A People's Guide to Publishing: Recent Episodes

Microcosm Publishing

Joe Biel is the founder and CEO of Microcosm, a 25-year-old midlist publishing and distribution company that has sold millions of books. Elly Blue is the editorial and marketing director at Microcosm. Joe is also the author of A People’s Guide to Publishing, which distills what they’ve learned over the past 25 years in 416 pages. Together, they distill this knowledge for other publishers and people who simply want to understand the publishing industry. ** Thank you for watching the People's Guide to Publishing vlogcast! Get the book: https://microcosmpublishing.com/catal... Get the workbook: https://microcosmpublishing.com/catal... More from Microcosm: http://microcosmpublishing.com More by Joe Biel: http://joebiel.net More by Elly Blue: http://takingthelane.com Subscribe to our monthly email newsletter: https://confirmsubscription.com/h/r/0... Find us on social media Facebook: http://facebook.com/microcosmpublishing Twitter: http://twitter.com/microcosmmm Instagram: http://instagram.com/microcosm_pub ****

For most publishers, profit and loss statements are either an afterthought, something they "don't have time for," or a ritualistic capitalistic enterprise that they want nothing to do with. This week on the pod, we feature an extra-long episode about how to learn from them, what they can be best utilized for, and how to sort out the information from success or failure to do it better next time.

Thank you for watching the People's Guide to Publishing vlogcast!
Get the book: https://microcosmpublishing.com/catalog/books/3663
Get the workbook: https://microcosmpublishing.com/catalog/zines/10031
More from Microcosm: http://microcosmpublishing.com
More by Joe Biel: http://joebiel.net
More by Elly Blue: http://takingthelane.com
Subscribe to our monthly email newsletter: https://confirmsubscription.com/h/r/0EABB2040D281C9C
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Facebook: http://facebook.com/microcosmpublishing
Twitter: http://twitter.com/microcosmmm
Instagram: http://instagram.com/microcosm_pub

Much ink has been spilt over the illusion that big publishers have different economic models. The reality is that larger publishers benefit from scale but the economic models are the same. What does that mean? More books gets more access and streamlines costs and departments, but when it comes down to each book, well...check out this week's episode!

Thank you for watching the People's Guide to Publishing vlogcast!
Get the book: https://microcosmpublishing.com/catal...
Get the workbook: https://microcosmpublishing.com/catal...
More from Microcosm: http://microcosmpublishing.com
More by Joe Biel: http://joebiel.net
More by Elly Blue: http://takingthelane.com
Subscribe to our monthly email newsletter: https://confirmsubscription.com/h/r/0...
Find us on social media
Facebook: http://facebook.com/microcosmpublishing
Twitter: http://twitter.com/microcosmmm
Instagram: http://instagram.com/microcosm_pub

You can read many academic articles about the need to get more people reading and how wonderful this would be for critical thinking and education. But most publishers focus on fighting over the exact same shelf space at the exact same stores. So this week on the pod, we talk about how to reach new people with your books and turn them into readers!

Get the book: https://microcosmpublishing.com/catalog/books/7504

Thank you for watching the People's Guide to Publishing vlogcast!

Get the book: https://microcosmpublishing.com/catalog/books/3663

Get the workbook: https://microcosmpublishing.com/catalog/zines/10031

More from Microcosm: http://microcosmpublishing.com

More by Joe Biel: http://joebiel.net

More by Elly Blue: http://takingthelane.com

Subscribe to our monthly email newsletter: https://confirmsubscription.com/h/r/0EABB2040D281C9C

Find us on social media

Facebook: http://facebook.com/microcosmpublishing

Twitter: http://twitter.com/microcosmmm

Instagram: http://instagram.com/microcosm_pub

Vic Liu's Bang! delivers a walloping dose of information about masturbation; probably more than most readers have ever thought about it. And we think that considering it in more depth is a good thing. So this week we talk to Vic about what led her to pursue talking about these things in public.

It started as a joke at the kitchen table at 7 AM before AWP. We were looking at the many books of "helping sayings" that really didn't say anything at all besides repeating unhelpful wisdom of olde. We realized how heterosexual these platitudes were and before long Joe announced "I'd love to write the queer version of this book!" and here we are, less than two years later!

