A British University has launched the world’s first Master’s degree in Children’s Publishing in response to significant growth in international demand for UK-published books.
The course at Bath Spa University has been developed to help meet rising demand from countries such as India and China, which drove a 34 per cent increase in UK exports in 2016 to £116 million (source: Financial Times). Figures released by The Publisher’s Association in April also highlighted the boom in the industry, with the revenue from the sale of UK children’s books increasing by 16 per cent to £365 million in the past year.
Katharine Reeve, Subject Leader in Publishing at Bath Spa University, commented: “Books for children and young adults are high-growth areas of publishing in terms of innovation, revenues and employment, encouraged by bestselling authors such as JK Rowling and David Walliams, and illustrators like Quentin Blake and Lauren Child. We want to play our part in developing the creative publishers of the future.”
The course will cover key publishing knowledge and skills such as editing, marketing, rights and contracts, illustration, design and print production, business strategy and digital product development.
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