Publishing Careers Background The origins of publishing remain unknown. Historians have proposed various theories on the subject, but the best guess is that publishing came into existence when people developed written language, perhaps in Sumer in approximately 4000 BC. After it became possible to record information in writing, somebody had to decide which information was
Book Publishing Careers Background The earliest known books were the clay tablets of Mesopotamia and the papyrus rolls of Egypt. Examples of both date from about 3000 BC. According to archeological findings, the Chinese developed books about 1300 BC. Early Chinese books were made of wood or bamboo strips and bound together with cords. With
Personal publishing by an individual or small group – generally not for profit and generally not aimed at a mass audience or utilizing mainstream publishers – has occurred for centuries. In its early years it took the form of, e.g., small-scale pamphleteering, the circulation of diaries within faith-based or friendship communities, or the publication of