Get the book: https://microcosmpublishing.com/catalog/books/7504
Thank you for watching the People's Guide to Publishing vlogcast!
Get the book: https://microcosmpublishing.com/catalog/books/3663
Get the workbook: https://microcosmpublishing.com/catalog/zines/10031
More from Microcosm: http://microcosmpublishing.com
More by Joe Biel: http://joebiel.net
More by Elly Blue: http://takingthelane.com
Subscribe to our monthly email newsletter: https://confirmsubscription.com/h/r/0EABB2040D281C9C
Find us on social media
Facebook: http://facebook.com/microcosmpublishing
Twitter: http://twitter.com/microcosmmm
Instagram: http://instagram.com/microcosm_pub

Last week we presented to you the biggest problem in publishing. So this week, we present the solution. Yes, the industry is very crowded but people are reading more and buying more books than ever and willing to spend more on those books. It's downright a fantastic time to be a book publisher. This week we look at how to excel!

Get the book: https://microcosmpublishing.com/catalog/books/7504
Thank you for watching the People's Guide to Publishing vlogcast!
Get the book: https://microcosmpublishing.com/catalog/books/3663
Get the workbook: https://microcosmpublishing.com/catalog/zines/10031
More from Microcosm: http://microcosmpublishing.com
More by Joe Biel: http://joebiel.net
More by Elly Blue: http://takingthelane.com
Subscribe to our monthly email newsletter: https://confirmsubscription.com/h/r/0EABB2040D281C9C
Find us on social media
Facebook: http://facebook.com/microcosmpublishing
Twitter: http://twitter.com/microcosmmm
Instagram: http://instagram.com/microcosm_pub

We've said it hundreds of times on this pod: the problems that everyone assumes and claims to plague publishing aren't programs at all. So what is publishing's biggest problem?

Get the book: https://microcosmpublishing.com/catalog/books/7504
Thank you for watching the People's Guide to Publishing vlogcast!
Get the book: https://microcosmpublishing.com/catalog/books/3663
Get the workbook: https://microcosmpublishing.com/catalog/zines/10031
More from Microcosm: http://microcosmpublishing.com
More by Joe Biel: http://joebiel.net
More by Elly Blue: http://takingthelane.com
Subscribe to our monthly email newsletter: https://confirmsubscription.com/h/r/0EABB2040D281C9C
Find us on social media
Facebook: http://facebook.com/microcosmpublishing
Twitter: http://twitter.com/microcosmmm
Instagram: http://instagram.com/microcosm_pub

Most people imagine us with our noses in a book or having charmed candlelight talks over a manuscript in development. The reality, as always, is very different. This week on the pod, we talk about what we actually do every day—or at least on one specific day!

Get the book: https://microcosmpublishing.com/catalog/books/7504
Thank you for watching the People's Guide to Publishing vlogcast!
Get the book: https://microcosmpublishing.com/catalog/books/3663
Get the workbook: https://microcosmpublishing.com/catalog/zines/10031
More from Microcosm: http://microcosmpublishing.com
More by Joe Biel: http://joebiel.net
More by Elly Blue: http://takingthelane.com
Subscribe to our monthly email newsletter: https://confirmsubscription.com/h/r/0EABB2040D281C9C
Find us on social media
Facebook: http://facebook.com/microcosmpublishing
Twitter: http://twitter.com/microcosmmm
Instagram: http://instagram.com/microcosm_pub

The year was 1999. Seth Tobocman's landmark graphic novel, War in the Neighborhood was published by Autonomedia. We ordered some copies. Quickly, we noticed a strange problem: the pages kept falling out of the cover. Turns out that this problem affected at least a third of the print run. Suddenly, all of the good copies were gone and we were making trips to New York to pick up the bad copies, dealing with the problem that few others wanted to and selling the book back into the trade. This is a cornerstone tale of Microcosm that made us so successful, because we think differently than the rest of our industry.

