Approximately 400 international publishers from 60 countries took part in the 32nd International Spanish Book Fair (LIBER 2014) last week in Barcelona. There were some bright spots, including the rise of e-books, but there were also talks about the challenges of spanish publishing, like the lack of English translation of contemporary fiction.

“Michael Gordon, a literary agent and an American who has lived in Barcelona for more than 20 years, says that while there is an impediment to the growth of digital books, a tax of 21% initiated around five years ago just as digital was beginning to gain traction (by comparison print is taxed 4%), e-books are driving Spanish publishing. According to Antonio Avilia, the executive director of the Federation of Spanish Publishers, digital books accounted for over 80 million euros in 2013, 36% of the total revenue.”

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