Academic sales for literary publishers: A study of Nightwood Editions and the college market

This paper examines literary publishing in Canada, looks at the rationale for and methods of academic sales, and describes Nightwood Editions' first academic sales campaign. Literary publishers in Canada face many challenges, none of which is more prominent than the struggle for financial survival. In order to survive, publishers of poetry and fiction must look at every potential sales avenue. One possible market that literary publishers may consider is the academic sector-that is, marketing to college and university instructors. By letting literature professors know about its activities and new books, publishers may successfully gain course adoptions for poetry and fiction titles that have limited sales potential in the trade market. For the literary publisher in Canada, academic sales can be an excellent regular source of revenue; however, it is not an easy market to break into, and may not be right for every company.