Thank you for watching the People's Guide to Publishing vlogcast!
Get the book: https://microcosmpublishing.com/catal...
Get the workbook: https://microcosmpublishing.com/catal...
More from Microcosm: http://microcosmpublishing.com
More by Joe Biel: http://joebiel.net
More by Elly Blue: http://takingthelane.com
Subscribe to our monthly email newsletter: https://confirmsubscription.com/h/r/0...
Find us on social media
Facebook: http://facebook.com/microcosmpublishing
Twitter: http://twitter.com/microcosmmm
Instagram: http://instagram.com/microcosm_pub

Wanting to create a keepsake of meaningful discoveries she made as a younger woman, Francesca Black created Year of the Witch for her daughters. This week on the pod, we talk about her goals and vision and trying to create a better world for people like your younger self.

Thank you for watching the People's Guide to Publishing vlogcast!
Get the book: https://microcosmpublishing.com/catalog/books/3663
Get the workbook: https://microcosmpublishing.com/catalog/zines/10031
More from Microcosm: http://microcosmpublishing.com
More by Joe Biel: http://joebiel.net
More by Elly Blue: http://takingthelane.com
Subscribe to our monthly email newsletter: https://confirmsubscription.com/h/r/0EABB2040D281C9C
Find us on social media
Facebook: http://facebook.com/microcosmpublishing
Twitter: http://twitter.com/microcosmmm
Instagram: http://instagram.com/microcosm_pub

Question on the pod this week: an old punk wrote a novel and is finding that it's harder to find open submissions without an agency from an amenable press that "gets" them. Where should they go? What should they do? We offer some options and solutions!

Thank you for watching the People's Guide to Publishing vlogcast!
Get the book: https://microcosmpublishing.com/catalog/books/3663
Get the workbook: https://microcosmpublishing.com/catalog/zines/10031
More from Microcosm: http://microcosmpublishing.com
More by Joe Biel: http://joebiel.net
More by Elly Blue: http://takingthelane.com
Subscribe to our monthly email newsletter: https://confirmsubscription.com/h/r/0EABB2040D281C9C
Find us on social media
Facebook: http://facebook.com/microcosmpublishing
Twitter: http://twitter.com/microcosmmm
Instagram: http://instagram.com/microcosm_pub

Laura Q writes Queer Smut in the tradition of Nerve Endings and the sparse and isolated incidents of trans erotica. This week on the pod, we talk about queer community and being a visionary for what that would look like in daily life through fiction.

Thank you for watching the People's Guide to Publishing vlogcast!
Get the book: https://microcosmpublishing.com/catalog/books/3663
Get the workbook: https://microcosmpublishing.com/catalog/zines/10031
More from Microcosm: http://microcosmpublishing.com
More by Joe Biel: http://joebiel.net
More by Elly Blue: http://takingthelane.com
Subscribe to our monthly email newsletter: https://confirmsubscription.com/h/r/0EABB2040D281C9C
Find us on social media
Facebook: http://facebook.com/microcosmpublishing
Twitter: http://twitter.com/microcosmmm
Instagram: http://instagram.com/microcosm_pub

This week we feature guest star Jess Driscoll to talk about her brand new book, Magic of Pockets! We discuss the history and politics of pockets, the trajectory of pockets, key uses of pockets, what various body languages involving pockets communicate, and many other things about this excited new book! https://microcosm.pub/pockets

Thank you for watching the People's Guide to Publishing vlogcast!
Get the book: https://microcosmpublishing.com/catal...
Get the workbook: https://microcosmpublishing.com/catal...
More from Microcosm: http://microcosmpublishing.com
More by Joe Biel: http://joebiel.net
More by Elly Blue: http://takingthelane.com
Subscribe to our monthly email newsletter: https://confirmsubscription.com/h/r/0...
Find us on social media
Facebook: http://facebook.com/microcosmpublishing
Twitter: http://twitter.com/microcosmmm
Instagram: http://instagram.com/microcosm_pub

We all write our own stories. And some of those stories are a little racier and saucier than others. The work of S. Park straddles multiple worlds and one of those happens to be within our Queering Consent erotica series. This week on the pod, we treat you to a delectable interview with the author about the inspiration and creation of this series!

This week we feature guest star Set Sytes to tell us all about the brand new edition of his book, Born to be Weird! We talk about writing fantasy as a reason to remain alive and how these sort of twisted stories are the flesh and blood for getting out of bed, even if you're writing about a disgusting toilet. Set is from the Great Imperializer and while Microcosm is based in the Colonies, there is a handy feature to translate his English to ours.

