When Agustí Estruga was little, his father was in charge of a printing press in Barcelona and, sometimes, he would take him to work with him. One day, he even invited his whole class. "He gave us a cultural tour of the entire printing press," he explains. From that place, even today "I remember the noise of the machines, the smell of ink, and the wooden pallets on which they would leave the printed sheets. You would walk, and you would see printed sheets."
Later, with the experience acquired in that printing press, Agustí's father created an editorial services company that he named Coordinadora Gráfica Miquel Estruga, because its dedication was to coordinate all the steps to make a book. "He made books in an artisanal way, because there were no computers yet. He used light tables, which was a technologically very advanced element at that time, he glued the text galleys, he cut lines of text with a cutter and created titles with Letraset (transferable letters to create titles manually when there were no computers). Everything was done very much by hand," he emphasizes.
Other memories of that father dedicated to books, he now places at home. "One image I keep of him is that he read a lot. Sitting in the armchair, I always saw him reading and, when you are young, it strikes you that your father can dedicate so many hours to reading." But, thinking about it now, Agustí draws a conclusion: "I see that all four siblings are avid readers, and this makes me think about what we hear so much, that today's youth doesn't read. And it's a shame because reading can create very pleasant moments, but it's not a matter of forcing anyone to read, but rather of helping to awaken that pleasure for reading."
When Agustí's father worked on a more special book, he would bring it home to show us. "I remember the book of an Iranian painter, written in French and Arabic, hardbound and leather-covered, and which could be read by opening it both from the front and from the back. Thus, my father always conveyed to us that a book can be a special object." With that transmitted appreciation, that singular bond with the book, Agustí has made this object a present. "Many times what I give as a gift is a book, you can always find one that suits each person."
Agustí studied Journalism. First, because ---he says--- "as a child I read all the Tintin titles several times, and also because I wanted to dedicate myself to something that wasn't a routine job. But, also, I had a hard time with science. I liked subjects related to literature much more, and while my classmates frowned when we had to read books like El quadern gris, Don Quijote or El Lazarillo de Tormes, I liked doing it."
In his father's library, he discovered books by authors like Dominique Lapierre and Larry Collins, in which they fictionalized with texts from authentic journalistic chronicles the birth of the State of Israel in Oh, Jerusalem, or the independence of India in Freedom at Midnight. "These books also brought me closer to a career in journalism, to explain what was happening in the world. And in the end, I opted to study a career related to writing." He enjoyed the degree very much, "I would do it again" ---he states---.
When he was in his fourth year ---of the then five-year Information Sciences itinerary at the UAB--- his father died. One of his three sisters had already started working with him at Coordinadora gráfica and another was studying Graphic Arts. "But we were very young and realized that we were not prepared to run the company. And only one of the sisters who already worked there continued." Agustí finished his degree and started working at a technical magazine publishing house. He really liked coordinating projects. There he discovered that "in the world of publishing you have to master different facets: design and layout, commissioning articles, coordinating groups, creating content, or validating texts, and I saw that I liked all of that quite a bit."
And he refocused on what his father did: "he offered graphic arts services for companies, for example, companies that taught courses and you had to make the books for them. So, you looked for an illustrator, for companies that typed the text and assembled the galleys. Then, everything went to photomechanics and the film negatives were generated. And all of that was what had to be coordinated, that's where the company's name comes from," he explains.
With the idea of being able to take the reins of the family business, Agustí did a postgraduate degree in editing at the Universitat Pompeu Fabra and, in the second or third class, the content of the subject captivated him so much that ending up making books became his obsession. "I didn't want to have a publishing house, nor correct books, I wanted to give shape to the book. It's a collective work, but there has to be someone who controls everything." And he further enriched himself with more training, this time, a postgraduate degree that was very important for him in Typography, at the design and art center of Barcelona, the Eina school. "If you want to dedicate yourself to editorial design, typography is key," he explains.
And one good day, with his sisters, Dolors and Gemma, he decided to expand the business and direct it towards the publishing world. We wanted to work directly with publishing houses, considering that Barcelona is one of the great capitals of publishing. Computing had arrived, and in those years, editing programs like QuarkXpress, Freehand, or Photoshop could help them a lot. "We were clear that we would train in everything, we would get up to date to master the editing programs and all the tools we had at hand," Agustí recalls. Now they felt they were more mature and, knowing what they wanted, they began to knock on the doors of publishing houses. The path and their perseverance have led them to today, where they can say that they have not only taken the reins of their father's professional legacy but also do the work they love.
