Some Things To Consider On Children's Book Publishing
Children's book publishing has had a long and illustrious (and by illustrious we mean REALLY illustrious) history that closely follows developments made in book publishing and in world culture. Its persistence as a way for stories for children to be told is yet to be surpassed. Children's book publishing has been around for almost as long as book publishing itself, beginning with collections of folk tales taken by Charles Perrault and the brothers Grimm. It has changed with the times and today, it is one of the most lucrative forms of book publishing there is.
Children's book publishing has a history that is intimately tied with culture and technology. The first books that were made for children featured stories that to modern readers would seem unduly macabre and sexual in nature. Such classic stories as Sleeping Beauty, Little Red Riding Hood, Snow White and the Seven Dwarves and many other familiar fairy tales were sanitized and altered to meet the cultural standards set for children's book publishing at various points in history. An example would be the original story of Sleeping Beauty, where incidents of rape, necrophilia, cannibalism, and adultery are found. Little Red Riding Hood was an allegory on prostitution and it ended with the big bad wolf eating the titular character; no woodsmen came to the rescue. Still, a few stories like the still decidedly grisly Hansel and Gretel survived intact, untouched by children's book publisher revisions.
The arrival of the Victorian Era heralded the coming of several important developments to children's book publishing. Improved technology allowed for color illustrations to be included in books. Children's book publishers were early adaptors of this technology and the results of combining words and pictures in books for children remain with us to this day. Some books even have a singular focus on pictures and illustration, though many still have emphasis on words, like the Harry Potter series by JK Rowling.
Further changes in culture and improvements in book publishing have resulted in significant developments in children's book publishing. Pop up books, coloring books, and other activity books made some level of interactivity for children possible. New types of inks and printing methods allow for books for children with unprecedented vibrancy and color and whimsy to be made. There are also a wide variety of genres in children's book publishing, including fantasy, sci-fi, humor and many others. Children's book publishing is certainly a business that is seen to rely heavily on series. Indeed, many series such as Narnia by C.S. Lewis and many others have proven to be consistent breadwinners for many book publishers. The tendency of fans to collect all books in series is partly the reason why the richest author in the world, JK Rowling- the author of the Harry Potter series, is as rich as she is. Aside from series, many publishers of books for children take Public Domain works and focus on merely giving them a better presentation. This enables publishers to save money on manuscript acquisition and eliminates the need to pay for royalties to authors. Children's book publishing is an industry that has undoubtedly, made generations of people what they are. Whenever someone talks of meeting their princess or prince charming, we all know which industry to blame.
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