The American publisher, Michael Mushebak, founder of Interlink Publishing House in the state of Massachusetts, in the United States, confirmed that the Western public is showing a growing interest in the Arab world, and this interest is evident in the increasing demand for works translated from the Arabic language.
The translator, Fatima Abbas, pointed out that the scarcity of qualified translators in terms of quantity and quality, and the lack of investment in translation, are the most prominent challenges facing publishing houses concerned with Arabic translation.
This came in the last sessions of the “Publishers Club” initiative launched by the “Sharjah Book Authority” as part of its efforts to support and promote the publishing sector. The session was held remotely on the Authority’s platform, “Sharjah Read”, under the title “Market and Demand for Arabic and English Translated Works.”
The session featured the participation of writer, publisher, translator and musician Michel Mushabak, and Fatima Abbas, translator and literary consultant specializing in international publishing, and the session was moderated by Seth Russo.
Mushabak seeks to publish books that enhance understanding and respect for other cultures, and the translation of Arabic literature occupies a large place in his project. He considers it an integral part of his mission to introduce American readers to the world and bring readers closer to each other through literature.
Mushabak publishes more than 50 books annually. Although the initial print requests for each small book do not exceed 5000 copies, he makes up for that shortfall by publishing books on internal affairs, cultural reference books, and award-winning cookbooks locally and internationally, in order to sustain the capabilities of Interlink. To publish.
Free support
He said: «Interlink Publishing House – although it is considered small – has been able to consolidate its position and enhance its ability to quickly respond to events in the market; We market our books with free advertising to ensure our continued success.
He added, “Small independent publishing houses such as Interlink Publishing are the pioneers in the field of translated books, because they contribute to the gradual growth of translated literature, and they succeed in achieving the goal of giving readers a truly global experience, and enhancing their knowledge of the place, its history, culture and literary world.”
Translation industry
For her part, Fatima Abbas, who previously held the position of head of the external relations and translation department at “Noon Publishing and Distribution” in Cairo, highlighted the lack of investment in infrastructure to meet the needs of the translation industry in the field of information and communication technology, and the lack of sustainable translation programs. These factors are developing the Arabic translation industry. However, a number of pioneering initiatives, such as the Translation Grant Fund of the Sharjah International Book Fair, have succeeded in changing this reality through the development of this industry.
Fatima Abbas emphasized that keeping pace with new trends, such as meeting young people’s demand for audio books and graphic novels, could change the course of the translation market in the Middle East.
