There is, according to Dennis Abrams with Publishing Perspectives, a phrase in Icelandic: "ad ganga med bok I maganum,” or that everyone “has a book in their stomach.”
The country is relatively young in its 1944 independence from Denmark. Its history in a land of relative geographic isolation, seasonal darkness and snow shaped it into the ideal location for storytelling as both a national hobby and, later, as a way to shape and express national identity. |
The production of published pieces that amounts to the BBC stat of 1 in 10 citizens being published is, at first, mysterious when sources in the industry state that around 1 in 500 people publish a book each year through a recognized publishing house, in addition to multiple citizens who serve as translators. This number of authors who have published books or, perhaps, have published multiple texts is, in reality, much lower than the often-cited 1 in 10 statistics; however, the 1 in 10 stat can be reached when considering self-publishing, magazines, online sources, and other publishing outlets alongside established publishers in Iceland. After all, "In 2014 books were published by 469 institutions or individuals. Of these 329 only published one book leaving 140 that published two books or more. Only 26 published more than 10 books. 46 publishers are members of the Icelandic Publishers Association" (Frankfurter Buchmesse).
While Iceland is, indeed, a culture that lives up to its 99% literacy rate with its preoccupation in writing and telling stories, the idea that an overwhelming number of citizens per capita are publishing reputable sources and books is misleading. The issue, then, perhaps is not how many citizens are producing work and how many can be defined as publishing. Jeff Moriarty confronts these questions of how to define published work at Epublish Unum: "Maybe the idea behind 'published author' has come to an end in an age where some people who publish blog posts on a regular basis get more readers than many mainstream books. Perhaps its use won’t settle out until the publishing industry itself finishes transforming itself." As determined in our interview with the Iceland Publishing Association, the traditional Icelandic industry of publishing print manuscripts is facing its own challenges as an increasing number of citizens transition from print to virtual media. The constant stream of information online oftentimes undercuts peer-reviewed or edited pieces that are selected and produced by noteworthy publishers. Moriarty discusses this conflict in media: "Not having been around the publishing sphere much prior to things going digital I looked at the term as some measure of technical experience. I never saw it as a mark of quality, as I’ve known fantastic unpublished authors and horrible published ones, but more like a merit badge for having navigated the halls of publishing, contracts, writing deadlines, editing, and all those hoops you have to jump through to get your book on a shelf. Not everyone sees it that way. At all."
In order to winnow down the broad implications of "publication" and all of its potential definitions, Moriarty sets forward the following qualifications of a published book or longer piece:
The literary industry in Iceland is still relatively strong, as of 2016; nonetheless, the portrayal of Iceland as an absolute goal of reading and writing fervor is unrepresentative of the complexities of the publishing scene in the country and, perhaps, invalidating to the fact that the country is -- much like the United States -- fighting its own battle with preserving the eminence of publication when social media and entertainment websites create abundant opportunities to claim the label of publication without working through the systems of peer review or editorship that ensure knowledge is reliable. While Moriarty's definition of published pieces is helpful for this discussion, many people would take issue with his conditions and would consider themselves published nonetheless. This does not mean that work produced without going through such a process are unreliable, but it does bring into question the nature of the stat that 1 in 10 citizens are published as it is difficult to determine what exactly is being published, if we can agree that such works are indeed "published" pieces, and if it is, indeed, literature.
While storytelling has and, one can assume, will continue to hold a cherished role in Iceland's culture, the shape of storytelling will alter. Now, publishing books or stories is an avenue for expression for many citizens but the medium for sharing such stories is currently changing. Internet sources are oftentimes more accessible to citizens and easier to distribute than maneuvering the competition of a publishing house. A concern with this change is the publishing industry's difficulty in attracting audiences and authors when web sources (although potentially less reputable) provide an avenue for sharing information and opinion. Also, a potential problem in Icelandic publication in the Information Age is that the wider publication of sources through easily-accessed but also quickly forgotten outlets such as social media, Op-Eds, and magazines will weaken a sense of national literary identity. The sagas hold value as a universally-known set of stories -- their power resides in their wide readership and in their relatability for the citizens who read of national heroes and history. When focus moves from the traditional publishing industry and its competitive nature to a broader sense of unfiltered "publication" online, fewer pieces of literature are produced as the media market becomes preoccupied with transient articles, opinion pieces, and entertainment sources. The content of these pieces, while accessible to more people around the world, becomes less representative of Icelandic language and culture since they must be written in English or other languages that appeal to non-Icelandic readers. The market for readership moves from literature to more quickly consumed pieces which may not possess the same power to foster creative thinking skills and the longer attention span required by longer, more complex pieces of literature. Icelandic literature and a more selective publishing industry that can identify and promote such pieces are important, as they are in any nation, in that they represent language, traditions, and life with the ability to promote empathy in other readers and to engage critical thought to promote readers' questionings of their own preconceived notions.
With this in mind, the high publication rate in Iceland is a double-edged sword for the overall literary culture of that country in that it 1) makes self-expression and storytelling accessible to a wider audience but also 2) could distract from qualities of thoughtful writing and publishing, thus moving away from contributing to a universally-read and appreciated Icelandic literature as online sources present unfiltered, easily-read, easily-forgotten information or sources published in languages other than Icelandic.
