Book publishers and the chairman of the National Book Council felt that a clash of dates between two cultural events could have negative consequences for the already struggling publishing industry.
The Malta Book Festival is scheduled to take place from 6 to 10 November at the MFCC in Ta’ Qali, while the Malta Comic Con will run at the Eden Arena in St. Julian’s over the weekend of 9 and 10 November.
Chris Gruppetta of Merlin Publishers said they lacked the staff to attend both events.
“My concern with this overlap is that there is a huge overlap in the people interested in books and comics, so the attendance of the two events will eat into each other,” Gruppetta told the Times of Malta.
“This year, the publishing industry is already in crisis, so we are dependent on the revenue from book festivals to boost it,” he added.
He said that the Merlin Library publishing house would attend the Book Festival rather than Comic Con after a two-year hiatus.
National Book Council Chairman Mark Camilleri called the conflict “regrettable” and said the council had announced the dates of all its major events, including the book festival, in January.
“Both the Malta Book Festival and the Malta Comic Con enjoy an overlap in audiences but have common stakeholders,” he said.
Publishers, booksellers and illustrators must coordinate the timing of these two major events.
Camilleri explained that by the time Comic Con’s dates were announced, it was too late to make any changes. The Book Council had been in touch with Comic Con organizers, but efforts to resolve the issue were unsuccessful.
“Malta Comic Con is a private organisation and has the full right to set its dates at its own discretion,” he said.
“While we regret the clash this year, we hope it can help draw attention to the importance of cooperation between the island’s cultural institutions, which is beneficial for all.”
However, Wicked Comics, the organizer of Malta Comic Con, does not see the date conflict as a problem. Co-founder Fabio Agius believes people will be “thrilled” to see multiple events.
Although the collision was unfortunate, it was beyond their control, he said. “There are so many events taking place in Malta these days that it is practically impossible not to collide with each other,” Agius said.
“Many visitors to the comic convention are interested in several scenes and attend various arts and culture events. Experience has taught us that such overlaps cannot be avoided.”
Agius pointed out that Comic Con lasts two days, but the book festival spans five days, so people have the opportunity to attend both events.
He said Wicked Comics had previously met with the organisers of the Malta Book Festival to discuss a possible collaboration, but it turned out that the events had different logistical arrangements.
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