MIBF clarifies book signing policy following criticisms from authors, small publishers

MANILA, Philippines – The Manila International Book Fair (MIBF) has clarified its policy prohibiting book signings for exhibitors who take up less than 15 booths during the event, following a slew of criticisms from several Filipino authors and small publishers.

Several publishers had received emails from the MIBF’s organizers Primetrade on Thursday, July 11, stating that book signings would be prohibited for exhibitors who take up less than 15 booths during the event to “avoid disturbance to the other exhibitors.”

Two days later, on Saturday, July 13, San Anselmo Publications’ executive publisher, Marvin Aceron, shared that Primetrade met with them and other publishers to make clarifications on the policy. Aceron said the organizers’ higher managers were not consulted about the controversial email and that it was “an honest mistake.”

Aceron then said Primetrade assured them that in-booth activities are encouraged. He said they later received an email from the organizers clarifying that book signing is allowed, provided that a queueing system is implemented for the book signings of “rockstar authors.”

“Book signings within the booth shall be allowed, provided that a proper queuing system is established and crowd control measures are properly implemented by marshals. Moreover, lines that cover the frontage of other exhibitors’ spaces will be moved to another area, with the exhibitor assigning additional marshals to manage the lines to achieve smooth coordination and flow for buyers,” MIBF organizers said in its email publicly shared by Aceron, adding that the guideline was for crowd control and that it wasn’t their intention to “undermine” any of the exhibitors.

This comes after small publishers like San Anselmo Publications, as well as the Indie Publishers Collab PH (TIPC), criticized the MIBF’s initial rule. 

According to San Anselmo Publications’ Aceron, Primetrade only informed them of the rule after they had settled their down payment and signed the forfeiture clause. However, Aceron pointed out that the broader issue was that the MIBF would merely be an event that sells books you can already find in the mall anyway.

“More than that, the real threat to the book fair (which the organizers seem unaware of) is that it will become boring again. We’re reverting to the pre-pandemic years, with big chains simply moving stock from their bookstores. What’s the point of a book fair if it offers the same titles as the mall?” he wrote. 

Meanwhile, the TIPC held that the rule limits the exposure that could have been given to their published authors. 

“The rule is unfair since it discriminates against small publishers like ourselves, who can barely afford a 3 meter x 3 meter booth that costs [P74,000] plus VAT, but persist because we want to make our titles available to the general reading public, and thus give a bigger exposure to our authors and the important messages we want to communicate,” the TIPC wrote. 

The TIPC then emphasized that it is through book signings that they are able to attract readers, boost book sales, and give authors and readers a chance to interact with each other. It also said that it was evident that the MIBF only caters to the big publishers and, in turn, disregards independent publishers, small presses, and Filipino literature as a whole. 

Several small presses, bookstores, and publishers like Gantala Press, Alubat Publishing, Aklat Alamid, and Sadiri Publishing, among others, reshared TIPC’s statement on Facebook.

What authors had to say

Author Jerry B. Gracio also weighed in, saying that the MIBF should be boycotted if it refuses to remove its policy that puts small publishers at a disadvantage. 

“‘Yung small publishers dapat ang inaalagaan, hindi malalaking publishers dahil malalaki na ‘yun e, kaya na nila sarili nila. Ayusin na lang ang Philippine Book Festival, huwag nang magpunta sa MIBF kung puro tubo lang nasa isip ng mga ‘yan,” Gracio wrote. 

(Small publishers should be looked after, not the big publishers because they can already manage. Just fix the Philippine Book Festival, don’t go to MIBF anymore if all it cares about is profit.) 

Meanwhile, author and journalist Joel Pablo Salud called on the MIBF to “rethink their position.” 

“Authors of publishers with smaller booths have as much right to sign their works as those belonging to larger publishing houses. Authors and publishers great and small are the centerpiece of the MIBF, not the other way around. Live with it,” Salud wrote on Facebook. 

The MIBF is set to happen from September 11 to 15 at the SMX Convention Center in Pasay City. – Rappler.com