Independent publishers face a paradox: some book fairs celebrate strong attendance and sales figures, while many small imprints warn that day-to-day operations are far from easy. In Spain, events like Liberisliber in Besalú and Liber in Barcelona are once again highlighting catalogs independent of the major publishing groups and the need to reach new readers.
The conversation isn't just about culture. It also involves budgets, print runs, printing costs, and bookstores struggling to stay afloat. While the Spanish publishing industry generally shows growth, voices like that of editor María Magdalena describe a scenario of lower sales and higher expenses. The gap between large publishers and smaller presses has become a key issue.
Trade fairs that breathe new life into independent catalogs
In Besalú, Liberisliber once again filled the Plaça de Sant Pere and Plaça del Claustre with stalls from 69 independent publishers. The organizers reported a full house and a program designed to make reading accessible to everyone. The Girona-based fair is establishing itself as a key event for small and medium-sized publishers. Following the success of the Catalan Book Week, this event maintains the same objective: to give independent books greater visibility.
Liberisliber doesn't want to limit itself to just the weekend. In response to reports warning of a decline in reading habits, the project has announced Lektur.cat, a digital resource scheduled for release at the end of October. Illustrators like Dani Torrent and Anna Font will contribute, offering ideas to encourage children and adults to read and to guide book selection. The goal is to transform the book fair into a tool that extends beyond its opening days.
Meanwhile, Liber, the International Book Fair, is preparing a new edition focused on opening markets, selling rights, and discussing artificial intelligence and promoting reading among young people. 250 publishers from 16 countries and 500 professionals from 68 countries are participating. The offerings include large publishing groups, academic and scientific publishers, and independent imprints. Internationalization is presented as a way for smaller catalogs to find buyers outside of Spain.
Data from the Spanish Federation of Publishers' Guilds (FGEE) indicates a domestic market that generated €3.138 billion in revenue in 2025, a 3,3% increase, marking twelve consecutive years of growth, with exports approaching €400 million. Manuel González, president of the FGEE and Liber, emphasizes the industry's strength and the enormous potential of the Spanish language, spoken by nearly 600 million people. This overall growth, however, does not eliminate the challenges faced by smaller projects.
Costs, sales and bookstores: the less friendly side
Editor and writer María Magdalena, who has led Las Furias since 2020, has put into words a situation that many privately acknowledge. During her appearance at Ronda de Escritores, she spoke of a sharp drop in demand and a rise in printing costs that forces publishers to revise budgets and print runs almost every season. Publishing hasn't gotten any cheaper , and that directly impacts the price of each copy.
Magdalena acknowledges that her publishing house is currently able to stay afloat, but she doesn't deny that other bookstores and publishing projects have had to close or scale back operations, as happened with some large independent publishers in other markets. The rising cost of supplies and fixed expenses, such as utility bills for bookstores, are straining the bottom line. Estimates of sales declines of nearly 40% have been circulating in some cases. The pressure is falling on fragile structures that lack the safety net of a large corporation.
In addition to her work as an editor, Magdalena presented her book, *Like a Handful in the Flesh* , a difficult-to-categorize work that blends literature, illness, grief, and essay. She explained that it has two parts: one focuses on a woman's illness and death, and the other delves into essayistic reflection without abandoning its poetic exploration. The text addresses medical violence and the way certain processes are named.
The author champions Susan Sontag and criticizes the romanticization of illnesses like tuberculosis and the military language that portrays the patient as someone fighting a battle. This way of speaking, she says, shapes the experience of both the sick person and their caregiver. At Las Furias, she explains, they favor unclassifiable books and genre-bending works. The publishing house champions titles that defy predictable commercial categories.
A sector caught between hope and alarm
- Liberisliber: 69 independent publishers in Besalú and a program to encourage reading.
- Lektur.cat: Digital resource with illustrators to guide readings.
- Bast: 250 publishers from 16 countries and 500 professionals from 68 countries.
- The Furies: Warning of lower sales and higher printing costs.
The contrast between vibrant book fairs and publishers balancing their books perfectly encapsulates the current situation. On the one hand, Liberisliber and Liber demonstrate that there is interest in independent catalogs and that tools exist for exporting, rights licensing, and promoting reading. On the other, smaller publishers remain preoccupied with sales, costs, and bookstore visibility. It's not a uniform crisis , but it is a warning sign for the entire book ecosystem.
The landscape of the independent publishing sector in Spain and Europe presents a stark contrast between dynamism and hardship: established book fairs, digital projects aimed at promoting reading, international rights negotiations, and global growth figures, alongside accounts of declining sales and rising expenses. Small publishers are carving out their niche without abandoning their ambitious catalogs, while the debate surrounding the future of books, artificial intelligence, and the generational shift in readership remains open. The key will be sustaining this diversity without relying solely on the enthusiasm of a select few.