"At first it wasn't easy, but now, looking back, I see everything we have achieved. What we wanted to do, work for publishing houses, make books, we are doing it. And I always say that we dedicate ourselves to it in a very vocational way. Any layout or book design that we are commissioned, we cherish it. Some need more hours than others, but we work on what we love, respect, and care for." Feeling that publishing houses trust the work they do makes them proud and is an incentive to continue moving forward.
Miquel's typewriter
We talk in Agustí's usual workplace, while a Tintin figurine watches us from the bookshelf full of books. Very close we have three very important things for Agustí: two typewriters from his father, an Olivetti and a Lexicon. Above these two relics, a poem venerates the office, from the wall. It is the Praise of Living, by Joan Maragall, which begins forcefully: "Love your craft, your vocation... Whatever you do, do it with devotion and valuing what you do...". The poet's words are very present and unconsciously accompany the Estrugas in their daily lives. These are the verses that have guided twenty-five years of making books for national publishers ---forty, counting since their father founded the company--- and, in recent years, also accompanying novice writers to publish their works through BubbleBooks, the self-publishing imprint they created five years ago."Today there are many people who write, there are many writing courses and schools, perhaps because deep down writing is therapeutic. And among those who write, there are many people who feel the need to publish""Self-publishing, publishing outside the circuit of the publishing world, has always been done," explains Agustí. "These years we have published everything from a pedagogy graduate's thesis, or other theses that take the form of a book; to poems by amateur writers; or a story that a grandfather had written and drawn for his grandchildren... But it is true that with digitalization and the new technologies that have arrived, the graphic arts have greatly evolved the world of publishing."During the Covid pandemic, Agustí met a proofreader friend who asked him to help publish a text that a publisher had promised to turn into a book, but in the end backed out. He had tried it on his own, uploading it to Amazon, but encountered many limitations and asked them to lay it out, to give it a more professional format. "And we decided to create a publishing house to launch self-publishing projects." It's called Bubblebooks and with it they now pamper manuscripts and advise first-time authors.
In addition to accompanying and coordinating the design and layout process for books and magazines, the three siblings have also founded the Bubblebooks publishing imprint, focused on self-publishing. © Raúl Vicente "What we always recommend is that whoever writes focuses on the text, enjoys it, works on it, polishes it and, afterwards, we will find a way to publish it. Because nowadays there are many people who write, there are many writing courses and schools, perhaps because deep down writing is therapeutic. And among those who write, there are many people who feel the need to publish." Agustí recalls that, "if a few years ago you wanted to publish, it was very expensive, because the only option was to print the book, and there was no possibility of short runs. Nowadays, however, with print on demand, you can even publish a single copy of the book. But, in addition, with the digital edition of the book you can upload it to the main platforms such as Amazon, FNAC, Apple Books, Casa del Libro or El Corte Inglés and, thus, give it more diffusion."
Recommendations for new authors
"It is complicated for a publisher to publish what someone writes because they receive many manuscripts weekly, but it should not be ruled out. It is necessary, however, to choose well the publisher to whom it is sent, according to the theme of the book," advises Agustí. Another option he also recommends is to look among the many awards that City Councils, Provincial Councils, and small associations convene each year and see where our work can fit, which, if it wins, will be published. When all options are exhausted, there is always self-publishing. "Now it is much more economical and the digital world has evolved so much that it is very easy for a book to reach more people.""Perhaps those of us who love reading and books so much have mythologized it, but the book is an invention that has barely changed. And while nowadays there are more recent inventions like a cassette or a CD that, for example, can no longer be used if you don't keep the old devices, we can continue to open a book printed in the 15th century"Through Grafime, which is the name with which Miquel's three children renamed the company (Gráfica Miquel Estruga), they also work on books from the self-publishing imprint: they give an ISBN to each work and treat the book as if they were working on it for a publishing house, professionally designing the interiors and covers, because they know that through social media and a good website, it can gain a lot of visibility. "The important thing about a book is that it gets disseminated. And, if the book is good and stands out, a major publisher might end up noticing it, although we don't want to deceive anyone with this. We can end up making a good book, but from here to making a living writing, that is very complicated".In fact, as he specifies, you can find very interesting books that have been self-published and, in any case, he emphasizes above all the importance of that exercise of writing a book. Citing Jorge Luis Borges, Agustí states: "Of all the instruments of man, the most surprising is, without a doubt, the book. The others are extensions of his body. The microscope, the telescope, are extensions of his sight; the telephone is an extension of the voice; then we have the plow and the sword, extensions of his arm. But the book is something else: the book is an extension of memory and imagination."
