Book publishers and the head of the National Book Council say a date clash between two cultural events could impact the already struggling publishing industry.
The Malta Book Festival is scheduled to take place at the MFCC, in Ta’ Qali from November 6 to 10 while Malta Comic Con will run over the weekend of November 9 and 10 at the Eden Arena, in St Julian’s.
Merlin Publishers’ Chris Gruppetta said they did not have the manpower to attend both events.
“My concern with the clash is that there’s a significant overlap in the people interested in books and comics, so the two events will cannibalise each other’s attendees,” Gruppetta told Times of Malta.
“This year, the publishing industry is already in a crisis, so we are relying on book festival sales for a lift,” he added.
He said, after a two-year hiatus, Merlin Library publishers will take part in the Book Festival and not Comic Con.
National Book Council head Mark Camilleri described the clash as “unfortunate” and that the council had announced the dates of all its major events, including the Book festival, back in January
“Both the Malta Book Festival and Malta Comic Con enjoy overlapping audiences while sharing common stakeholders,” he said.
Publishers, booksellers and illustrators will have to juggle their time between these two large events.
Camilleri explained that, by the time the Comic Con dates were made public, it was too late to make any changes. The book council had contacted Comic Con organisers but efforts to resolve the issue were unsuccessful.
“Malta Comic Con is a private entity and is fully within its rights to set its dates as it sees fit,” he said.
“While we regret the clash this year, one hopes it can help draw attention to the importance of cooperation among cultural entities on the island, in a way that is mutually beneficial to all.”
However, Wicked Comics, the organisers of Malta Comic Con, does not see the date overlap as a problem. Co-founder Fabio Agius believes people will be “delighted” to have multiple events to enjoy.
While the clash was unfortunate, it was out of their control, he said. “These days, so many events are held in Malta it is virtually impossible not to clash with another,” Agius said.
“Many people that attend the comic convention are interested in multiple scenes and will attend various events related to arts and culture. Experience has taught us that such clashes cannot be helped.”
Agius pointed out that the Comic Con runs for two days while the Book Festival spans five days, giving people the opportunity to attend both.
He said Wicked Comics had previously met with the Malta Book Festival organisers to discuss potential collaboration but the events were found to be logistically different.