How to preserve identity and avoid chasing growth: What publishers are asking at the Volia program in Frankfurt

Publishing professionals have gathered in Frankfurt for the fifth edition of Volia – Special Programme for Publishers from Ukraine and Neighbouring Countries, where discussions are focusing on cultural identity and agency, sustainable publishing, international rights, and the challenge of reaching readers amid the growth of AI-generated content.

The participants represent publishers from Ukraine, Lithuania, Poland, Latvia, Czechia, Estonia, Kazakhstan, Romania, Georgia, Bulgaria, and Hungary. Almost all participants in the program face similar challenges and came to Volia looking for answers to questions that connect publishers across different countries. Many of these countries either share a border with Russia or have experienced Russian occupation, whether territorial or cultural. The top three questions participants brought to the Volia program were:

• How can we preserve cultural identity and agency?

• How can we remain selective rather than constantly chasing growth, while still developing a sustainable business?

• How can we reach audiences when the market is flooded with AI-generated content and everyone is competing to produce more and more?

The first question is particularly pressing for publishers from Kazakhstan, whose market situation is reminiscent of the Ukrainian publishing market before 2014: it is still dominated by Russian-language books, both locally published and imported. Publishers from the Baltic countries are also asking how to inform global readers about their situation and the threats posed by Russia.

“Developing publishing by giving voice to local people and selling rights abroad is the best thing you can do for national identity,” says Peter Kraus vom Cleff, Managing Director of the German Publishers and Booksellers Association.

The question of growth is equally pressing for many independent publishers trying to stay in business. But vom Cleff argues that a more selective approach can lead to better-quality books and make it possible to increase print runs. This, in turn, creates greater confidence and makes it easier to find an audience – connecting the questions of selectivity, growth and sustainability.

Rights trading is another key interest for the publishers taking part. Participants came to Volia interested in buying and selling rights among themselves, while cooperation with German publishing colleagues is also one of their priorities. This aligns with the program’s broader focus on rights and licensing, professional matchmaking, and building international publishing networks.

Licence sales by German publishing houses to many of the markets discussed at Volia declined between 2024 and 2025. In Bulgaria, for example, sales fell from 163 to 98, while in Latvia they declined from 97 to 62. Decreases were also recorded in other participating markets, including Lithuania, Kazakhstan and Czechia, but were less pronounced. Ukraine, meanwhile, saw a particularly sharp decline, from 249 licences in 2024 to 139 in 2025.

Ukraine is represented by Veronika Holubenko, foreign rights manager at Athena, a universal publisher of fiction and nonfiction that works with both translated titles and Ukrainian authors, and Anna Karnauh, editor-in-chief of Projector Publishing, whose print publications focus on Ukrainian identity and contemporary design. The fifth edition is the first to operate under the name Volia. Frankfurter Buchmesse explains that the Ukrainian word can mean both “will” and “freedom,” referring to an inner driving force capable of overcoming obstacles.

 

“For us, Ukrainians, ‘Volia’ is more than freedom – it is a fundamental national code that unites independence, courage, and the strength to resist,” International Book Arsenal Festival Director Yuliia Kozlovets said.

She added that the program carries this spirit beyond Ukraine by strengthening regional cooperation and solidarity within the international publishing community. This name echoes the award-winning book by Anastasiia Fomitchova, which explores this concept through the lens of a doctor of political science and former combat medic.

The program runs from Oct. 4-10 and brings together publishers, editors, foreign rights managers, and literary agents for professional exchange and networking. The participant list published by the International Book Arsenal Festival includes 12 publishing professionals from 11 countries. Representatives from all three Baltic states – Estonia, Latvia, and Lithuania – are taking part for the first time. The program includes market presentations, discussions with German publishing experts, matchmaking, and networking opportunities at Frankfurter Buchmesse.

Volia is organized by Frankfurter Buchmesse in cooperation with the International Book Arsenal Festival and Goethe-Institut Ukraine, with financial support from Germany’s Federal Foreign Office. The initiative was launched in 2022 following Russia’s full-scale invasion of Ukraine.

As reported earlier, the initiative grew out of international professional workshops that Frankfurter Buchmesse and its partners had previously organized in Ukraine and other countries. After the full-scale invasion made that format impossible, organizers began bringing publishing professionals to Frankfurt to maintain professional ties, keep Ukrainian books and culture visible internationally, and connect participants with the global publishing industry.

Building cooperation between publishers in these markets is one of the program’s goals. One example came from the 2024 edition: as reported earlier, Creative Women Publishing co-founder Slava Svitova met Barbora Baronová, co-founder of Czech feminist publishing house wo-men, during the 2024 program. Their contact later developed into a collaboration: wo-men acquired Czech translation rights to Violetta Kim’s “Cry, Sister, Laugh,” while Creative Women Publishing began acquiring Ukrainian rights to Baronová’s “Unmarried.”

Main photo: Frankfurter Buchmesse.