At the dawn of his 77th birthday, Pascal Assathiany, general manager of Éditions du Boréal since 1989, hands over the baton of this general literature publishing house. Gilles Ostiguy and Renaud Roussel will share the management. Jean Bernier remains director of publishing, Catherine Ostiguy becomes full-time editor, while retaining the youth sector. With these new faces, the independent house, which will celebrate its 60th anniversary next year, is looking forward to a new era.
Boréal is the Quebec publishing house that can boast of having an academician — Dany Laferrière — and a winner of a Prix Médicis — the late Marie-Claire Blais. With them, among the 850 authors of fiction and essays, several names that mark, in their own way, literature here: Gabrielle Roy, Victor-Lévy Beaulieu, Gilles Vigneault, Robert Lalonde, Monique Proulx, Jacques Godbout , Hélène Monette, Simon Roy, to name a few.
“A publishing house is a place of memory and continuity,” says the outgoing director, Pascal Assathiany, who will leave his powers from 1er december. He will remain present as Chairman of the Board of Directors. “I navigate between nostalgia and optimism”, admits Mr. Assathiany, who speaks of the coming months as a “change in continuity”.
At Boréal, the story is strong: it was what the house originally produced. And the memory remains vivid, because the “books of funds”, those which are not novelties, constitute half of the annual sales, according to the directors. Only a few houses can count on such a lively catalog in bookstores – Quebec America and Leméac as well, believes Mr. Assathiany.
Memory and new voices
“With memory and continuity, we also have our habits, our little flaws, networks that move less. What needs to change, I believe, is sensitivity,” says Assathiany. In the world of books, we sometimes hear it crudely, Boréal seems to be seen as an “old publishing house”. True, he is one of the few who have passed the milestone of fiftieth anniversary, with Fides (1937), Leméac (1957) and Hurtubise HMH (1960). “I hope that the memory will remain, with Gilles and Renaud. »
“The perception of the house” is changing, say the trio. “There’s a perception that even a new author who publishes with us feels like an old author. While we are intergenerational and very diverse, ”adds Mr. Assathiany.
A publishing house is a place of memory and continuity
The new directors, Gilles Ostiguy and Renaud Roussel, illustrate: “Last year, we published Gilles Archambault [89 ans] and Elizabeth Lemay’s first novel [32 ans]. It’s really this kind of balance that we are looking for, between the authors we support over time and the new ones. »
“We will continue to think about ways to attract new voices,” continues Mr. Roussel. This is an essential point. Pascal Assathiany: “We must not forget that publishing is not a voluntary act. It is an act of welcome. We receive the manuscripts. »
Every year, Éditions du Boréal publishes between 20% and 25% of translations, also between 20% and 25% of children’s books, with overflows, because “in youth, things move faster”, like this year, where the new poetry collection “Icebreaker” has taken up more space. The ratio of fiction to essays in adult literature varies greatly from year to year.
Change neighborhood
Renaud Roussel has been with Boréal for nine years. He will focus on contracts, rights sales, and do some editing. Gilles Ostiguy arrived last May as deputy general manager. He takes care and will take care of administration, marketing and commercialization. Jean Bernier retains his essential role as literary director.
What first desires animate the new directors? Develop new networks, with booksellers, foreign publishers, authors, “on all fronts”, specify MM. Roussel and Ostiguy. “The environment is changing a lot, and it has changed again during the pandemic. »
One change calls for another: the first project that the new directors will tackle is moving the offices. Boréal will be leaving the Plateau-Mont-Royal for Saint-Henri in a few months. “It is above all for practical reasons, this move”, explains Gilles Ostiguy, co-owner of the building where Boréal will soon be nesting, because the current offices are very large, and “since the pandemic, we feel that we have need to work closer to each other, to get closer”.