Mantra, which does our file conversion and digital asset distribution, moved to Hall Eight from Hall Four, something apparently they had wanted to do for years.

In addition to the changes brought by technology, there are also those brought by the ongoing consolidation in publishing. The British publisher Hodder & Stoughton had a huge booth, as did another British publisher with a host of imprints unknown to the Americans in our booth. Penguin-Pearson showed that they are one company with a back-to-back booths that were both enormous.

Simon and Schuster, always a bit off to the side, had the forthcoming Steve Jobs book by Walter Isacson, but the Bertelsmann booth had his picture smiling out at us in a much more traveled location.

While it’s perhaps clear by the quiet on the last of the five days that email and Skype have made face-to-face meetings less in demand, it’s also true that there really is no substitute for an in-person meeting at Frankfurt (or BEA, or in some cases London). And there are always a few discoveries. I’m always on the lookout for digital asset options and discovered a couple of new ones just walking the aisles. That in itself was interesting as Frankfurt is generally an appointment driven fair. So it was certainly a worthwhile trip.

In Hall Eight, Saturday and Sunday continue to be very quiet days. Many of the folks I met with were leaving late Friday or Saturday, although Therese was booked as usual for Saturday.

For readers who have not been to the Fair it’s important to point out that the public is allowed into the Halls on Saturday and Sunday. This does not generate much—if any—traffic in Hall Eight, but there were tour buses parked in the lots, so a shorter fair does not seem to be in the offing any time soon.

Auf wiedersehen!

Until next year!

Frankfurt Dispatches: The 2011 GetAbstract Business Book Awards

VP of Marketing and Sales Rosemary Carlough reveals there was at least one party at Frankfurt Book Fair this year.

It’s the 11th Annual International Business Book Award Ceremony by GetAbstract. From a short list of five English language and five German language books, two English language and two German language titles were selected as winners. The awards are decided by an editorial team at GetAbstract who read all the books. They noted many excellent titles in 2011 on the subjects of applicability, style, and innovation. The winners received huge Toblerone bars. The two English language winners are:

Corporate Whistleblower’s Survival Guide by Tom Devine and Tarek F. Maassarani (Berrett-Koehler). With an introduction from Jeffrey Wigand, whistleblower in the tobacco industry, it explains that many people see misdeeds but few report them.

Why the West Rules—for Now by Ian Morris (Picador). A scholarly (the author is a professor at Stanford) but fabulous read, this history book has immense business applications spanning from the ice age to the 20th century.

Anyone else hungry for chocolate?

Therese on Essential German for the Frankfurt Book Fair

The following is a guest post by Director of Rights & International Sales Therese Mausser about some simple and useful German words and phrases to ease the way for non-German speakers in Frankfurt.

Your flight and hotel have been booked, the catalogs and books shipped, and the meetings confirmed.  In a week you will be attending your first Frankfurt Book Fair (Frankfurter Buchmesse). You’ve studied the list of new books (neue Buecher) you will be presenting to your publishers and agents, many of whom you’ll be meeting in person for the first time. You’re all set to go. You’re excited, but a bit nervous, too—it’s your first time in Frankfurt, and you don’t speak a word of German.

Kein Problem!  Here are some basic German words and phrases* to help navigate your way around the city.  They will offer absolutely no help should you somehow find yourself in the middle of a heady discussion of Rilke’s symbolist poems (it’s a book fair, after all).  However, a simple “Bitte” (please) and “Danke” (thank you) are likely to elicit  an appreciative smile from the person who just brought you that coffee you’d ordered. Learning at least a few basic words in the local language helps connect you to the people there, and they definitely will appreciate your efforts and good will. Viel Erfolg (much success) und viel Spass (and have fun)!

