Go to the meeting

by Stéphane Batigne

“L‘envie de partager les histoires du pays “

I have a deep interest in both history and territories. I have always had a close relationship with the places where I have lived, I like to apprehend and understand them, in their natural and human dimensions. To understand a place is also to understand how it is inhabited, how it is occupied, how geographical aspects can shape history, economy or culture, how this place influences the popular imagination. I am passionate about places, even the smallest, most discrete ones. And this is not new: during the 15 years I lived in Quebec, I wrote several books and many articles about Montreal, Quebec and their natural and human environment.

I love the freedom my status gives me, the independence I have, the fact that I can launch and carry out projects. My work brings me to meet a lot of very different people, whether authors, booksellers, book professionals, but also ordinary people, readers. I really enjoy interacting with all these people and learning from them all the time.

Stéphane Batigne

I have been living in Questembert since 2012 with my family after spending more than 15 years in Montreal. I discovered the region through my wife because she is originally from there. It is a real life choice that we made by settling in the countryside, while the publishing world is mostly urban.

Three words to describe yourself

Territory
Heritage
Imaginary

The writing

A vocation

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How did your publishing house come about?

In 2012, I had already been working in publishing for about fifteen years. I wanted to be self-employed without a clear idea of my editorial line at first, but with the goal of making a living from it. At the beginning, I was very generalist, with the desire to encourage literary creation in the region. I thus created the short story contest Questembert Littéraire, which took place during two years, before continuing in Malestroit in collaboration with the cultural space Pass’temps. In the meantime, I had created the association Nervures to promote reading and writing in rural areas.

Then, my approach and my editorial line evolved. Being very attached to places, especially those in which I live, I favored publications touching on the region, the territory, history and heritage.

Would you please present your publishing house and its different collections?

I have two main collections: Beliefs and Popular Traditions, and Streets of Brittany. The first gathers reprints of texts by Breton authors from the nineteenth century in the form of very small books. They come from direct witnesses of popular practices now largely disappeared, on the scale of Morbihan or sometimes the whole of Brittany. The collection is enriched by two works each year. The one that has been the most successful is Naïa la sorcière de Rochefort-en-Terre, by Charles Géniaux, with 3,500 copies sold in five years. In the Rues de Bretagne collection, each book paints a portrait of a Breton town by taking the angle of its streets and public spaces. These books, which take the form of alphabet books, tell the story of the city’s main streets and their history, explain their names, and also describe their former and current uses, their remarkable buildings, their activities… There is so much to tell… These are books for the general public, easy to access, which can be taken along on walks through the city. Currently, the collection includes titles on Questembert, Malestroit, La Roche-Bernard, Le Pouliguen (44), Quintin (22) and soon on Châteaugiron (35). I also publish novels, some poetry, and essays on popular beliefs in Upper Brittany, such as Lieux de légendes et de croyances – Pays de Questembert et Rochefort-en-Terre, which I wrote, and Êtres fantastiques autour de La Roche-Bernard, by Hervé Dréan.

What are your plans or releases in 2021?

The Croyances et traditions populaires collection has been enriched with two titles this winter: Le Roi Stevan, mendiant et prophète, by Abbé Jean-Marie Guilloux, and a collection of texts by Charles Géniaux entitled Magiciens, sorciers et culte de la mort. In the collection Rues de Bretagne, I had Les rues de Quintin published in April, and I am preparing a new edition of the title on Questembert for the spring. Finally, we should have Les rues de Châteaugiron in the fall. Another important book to be published this spring is Le parler gallo du pays de Questembert, written by the former mayor of Questembert Paul Paboeuf, which collects more than a thousand words and many expressions in Gallo. It is a book that will fascinate both the speakers of the Questembert country, but also tourists who are often unaware that the regional language of Upper Brittany is not Breton, but Gallo, a language of oïl cousin of French.

Where can you find these books?

All in all, throughout Brittany, we have about sixty points of sale: bookstores, press houses, tourist offices, supermarkets, etc. On the scale of the territory, there are nine, namely for Rochefort: the Sainte-Hortense bookshop, the Naïa Museum, Féerie d’Armoric and the tourist office. In Questembert, we are present at the Maison de la Presse, the Papèterie Questembertoise, Intermarché and Carrefour Market. Finally, the Maison de la Presse in Malansac also sells our books. A little further away, you can find us in Vannes, La Roche-Bernard, Redon, Pénestin, La Gacilly, Ploërmel, Auray, Pontivy, etc. It is also possible to place an order on our website and to be delivered anywhere in France and abroad. Normally (except for Covid), I participate in about twenty book fairs and festivals in Brittany each year. My authors or myself are also present to meet the public during signings, author meetings, conferences, talks, animations, etc.

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An enthusiast at the service of heritage

Stéphane