Note for distributors and publishers of Creole books
Emmanuel W. Védrine
Winter 2000
A little note for distributors and publishers of Haitian books who are concerned - how distributors and publishers of Creole books can help in solving some problems in documenting publication of books and written documents / those that are being written.
It's a question that everyone can answer if they don't have experience yet in researching in the domain of bibliography (of any type). Bibliography research is one that is very important (in all areas) to facilitate people who are doing research find references quickly and localize the publication or the main sources . With the internet today, many distributors and publishers can communicate with one another quickly to exchange information. But, can all these happen in the greater Haitian community (in Haiti and the Diaspora)? – The answer is no . And why it does not happen? Many people in the greater Haitian community realize the power that the internet has and the super advantage it gives everyone who is doing business worldwide. Though we know it would be a luxury in Haiti , but there are CIBER CAFÉS in Haiti (they not many) where people can subscribe to the internet, check their e-mails, send messages around the world (despite of the electricity problem ) that exists in Haiti .
Distributors of Creole books and Haitian books in the Diaspora have e-mails but the problem is: do they use them to circulate messages, information quickly that can be useful for research and even advertising for their business? That would quite bad if you were to ask a Haitian distributor to give an information quickly on an author / an authors' book that is being distributed. In order to solve this bibliography problem, it is important for the distributors, Haitian publishers to the power that the internet has and the access they have to organize themselves better in the new century. It would be important for them to construct a good web site to include the titles of the books they publish (including year, author, number of pages, a summary of the book) and then catalog them by subject , include information about the author (such as his bibliography, critics on his works that can appear in periodicals [journals, reviews]
All these works can be done quickly where they can be available on-line for the whole world and the importance to summarize /make a description of these books (in the Creole, French) and then translate them into English (when possible) for the international market.
We hope that bit of information can be circulated in order to help people who are producing Creole works and who are thinking of the strategies to make available publications known in the market in order for these works to be sold quickly..
To add something more on publication of Creole works , this text is very important and we would like that all readers take it seriously, circulate it and then take advantage of asking questions they want on the issue. There are many little problems that we would like to mention in the Creole works that are being published where these manuscripts don't go through some competent hands before the final print. The more the work is being taking care of before going to the press, the more success the author would have with it but the fact that most Creole texts are self-published and some of them don't ask information on some important issues before publication take place, that way the careless work continues to take place and something that would make some people have no respect for the publication of Creole texts. So, a work of long term consciousness should be done for people who are publishing to be conscious (check with people who appear to be competent in the domain to hear their comments of the manuscripts. Professionally speaking, that's how that should have done. I would encourage people who are writing in Creole (if they had never attended any seminar on Creole ) for them to try to do that (with competent people, people who already have a linguistic background ) and try to have some good books, dictionaries on Creole (as reference tools ). When a dictionary is published, the author always has the intention of publishing a new edition , try to find out if such and such dictionary would have a second, third edition. The most recent edition would be the best (where the author would make certain corrections and then add up new words to it).
© E. W. Védrine, Winter 2000
Emmanuel W. Védrine
E. W. VEDRINE CREOLE PROJECT, Inc.
P.O.B. 255962
Dorchester, MA 02125-5110 (U.S)
e_vedrine@hotmail.com, e_vedrine@yahoo.com
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