11 Vietnamese publishers and contributors in Vietnam will attend the 14th Asian Festival of Children’s Content AFCC. (Photo: afcc.com.sg) The festival, which will take place at the National Library Building inSingapore from May 25-28, returns as a fully in-person event, celebrating thetheme “Play!”. With over 70 programmes featuring more than 100 writers andspeakers from Singapore and around the world, AFCC 2023 explores the differentdimensions of “Play” through books, stories and performances.
According to Nguyen Nguyen, Director of the Publishing, Printing andDistribution Department, Vice Chairman of the Vietnamese Publishers Association(VPA), the Vietnamese participants in this year’s event are encouraged to havethorough preparation and coordination with each other to promote Vietnameseliterature.
The VPA and participating units will set up booths to introduce outstandingVietnamese children's books, special and creative publications as well asreading devices.
Eleven Vietnamese publishers and contributors in Vietnam will attend the event,including the HCM City General Publishing House, The Gioi (World) PublishingHouse, Kim Dong Publishing House and Dinh Ti Books.
"Many foreign countries are not yet familiar with Vietnamese publishing,but those who know about it have a high opinion of it. Therefore, we need tomake an effort to clearly demonstrate the development of Vietnamesebooks," the director told zing.vn.
According to Vu Thi Yen, public relations and copyright exploitation officer ofthe Ho Chi Minh City General Publishing House, AFCC 2023 offers an opportunity for theunit to promote the exploitation of foreign copyrights and vice versa, theselling of the copyrights of Vietnamese books to the world.
“It is also expected to enhance further the position of Vietnamese authors,publishers and their works in the global publishing map,” she added.
To prepare for this book festival, the publisher plans to introduce children'sbooks that meet its criteria and target audience. Multilingual children’s booksparticularly include Hip Hop in the Land of Ellsaby and Hip Hop and the GoldenForest by author Isabelle Muller, which have been released in Vietnam in threelanguages - English, German and Vietnamese, or bilingual book series TeachingChildren Life Skills and Teaching Children Financial Management by Le Thi LinhTrang and Dr. Ngo Thi Thanh Hien.
According to the organisers of AFCC 2023, the COF Vietnam programmes at AFCCwill be an occasion to celebrate this milestone and highlight the history ofchildren's literature in Vietnam and publishing opportunities, as well as aspecial showcase of the best picture book illustrations.
Participants will get the chance to meet the best of Vietnam’s children's bookwriters and illustrators at the Country of Focus showcase.
In the opening session of programmes which will be held on May 25, translator TranLe Thuy Linh, author Vu Xuan Hoan and moderator Nguyen Thanh Nam will offer anin-depth look into the current market of children’s books in Vietnam.Participants will learn about the current publishing developments and trends,as well as the challenges and opportunities.
Vietnam Women's Publishing House will share how they have developed theSci-tales series that aims to bring the element of fun into the learningprocess in collaboration with a team of creators from Vietnam on May 26.
On the final day of the COF Vietnam programmes, creators of three Vietnamesechildren’s books, Finding Mommy Elephant, The Call of the Wild, and My Daddy isa Runner, will share their inspirations, the process of creating stories andalso practical advice on the diverse range of interactive activities thatparents and children can engage in.
The programmes conclude with COF Vietnam Night which celebrates the partnershipbetween Vietnam and Singapore with performances and the launch of translatedchildren's books.
AFCC is the leading festival in Asia for children’s stories and young adultfiction. Targeted at writers, illustrators, translators, publishers, educatorsand media professionals, the event offers a series of exciting programmes,including panel discussions, presentations, workshops, lectures, masterclasses,networking sessions and public programmes that promote the creation andappreciation of quality children's and young adult literature with a focus onAsian themes./.
VNA
