STORY: China highlights literary gems at Istanbul Publishing Fellowship
SHOOTING TIME: Feb. 25-27, 2025
DATELINE: March 2, 2025
LENGTH: 00:00:53
LOCATION: ISTANBUL, Türkiye
CATEGORY: CULTURE

SHOTLIST:
1. various of the 10th Istanbul Publishing Fellowship event
2. SOUNDBITE 1 (English): ZHANG MINGZHOU, President of Lifetree Culture Promotion Center
3. various of the event
4. SOUNDBITE 2 (English): SHEREEN KREIDIEH HASBINI, General manager of Lebanon's Asala Publishers
5. various of the event
6. SOUNDBITE 3 (Turkish): GIRAY FIDAN, Turkish author & Sinologist

STORYLINE:

China underscored its growing influence in global publishing as the "focus country" at the 10th Istanbul Publishing Fellowship, with its delegation forging international partnerships and spotlighting the nation's literary heritage.

The three-day event, which concluded on Thursday, drew over 370 publishers from across the world, including six from China.

Zhang Mingzhou, president of the nonprofit Lifetree Culture Promotion Center, noted robust demand for Chinese children's books, particularly from publishers in Türkiye, Canada, Ethiopia, and Lebanon. 

SOUNDBITE 1 (English): ZHANG MINGZHOU, President of Lifetree Culture Promotion Center
"We have a lot of intention to buy copyrights from us, a lot, I have to say."

Shereen Kreidieh Hasbini, general manager of Lebanon's Asala Publishers, praised China's literary diversity, calling its focus country designation "long overdue."

SOUNDBITE 2 (English): SHEREEN KREIDIEH HASBINI, General manager of Lebanon's Asala Publishers
"I love China. I think it's time for them to become the 'focus country' because they have a lot of good literature, and it's diverse and it's nice, and it's important to be exposed to the Turkish publishers."

Turkish author and sinologist Giray Fidan emphasized China's pivotal role in global publishing.

SOUNDBITE 3 (Turkish): GIRAY FIDAN, Turkish author & Sinologist
"This year, China being the focus is extremely important, and I believe that there will certainly be collaborations between the publishing houses here in the future. I assume that connections have already been made between Chinese and Turkish publishing houses, as well as those from many other countries."

Xinhua News Agency correspondents reporting from Istanbul, Türkiye.
(XHTV)