A few points about German pronunciation:

• When ie (ee) or ei (eye) come together in a word, pronounce the second vowel.
• Sp is pronounced like “shp” (e.g., sprechen = to speak)
• St is pronounced like “sht” (e.g., die Strasse = the street)
• W is pronounced like a “v” (e.g.,  wir = we)
• V is pronounced like an “f”  (e.g., von = from)
• Z is pronounced like “ts”—as in “starts”  (e.g., der Zug = the train)

Basic Words:
Yes…….Ya  (y-ah)
No…….Nein (nine)
Maybe…….Vielleicht  (fee-lycht)
Thank you…….Danke  (dahn -ke);  Thank you very much = Dankeschoen
Please…….Bitte (bit -eh);
You’re welcome…….Bitteschoen
Excuse me…….Entschuldigen Sie (ent – shool- deegen See)

Greetings:
Good morning…….Guten Tag ( gooten tahk)
Hello……. Hallo (ha-low)
Good evening…….Guten Abend (gooten ah-bent)
Goodbye…….Auf Wiedersehen (owf- vee der zane)
Bye (local)…….Tschuess  (tsch-use)

Numbers:  
1 - eins,  2 – zwei,  3 – drei, 4 – vier,  5 – fuenf,  6 – sechs, 7 – sieben,  8 – acht,  9 – neun, 10 – zehn.

Question:
Where?…….Wo (voe)
Where is?…….Wo ist. . .(vo ist)
When?…….Wann? (vahn)
Why?…….Warum? (vah-room?)
Who?…….Wer? (vair?)
How?…….Wie? (vee)
How much?…….Wieviel? (vee-fee-l)
How much does it cost?…….Wieviel kostet es?
May I?…….Darf ich?
Where is the bathroom?…….Wo ist das WC?  (vo ist das vay-tsay) or Wo ist die Toilette? (vo ist dee twalette)

Conversation:
Do you speak English?…….Sprechen Sie Englisch (shpray+hen see Eng-lish)
I don’t speak German…….Ich spreche kein Deutsch (doitch)
I don’t know…….Ich weiss nicht  
I don’t understand…….Ich verstehe nicht (ich vair-shtaye nicht)
Can you help me?…….Koennen Sie mir helfen?
I would like…….Ich moechte  
How are you?…….Wie geht es Ihnen? (vee gate es een-en?)
My name is…….Mein Name ist (mine nah-muh ist)
It’s a pleasure to meet you…….Es freut mich (es froit mich)

Directions:
airport…….der Flughafen
train station…….der Bahnhof
Is it near?…….Ist es in der Naehe?
Is it far?…….Ist es weit?
straight ahead…….geradeaus
back…….zurueck
right……. rechts
left…….links
upstairs/above…….oben
downstairs/below…….unten

From the Menu:
das Gemuese…….vegetables
das Obst…….fruit
die Getraenke…….beverages
die Milch…….milk
das Wasser…….water
das Bier…….beer
der Wein…….wine
der Saft…….juice
das Brot…….bread
der Kaese…….cheese
der Kuchen…….cake
der Fisch…….fish
das Fleisch…….meat
das Rindfleisch…….beef
der Schinken…….ham
das Schweinefleisch…….pork
die Wurst…….sausage
die Kartoffeln…….potatoes

*Of course there are Apps for this, but a little crib sheet may also come in handy!

Danke Therese!

Therese Mausser is Director, Rights & International Sales, AMACOM Books, New York. She is currently getting ready for another Frankfurt Book Fair (her 29th one!) this October 12-16. It is one of the things she loves best about her job–this opportunity to meet with so many of the wonderful publishers and agents we work with throughout the year. Visit our website for information on rights and permissions inquiries of AMACOM titles.

Lost in Translation: A First-Time (Non-Fiction) Author’s Guide to Translation Rights

The following is a guest post by Director of Rights & International Sales Therese Mausser on what non-fiction authors can expect for translation rights to their work.

For a first-time author, the translation process can be mystifying. How in the world does, say, a title like Delivering Knock Your Socks Off Service become Tippteenindaja raskused ja rõõmud? (Imagine trying to first explain the idiom, “knock your socks off,” to foreign publishers, and then having an Estonian publisher come up with an equally as colorful and lively a title for their translation!)

Some years back, an author new to publishing wondered how much it would cost to get a translation of his book in Spanish. He was downright giddy when advised that not only would we not have to shell out any money, we would be getting paid for it—by licensing the translation rights! Here, then, is the process.