While Iceland is, indeed, a culture that lives up to its 99% literacy rate with its preoccupation in writing and telling stories, the idea that an overwhelming number of citizens per capita are publishing reputable sources and books is misleading. The issue, then, perhaps is not how many citizens are producing work and how many can be defined as publishing. Jeff Moriarty confronts these questions of how to define published work at Epublish Unum: "Maybe the idea behind 'published author' has come to an end in an age where some people who publish blog posts on a regular basis get more readers than many mainstream books. Perhaps its use won’t settle out until the publishing industry itself finishes transforming itself." As determined in our interview with the Iceland Publishing Association, the traditional Icelandic industry of publishing print manuscripts is facing its own challenges as an increasing number of citizens transition from print to virtual media. The constant stream of information online oftentimes undercuts peer-reviewed or edited pieces that are selected and produced by noteworthy publishers. Moriarty discusses this conflict in media: "Not having been around the publishing sphere much prior to things going digital I looked at the term as some measure of technical experience. I never saw it as a mark of quality, as I’ve known fantastic unpublished authors and horrible published ones, but more like a merit badge for having navigated the halls of publishing, contracts, writing deadlines, editing, and all those hoops you have to jump through to get your book on a shelf. Not everyone sees it that way. At all."
In order to winnow down the broad implications of "publication" and all of its potential definitions, Moriarty sets forward the following qualifications of a published book or longer piece:
- Work can be digital or print – Digital-only publication is well able to support an author as a career. Trees need not die in your name.
- Self-publishing is still publishing – A contract with a big publishing house may be cool, but is no longer required. Most of the same work needs to happen, and the end result is often the same.
- Work must be available in a major outlet(s) – Could be Amazon.com, iBooks, or the end-cap at Barnes & Noble. Readers should be able to have easy access to get your work in the largest marketplaces. A PDF ebook download on your website can take a long time to create, but people aren’t going to find it while shopping.
- Must have an ISBN number – This is table stakes, even if you’re self-publishing. It makes you easily compatible with all major book tracking systems and isn’t a step you can skip just because you’re flying solo.
- Price is irrelevant – Books have multiple funding models, and there is great published material out there available for free. You do not have to be charging the reader. (Moriarty).
The literary industry in Iceland is still relatively strong, as of 2016; nonetheless, the portrayal of Iceland as an absolute goal of reading and writing fervor is unrepresentative of the complexities of the publishing scene in the country and, perhaps, invalidating to the fact that the country is -- much like the United States -- fighting its own battle with preserving the eminence of publication when social media and entertainment websites create abundant opportunities to claim the label of publication without working through the systems of peer review or editorship that ensure knowledge is reliable. While Moriarty's definition of published pieces is helpful for this discussion, many people would take issue with his conditions and would consider themselves published nonetheless. This does not mean that work produced without going through such a process are unreliable, but it does bring into question the nature of the stat that 1 in 10 citizens are published as it is difficult to determine what exactly is being published, if we can agree that such works are indeed "published" pieces, and if it is, indeed, literature.
While storytelling has and, one can assume, will continue to hold a cherished role in Iceland's culture, the shape of storytelling will alter. Now, publishing books or stories is an avenue for expression for many citizens but the medium for sharing such stories is currently changing. Internet sources are oftentimes more accessible to citizens and easier to distribute than maneuvering the competition of a publishing house. A concern with this change is the publishing industry's difficulty in attracting audiences and authors when web sources (although potentially less reputable) provide an avenue for sharing information and opinion. Also, a potential problem in Icelandic publication in the Information Age is that the wider publication of sources through easily-accessed but also quickly forgotten outlets such as social media, Op-Eds, and magazines will weaken a sense of national literary identity. The sagas hold value as a universally-known set of stories -- their power resides in their wide readership and in their relatability for the citizens who read of national heroes and history. When focus moves from the traditional publishing industry and its competitive nature to a broader sense of unfiltered "publication" online, fewer pieces of literature are produced as the media market becomes preoccupied with transient articles, opinion pieces, and entertainment sources. The content of these pieces, while accessible to more people around the world, becomes less representative of Icelandic language and culture since they must be written in English or other languages that appeal to non-Icelandic readers. The market for readership moves from literature to more quickly consumed pieces which may not possess the same power to foster creative thinking skills and the longer attention span required by longer, more complex pieces of literature. Icelandic literature and a more selective publishing industry that can identify and promote such pieces are important, as they are in any nation, in that they represent language, traditions, and life with the ability to promote empathy in other readers and to engage critical thought to promote readers' questionings of their own preconceived notions.
With this in mind, the high publication rate in Iceland is a double-edged sword for the overall literary culture of that country in that it 1) makes self-expression and storytelling accessible to a wider audience but also 2) could distract from qualities of thoughtful writing and publishing, thus moving away from contributing to a universally-read and appreciated Icelandic literature as online sources present unfiltered, easily-read, easily-forgotten information or sources published in languages other than Icelandic.