Frankfurt Book Fair 2005 was, for me as a first time participant, totally overwhelming.

I knew it was big. Yet it was perhaps 20 times bigger than I imagined it to be. There was an entire hall devoted just to football books, another devoted to books on religion and spirituality, and so on. Each specialised subject had a hall of its own. There was even a forum hall for cinema, TV, etc.

I don’t even know how many halls there were in total. For example, Hall 6 was not just Hall 6, but consisted of Hall 6.0, 6.1, 6.2, etc.

The place is so huge, there was an internal bus service to ferry people from one hall to another. But I never took the bus. I chose to walk, even though I sprained my ankle two weeks before the trip, because I wanted to experience the book fair fully, at ground level.

At first, this meant walking for half an hour or longer each time. A few times, I wanted to give up because I felt so tired. I soon realised that it was important to find the short cuts, and to leave the halls by the correct exits. Going out by a different exit could mean having to walk a big round.

BOOKSOUL International was at Hall 6.0, forming part of the Singapore Pavilion there. The main focus of activity, however, was at Hall 8, which catered to the English-speaking markets in America, UK, Australia, New Zealand and other countries.

And everybody was soooooo busy! At least those whom I wanted to meet were.

Many people rejected me at first, saying they did not have the time. But those who gave me a few minutes of their attention were impressed when they took a good look at my book. Then, they were kind enough to recommend me to the right persons whom, they felt, could be of assistance to me.

A few were so excited that they told me they would read my book on their flight home. I was very touched.

So thanks to the assistance and recommendations of a few kind souls, I did manage to meet a number of distributors, wholesalers, literary agents and fellow publishers. Some gave very positive comments about my book, said it had potential to sell well, and promised to help. Let’s see what happens.

The biggest group of people I met were literary agents – about 20 of them. Unfortunately, most were more interested in selling titles to me than in representing my books. I ended up spending no more than five or 10 minutes with each of them, but about seven of them were kind enough to recommend their friends to look into my book.

One of them stood out, however. Cathy Miller had read my manuscript before we met, and she told me she was very touched by my story in Soulprints I – BreakThrough. We had a good half hour chat, and she promised to help me.

I’d like to express my sincere gratefulness and appreciation also to the following who, despite their hectic schedules, spent time to consider the work of this unknown Singapore writer and publisher and/or recommend me to others who may be of assistance:

Thank you to:

• James Levitt, Director of International Sales at Publishers Weekly.


• Jan Nathan, Executive Director of PMA, the Independent Book Publishers Association.

• Ron Powers, Director (Merchandising), at Ingram International Inc.

• James Schmelzer, Managing Director of Publisher’ Services International Inc.

• Sarah Rosenberg, Director of Marketing at Publishers Group West.

• Barbro Andersson, VP Publishing, A.B.L.E (Association For Bertter Living And Education Internation).

• Dr Christopher Chia, CEO of Media Development Authority.

• SETO Lok Yin, Director, International Development at Media Development Authority.

• Ng Hwei Ping and Daljeet Singh, International Enterprise Singapore

I achieved my mission and made many good friends, one of who even said she would ask her husband, who is in the literary field, to look into my books.

I wish to express my sincere thanks also to the Singapore Media Development Authority (MDA) and International Enterprise Singapore (IES), for organising a Singapore delegation to Frankfurt.

Thanks to MDA and IES especially for arranging the special report, Publishing and Printing in Singapore 2005, in Publishers Weekly. That report helped open many doors.

One special friend I made at Frankfurt was Wheely Willy, the star of the best-selling children’s books, How Whilly Got His Wheels and How Willy Got His Wings.

Willy is a paralysed dog, a Chihuahua, whose owner, Deborah Turner, devised a set of wheels for it to move around. The wheels changed both Deborah’s and Willy’s lives. They brought Willy an incredible energy and joy, and Willy blossomed with his newfound freedom.

Deborah and Willy together visit hospitals, schools and convalescent homes to bring cheer and hope where it is needed. Willy has even led a group of young people with spinal injuries in the Los Angeles Marathon.

Willy has made numerous television appearances, including on Discovery Channel and National Geographic Channel. He has become a symbol of hope.

I felt privileged to have met both Deborah and Willy. In a great, big, overwhelming world of books at Frankfurt, I felt encouraged and hopeful.