Canelo / Arts Council England

That sales of literary fiction are falling: This does appear to be true. 

The data from print sales is clear. The price of books has held flat and 

value, in real terms, has fallen, sometimes significantly. Bookshops 

are closing. Ebook sales have boomed, but not for literary fiction. 

•  

That marketing support within publishers for literary fiction 

is falling: There is no firm data to support this, but a widespread 

belief from our survey respondents that it is an issue. Against that, 

publishers are being creative with their marketing, putting in place 

new social media teams for example.

•  

That there continues to be a problem for writers of BAME and 

other backgrounds to break into literary fiction: Again, there is 

a widespread acknowledgment that this is true. It seems clear that 

class, race and geographical barriers especially make breaking into 

the literary world difficult. 

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Canelo / Arts Council England | 

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Literature in the 21st Century: Understanding Models of Support for Literary Fiction