Age-old problem for publishing

Marketing is essential to book sales

By the BBC's Rebecca Jones

Increasingly often, it would seem, attractive young writers are offered huge advances for their books.

Publishing today seems to be as much about who you are, as what you write. But where does that leave older writers?

Zadie Smith has been lauded by critics and marketing men alike

Francis King's first novel was published in 1946, and he was soon being tipped as the most promising writer of his generation.

He's written short stories, poetry, several biographies and travel books during a publishing career which spans more than half a century.

Privileged existence

"If you had a list of great writers of the last 40 years, he should definitely be up there and with names like Graham Greene and Nabakov," says his fellow writer Beryl Bainbridge. "He is of that calibre and it's ridiculous he's not more known."

This is a very fast-moving age and we're taking the soft option

Patrick Janson-Smith, Random House

Francis King's new book, Prodigies, is about three women who abandon their privileged existence to explore Africa in the 1860s - it's his 27th novel.

But, at the age of 78, he has had huge problems getting it published.

Three large firms rejected it - indeed it was published only after a small independent company stepped in.

'Invisible'

Francis King is in no doubt why he's become unfashionable - he says it's his age.

"This is a country in which if you're old you become invisible," he says.

"I mean, people only notice you if you're in front of them and taking up too much time at the checkout, or if you fall over in the street then they notice you.

"And the same is true if you're a writer. I feel that I'm writing probably my best work, but I do feel it's not getting the due that it should have."

'Eloquent'

Francis King is not alone. Writers such as William Trevor and Philip Oakes, who are also in their 70s, rarely make the headlines.

And Patrick Janson-Smith, a director at the Random House Group, admits it is because publishing is now driven by marketing.

Beryl Bainbridge: "Society is dumbing down"

"This is a very fast-moving age and we're taking the soft option," he says.

He adds: "An author who is very marketable is maybe attractive, eloquent or loquacious. You're vying for attention with literally thousands of other books published each and every year."

It is not just publishers -booksellers too are market-oriented.

'Bimbo'

Beryl Bainbridge says it reflects a general "dumbing-down" in society.

"If Francis wrote another novel now and sent in a photograph of a bimbo and said he was 23 and he was pregnant for the 18th time, he'd be all over the newspapers", she says.

In fact, Francis King has already finished his next book, about refugees living in London and is called The Nick of Time.

But at the moment, he does not know whether it will be published or not. But at a time when youth is a best seller, he knows he's as likely to be judged by his wrinkles as his words.