Local book prizes buck foreign sales trend

By Sori Siregar

JAKARTA (JP): "Literary awards don't encourage writers to write but they do encourage people to read." That was the statement Graham Swift made to reporters after winning the Booker Prize in London last October.

Swift's works have been nominated twice for the prestigious Booker Prize. One of them, Last Order, won in 1996. But Swift's statement was not exaggerated or quixotic. And this proved right as far as the Booker Prize awarded for books was concerned. The prize winning books had different sales figures before they were shortlisted, when they were being shortlisted and after they won the prize.

Besides, as Martyn Goff, who edited and introduced the collection of writing by Booker Prize past winners in "Prize Writing", said, it was not only by the number of additional copies sold that the Booker Prize affected winners but also by establishing worldwide reputations.

Fiction and non-fiction have been around in Europe for ages. European writing tradition was established profoundly hundreds of years ago. It is worth noting that the publication of books there has nothing directly to do with prizes awarded by committees such as the Booker committee, even though it is important to emphasize that prize winning books may sell at unprecedented levels.

This may also apply to fiction writers from Commonwealth countries whose publishers have submitted their books to the Booker committee, and those from developing countries like Indonesia. But, generally, people don't write books to win prizes.

Despite their knowledge that if they are rewarded, their public stature would rise in the eyes of the public and their book sales would increase, serious fiction writers put everything on paper they think necessary to enrich the hearts and minds of others. It sounds idealistic or weird. Certainly, it does not concern popular fiction writers who eagerly accumulate money in one bound or want to turn into overnight literary stars.

But there is no doubt that literary prizes are significant. They should not be seen as encouragement for writers to write, but it is undeniable that it will help writers find an audience. A literary prize can also act as a signpost for readers indicating more worthwhile books and raise the profile of serious fiction.

In England, writers and readers have become familiar with the Booker Prize, while in the United States the Pulitzer Prize, the National Book Award and the American Book Award are awarded to accomplished writers yearly. For a similar purpose, the privately sponsored Hadiah Yayasan Buku Utama and the government-sponsored Anugerah Seni are awarded to Indonesian literary works each year. Thus far, only the two awards have been institutionalized.

On occasion

Previously, occasional prizes were awarded to local writers. They are called occasional prizes because they are not presented regularly to selected writers. Hadiah Sastra Yamin or the Yamin Literary Award and Hadiah Sastra Badan Musyawarah Kebudayaan Nasional (BKMN) or the National Consultative Body's Literary Award could be categorized as occasional prizes.

Similar prizes are also contributed today by a number of weeklies and magazines through competitions for short-story writers, poets and series writers.

Therefore the news about the Chairil Anwar Award's reinstatement by the Arts Council of Jakarta must be welcomed. Since Mochtar Lubis received this award a few years ago, no one has heard about the prize although there are writers who would be eligible to bag it. Competitions for novels and plays are no longer included in the Arts Council's program.

Which of these prizes is most respected is a question which need not be asked. Time will tell. The most important thing is that by giving the prizes, greater attention will be paid to the achievement of Indonesian fiction writers. This could be supported by the press which might expose it widely throughout the country as was the case of Hadiah Sastra Yamin and Hadiah Sastra BMKN in the 1960s.

Rocketing sales of Booker Prize winning books and the circulation hike of Pulitzer Prize and National Book Award winners in the United States are common in the two countries; unlike the sales of local prize winning books in Indonesia.

Local prizes awarded to local writers do not automatically increase their book sales. Most readers still look for popular fiction which is readily found in bookstores. This might indicate that serious fiction in our country remains destitute and unheeded.