Elham Fallah, Author: Publishers Don’t Accept Original Works!
According to the Cinemadrame News Agency, author Elham Fallah, in an interview criticizing the chaotic book market, emphasized that the Iranian book market is dominated by translations. She continued: “In the fields of philosophy, psychology, social sciences, novels, and stories, the book market is controlled by translations. Publishers release only a few original (non-translated) books each year to ‘balance their stock’ and report in their statistics that they’ve also published some original titles. Publishers tell authors that no matter who the author is, they won’t accept original works, and if they do publish a book, their priority is translated books.”
The author of the book Look at Me, noting that she writes for children, young adults, and adults, said: “Among top-tier publishers, whose brands and book covers readers trust, there isn’t even one that publishes an original novel by a new author. Even I, with 15 published works, have to convince the publisher to guarantee sales for 500 copies, promote it myself, and market it on social media. This is while thousands of filters exist even for me.”
Recalling the 2010s when creators gathered in cafes and conversed, she said: “These days, such gatherings have ceased. Back then, everyone was busy with something, and no one was idle; they were working on short stories or novels. These days, we don’t gather anywhere, and even when we text on social media, no one is writing; every author writes for themselves and says they don’t intend to publish it. Writing is a process that should be shorter, but due to lack of motivation, it drags on.”
I Closed My Bookstore
Fallah announced that she closed her online bookstore, which she had launched in 2020, stating: “When I first launched the bookstore and introduced a book, it would sell. But these days, there are no sales. I couldn’t even sell my own new book. I operated this bookstore for three years. In the first few months, even though people didn’t know this bookstore, I would take books to the post office by van. The number of orders was such that I would package them all night until morning.”
The author of the book Winter with Cherry Flavor, referring to the impact of book prices on purchasing this cultural product, said: “Purchases from my bookstore gradually decreased until, in 2024, book prices surpassed 300,000 Tomans. For example, my book Fish’s Curse, although written for children and young adults, is priced at 220,000 Tomans. As a mother, I think to myself, if I had a bookworm child, how much would I have to spend on books monthly? This situation has truly become difficult for families.”
She continued: “For books over 300,000 Tomans, no matter how much content creation, teaser production, and other efforts you put in, you still won’t persuade the audience to buy the book. The audience is very small and quickly moves towards large online sales sites, which usually offer discounts. My author friends generally use e-books, because if you’re a keen reader and have a high monthly reading volume, you can only manage your budget by buying electronic versions.”
The author of the book Samar, sharing her personal experience of buying books, explained: “Last week, I was looking for a prose version of the Shahnameh. I found a book in a bookstore that was 12 years old. The bookseller had put an 800,000 Toman price tag on it. Of course, the book had nearly 900 pages, and booksellers have the right to raise book prices because they pay bookstore costs and taxes up to date.”
She added: “That bookseller had kept the book for 12 years, but on the other hand, the reader loses the chance to find the book at a lower price. I also put the book back on the shelf because, in my opinion, 800,000 Tomans is too much.”