"Design must be subordinated to facilitating the reading of the book, and this is not always understood that way"And Agustí adds: "Perhaps those of us who love reading and books so much have mythologized it, but the book is an invention that has barely changed. And while nowadays there are more recent inventions like a cassette or a CD that, for example, can no longer be used if you don't keep the old devices, we can continue opening a book printed in the 15th century."Now, from how their father made books to how his descendants do it, much has changed. "This forces us to be very up-to-date with the evolution of editing programs," Agustí specifies. Even so, he preserves all the romanticism of a trade that has more than five hundred years of tradition. "When I lay out a book, I use vocabulary that Gutenberg already used: indents, the use of the drop cap, text columns, colophon..." In short, it is a trade that forces us to be aware of innovations, but without ever losing the tradition it carries: "There is a craft behind this work, a background, but the software we use evolves very quickly. Therefore, it is not enough just to know the trade, technological advancement forces us to keep up to date with everything. And this dual aspect between tradition and innovation is a challenge for us."
The three siblings believe that their trade forces them to be aware of innovations, but without ever losing the tradition they carry and learned from their father. © Raúl Vicente Journalistic nose
In coordinating a book, Agustí says, "profiles of professionals linked to the world of journalism are often needed, and that's why in the publishing sector there are many colleagues who also come from journalism faculties. Just as a journalist must have a great capacity for curiosity when they have to write about a topic, we also have to immerse ourselves in the subject matter of the book we are commissioned to design; you must have the ability to polish the texts that will be published, or to hierarchically order those texts within the book to facilitate its reading. That's why I took the design and typography course, because it helps you visually organize all the information that will be included in the book. The design must be subordinated to facilitating the reading of the book, and this is not always understood that way."Within the world of publishing, Agustí is also passionate about typography. "There is a classic text by an American typographer, Beatrice Warde, written in 1939 titled "The Crystal Goblet," which essentially says that, just as when you want to taste a good wine, you need a transparent glass so that nothing distracts you and helps you perceive all the aromas and colors of that wine, in typographic design it must be the same: the best design must use a typeface that does not distract from the page where the text will be laid out, quite the opposite. And to achieve that goal, you must have good knowledge of typography."
With the advent of mobile screens, a great deal of time dedicated to reading, on the subway and at home, when the television was turned off, has become history. How many hours has the modern world stolen from this intimate relationship with reading, a book in one's hands. When he was studying at the UAB, one morning, at 9, Agustí entered the faculty's newspaper archive and found on a table the book All Roads Lead to Rome, by Gaziel. "Someone had left it there and I opened it, started reading it, and it was lunchtime. That morning I didn't attend any classes." It is not strange, then, that today he feels like doing the wave to anyone he might cross on the street who is walking and reading, or on the subway, on the way to somewhere. It is a sign that the book is captivating.
That's why we must continue making them, with all the care that Dolors, Gemma, and Agustí learned from their father. "I think our father would be surprised because at that time it didn't seem like we wanted to continue the company, and he gave us a lot of freedom in that. Today he could be proud that we have made it so familiar, where each of the three siblings who work in the company has their area. Running a family business is not easy, but we always try to prioritize the team we are and the goal we have, and manage any differences of opinion that may arise between us with a positive tone." And, outside of work hours, Agustí adds, "when we meet on the weekend, we try not to talk about work, although it always ends up coming up, because we live it very naturally. Evidently, in our daily work we also have to face pressures and other difficulties, like most small businesses, but, even so, we have not lost our enthusiasm for each editorial project we are commissioned," he concludes.