Spotted Online – Chapbooks “Ancient Form of Publishing”
If you have any interest in what’s happening with limited edition books in the world of fiction take a peek at this article at The Guardian. Focusing on chapbooks (Wikipedia) and Nightjar Press the article’s almost as entertaining as the comments that follow it.
Reader R042 comments:
Surely the purpose of the printing press was to avoid the situation where books were the preserve of the elite and to allow anyone to read them? As it stands this is simply creating an artificial shortage to drive value up. When it comes to books, as the epitomes of art and culture available to the masses, scarcity-as-value is irrelevant now, and the trite comment about ebooks is ultimately reductive and evidence of this.
In my opinion, this is completely missing the point of modern day chapbooks. Yes, some of these books become collectibles worth far more than their original price, but chapbooks are primarily a way for people to publish books relatively inexpensively and as small art objects. Not everything that is created should be readily available; physical books in today’s world of digital delivery can once again be works of art.
But forget my thoughts on the subject and develop your own. Read the article and decide for yourself what you think of chapbooks.
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