The Publishing Boom in Spain: A Double-Edged Sword
When discussing the health of the Spanish publishing industry , people often cite publication figures to justify the positive state of the book business. However, a quick analysis might suggest the opposite: the excessive number of releases could be suffocating bookstores, leading to a series of undesirable side effects.
How Much is Published? The latest data from the Ministry of Culture reveals that around 92,000 books are published annually in Spain, which means over 250 books per day . That’s six books every minute. And this figure only accounts for releases with a legal deposit; it excludes self-published works (last year, authors averaged about three new titles each day) on platforms like Amazon. These additional titles also add thousands of potentials to the towering pile of unread books for beleaguered readers.
The Drive for Success. Why so many new releases? A variety of factors create a complex ecosystem that explains this tidal wave of production. Firstly, it’s an editorial strategy to counteract declining sales per book. Except for bestsellers and occasional hits, books are selling less, print runs are smaller, and publishers multiply their offerings to mitigate the effects. This constant search for the next big success is a response to decreased individual sales. The fact that overall revenue is increasing despite falling print runs exemplifies that this strategy is working. As Oihan Iturbide, a former editor, mentioned in *El Salto*, “the publishing industry resembles a fast food chain more than a restaurant with a distinguished homemade menu: the key is volume, not quality.”
The Rise of New Publishers. Additionally, the proliferation of new publishing houses is noteworthy: by 2024, Spain had about 3,160 active publishers . This figure hasn’t changed drastically from previous years (when compared to 2016 and significantly lower than the 3,564 in 2009 during a vastly different economic context). Among them, only about 2,000 publishers release more than 10 titles annually , and a mere 13 exceed 700 titles per year . While this indicates diversity and vitality within the sector, it also highlights the stark contrast between the large Spanish publishing groups (like Planeta and Penguin Random House , along with Santillana in education) and smaller publishers. According to the Federation of Editors , three out of every four books stem from these major groups.
The Distribution Conundrum. The atmosphere of overproduction (Rubén Hernández from Errata Naturae pointed out that from those 92,000 annual books , “a third return to the shadows of warehouses and likely get guillotined”) is muddied by Spain’s complex distribution system. Hernández explains: “the editor publishes at a price (…) of €10 and gets it to the distributor. The bookstore buys it at a discount of about 35% , from which it profits, and pays €6.5 to the distributor, which keeps €2 and pays the editor the remaining €4.5 . What happens with the one in every three books that doesn’t sell? The bookstore returns it and claims back its €6.5 , which the distributor doesn’t repay but instead offers a credit.”
The snowball keeps growing: “Subsequently, the distributor claims back the editor’s €4.5 , which the editor cannot pay, thus incurring a debt. To reimburse it, the editor has no option but to invest the €4.5 they earned (but owe) in another book, which, upon reaching the bookstore, activates its credit, while the distributor collects an additional €2 . Thus, one out of every three times a book is published, both the editor and the bookstore receive debts or credits. The distributor, however, always retains real capital.” This toxic cycle resembles a bubble that continues to swell unchecked.
Are All the News Bad? Not entirely: the evidence of intensified publication offers a chance for publishers to recognize that the situation could become unsustainable. Possible solutions to the deficient book return system can be explored. Excessive supply isn’t inherently negative unless it leads to overwhelming production and clogs the system until it bursts. It’s evident that six books per minute is excessive, but who will be the first to start the cuts?
Header image by Pierre Bamin on Unsplash
In conclusion, the current state of the publishing industry in Spain highlights numerous challenges that must be confronted. While the sheer volume of new titles offers diversity and opportunities for emerging authors, it also raises questions about sustainability and quality in an ever-expanding market.