Xiamen book fair set to ignite reading craze

Publishers in Hong Kong will be invited for the first time to attend the 15th Cross-Straits Book Fair scheduled from Sept 20 to 22 this year in Xiamen, Fujian province, organizers announced on June 18 at a promotional event held in Taiwan.

The book fair, the most influential of its kind gathering publishers from across the Straits, will be held at the Xiamen International Conference & Exhibition Center.

The event will cover an area of 34,500 square meters and there will be sessions held simultaneously in the cities of Quanzhou and Putian, Gulangyu Island, and the Xiamen International Book Center.

The scale of the event will be increased by 20 percent from previous years to accommodate more than 300 Chinese mainland publishers, 220 Taiwan publishers, and publishing agencies from Hong Kong, including Sino United Publishing (Holdings) Ltd, as well as various activities.

This year's book fair will have eight exhibition areas, including several for the display of Chinese mainland and Taiwan books, as well as exhibition areas focusing on procurement, copyright trade, and themed books.

Hubei, this year's guest province of honor, will showcase its publishing industry and hold a series of activities to promote its intangible cultural heritages and traditional food.

A new exhibition area will be set up for digital publishing, animation, digital printing, and audio books. Online reading platforms such as Migu Animation and Hyweb Technology Co Ltd will be invited to share their experiences. Meanwhile, e-commerce platforms from across the Straits such as JD Mall, Tmall, and Books will partner to create an online portal for the event.

Also on the agenda are cross-Straits publishing summit forums, collection exchange meetings, copyright trade meetings, and business talks.

To encourage public engagement, organizers will offer 200,000 35-percent discount coupons and vouchers, and will perform lucky draws for book purchasers.

Themed exhibitions and interactive activities such as the Xiamen Book Fair, the exhibition of Taiwan academic classics, famous signature books, and children's books will take place. Well-known writers from both sides of the Straits will hold book signings and sharing sessions to engage with readers. Also on the roster is a selection campaign of the top 10 most popular books across the Straits.

The event is sponsored by the Xiamen Municipal People's Government, Fujian Provincial Bureau of Press and Publications, China Publication Association, Taiwan Books Publishers' Association, Taiwan Books Distribution Association, and Taipei Association of the Publication Industry.

The past 14 editions of the fair, which have been held alternately in Xiamen and Taiwan since 2005, displayed a total of more than 9 million books and involved over 6,000 exhibitors, generating deals worth around 460 million yuan ($66.63 million). A total of 2,360 cooperation agreements have been signed at the previous book fairs.