Presentation: We bring your book to the attention of appropriate agents and publishers throughout the world. We have established good/long-term relationships with major foreign publishers, agents, and scouts. (To date, AMACOM books have been translated in almost 40 different languages.) We meet with them at the major book fairs, including BookExpo America (BEA) and the Frankfurt Book Fair, and in office meetings throughout the year, when they visit NYC. We continually update them on our books– forthcoming, current, and backlist—via email, hard/electronic copies of our catalogs, reviews, and encourage them to visit our social media sites.

What foreign publishers look for/consider: Of course, it’s understandable that books by well-known authors, on US bestseller lists, with a high ranking on Amazon, garnering outstanding reviews in major publications, or endorsements by prominent figures in the field, will get their attention immediately. But what else do foreign publishers/agents look for/consider?

1. A concept/topic that is not available locally—something “new”, cutting edge, a unique perspective. Translation costs are high, so they are very reluctant to pay for a translation of a book they could get a native author to do (and perhaps create a “brand name” of the local author, in the process.) A “hot topic” in one country, might not even be on the radar screen in another, so it’s vital to establish good lines of communication with publishers/agents to keep on top of what publishers may be looking for. Sometimes there are trends—like the fables that were very popular in Asia some years back.
2. A concept/topic that “travels”—it is relevant in their markets. Even if an idea is intriguing, if it’s based too much on US laws, customs, examples, they are likely to pass on it.

Option: After the pitch is made, interested publishers will ask for an “option.” This is a period of time during which they evaluate the book for their market. This can range from several weeks to several months, and can be exclusive (only one publisher/agent considers the title at one time), or nonexclusive.

Negotiation: If the publisher is interested in translating the book, we work out the financial terms—usually an advance against royalties, although in some languages, such as Arabic and Turkish, a flat payment, covering royalties on a specified first printing, is more common. These terms will vary from country to country, but we always take into account their first printing quantity and price. These payments are due shortly after the contracts are signed, and are shared with the author according to our original agreement with them, (subject to local tax and agent’s fee, where applicable.)

Unfortunately, there is not a one-to-one correlation between granting an option, and getting an offer for the rights. Often, options are canceled, but then we send the book (or PDF) out to another agent or publisher who may have expressed in it, or who we think might be a good match for it.

Contract: When the negotiation is completed, we issue an agreement reflecting the agreed-upon terms. These are for a volume edition (i.e., hardcover or paperback), and more and more often these days for ebook rights for the translation, as well. When the signed contract is returned, this is the point at which we notify our authors of the good news!

Foreign Translation: Our agreement with the publisher generally specifies they have 18 months from contract date within which to publish their translation. We look to work with publishers who can provide top-quality translations, and support their editions with a strong sales/marketing/distribution network. Upon their publication, we receive copies of the translation, which it is our pleasure to send to our authors. Hooray! You have a wonderful new addition to your bookshelf (and/or electronic reading device)!

Therese Mausser is Director, Rights & International Sales, AMACOM Books, New York. She is currently getting ready for another Frankfurt Book Fair (her 29th one!) this October 12-16. It is one of the things she loves best about her job–this opportunity to meet with so many of the wonderful publishers and agents we work with throughout the year. Visit our website for information on rights and permissions inquiries of AMACOM titles.

Podcast: Cultural Intelligence Difference

In a new American Management Association podcast, David Livermore, president and partner at The Cultural Intelligence Center and author of The Cultural Intelligence Difference: Mastering the One Skill You Can’t Do Without in Today’s Global Economy talks about the importance of honing CQ skills in today’s global workforce.

David Livermore defines Cultural Intelligence Quotient (CQ) as one’s ability to function effectively across national, ethnic, and organizational cultures. From a misinterpreted gesture, to an e-mail in lieu of a phone call, there are implicit actions, rules, and guidelines that differ from countries or even corporations, that can make a profound professional impression. Knowledge of these nuances isn’t innate, regardless of skill-level, IQ, or EQ. But CQ can be learned. Livermore outlines the four areas of CQ and why your proficiency in them can be the defining factor in your career progress.

Click HERE to listen to the podcast.

David Livermore, president and partner at the Cultural Intelligence Center and a visiting research fellow at Nanyang Technological University in Singapore. He has done consulting and training with leaders in 100 countries, and is the author of The Cultural Intelligence Difference and  Leading with Cultural Intelligence.