Thank you for watching the People's Guide to Publishing vlogcast!
Get the book: https://microcosmpublishing.com/catal...
Get the workbook: https://microcosmpublishing.com/catal...
More from Microcosm: http://microcosmpublishing.com
More by Joe Biel: http://joebiel.net
More by Elly Blue: http://takingthelane.com
Subscribe to our monthly email newsletter: https://confirmsubscription.com/h/r/0...
Find us on social media
Facebook: http://facebook.com/microcosmpublishing
Twitter: http://twitter.com/microcosmmm
Instagram: http://instagram.com/microcosm_pub

This week a reader asked us what books we read to understand our economic theories. And that was a bit of a stumper, so we thought about it all week and thought back to where those ideas and values came from and made our best effort to explain how we see the world the way that we do!

Thank you for watching the People's Guide to Publishing vlogcast!
Get the book: https://microcosmpublishing.com/catal...
Get the workbook: https://microcosmpublishing.com/catal...
More from Microcosm: http://microcosmpublishing.com
More by Joe Biel: http://joebiel.net
More by Elly Blue: http://takingthelane.com
Subscribe to our monthly email newsletter: https://confirmsubscription.com/h/r/0...
Find us on social media
Facebook: http://facebook.com/microcosmpublishing
Twitter: http://twitter.com/microcosmmm
Instagram: http://instagram.com/microcosm_pub

High among common myths repeated about publishers is that "authors need a platform" before someone would consider publishing them. It's not bad to have a platform, but is it necessary? This week on the pod, we are joined by Wayward Writer author and teacher Ariel Gore to dismantle this myth to its pieces and talk about best practices, what authors could do better, and where publishers can meet them.

Thank you for watching the People's Guide to Publishing vlogcast!
Get the book: https://microcosmpublishing.com/catal...
Get the workbook: https://microcosmpublishing.com/catal...
More from Microcosm: http://microcosmpublishing.com
More by Joe Biel: http://joebiel.net
More by Elly Blue: http://takingthelane.com
Subscribe to our monthly email newsletter: https://confirmsubscription.com/h/r/0...
Find us on social media
Facebook: http://facebook.com/microcosmpublishing
Twitter: http://twitter.com/microcosmmm
Instagram: http://instagram.com/microcosm_pub

Earlier this year, we received some shocking news: Publisher's Weekly determined that Microcosm was the #1 fastest growing publisher! We sat in shock for six months...while we continued doing what we were doing. This week on the pod, we talk about how we accomplished that and you can too!

Thank you for watching the People's Guide to Publishing vlogcast!
Get the book: https://microcosmpublishing.com/catal...
Get the workbook: https://microcosmpublishing.com/catal...
More from Microcosm: http://microcosmpublishing.com
More by Joe Biel: http://joebiel.net
More by Elly Blue: http://takingthelane.com
Subscribe to our monthly email newsletter: https://confirmsubscription.com/h/r/0...
Find us on social media
Facebook: http://facebook.com/microcosmpublishing
Twitter: http://twitter.com/microcosmmm
Instagram: http://instagram.com/microcosm_pub

This week on the pod, we tackle a reader question: How much is scientific and factual accuracy a concern for publishers? Can this lead to liability issues? It's complicated, yet simple. There are very clever workarounds, as seen in the recent case of books denying the existence of COVID-19 and politicians losing their minds over this. What is the responsibility of publishers as dispensers of information?

Thank you for watching the People's Guide to Publishing vlogcast!
Get the book: https://microcosmpublishing.com/catal...
Get the workbook: https://microcosmpublishing.com/catal...
More from Microcosm: http://microcosmpublishing.com
More by Joe Biel: http://joebiel.net
More by Elly Blue: http://takingthelane.com
Subscribe to our monthly email newsletter: https://confirmsubscription.com/h/r/0...
Find us on social media
Facebook: http://facebook.com/microcosmpublishing
Twitter: http://twitter.com/microcosmmm
Instagram: http://instagram.com/microcosm_pub

During the course of the Penguin Random House / Simon & Schuster merger trial with the Department of Justice, the defense claimed that profit and loss statements are made up guesses, with no substantiation in evidence. Podcasts, agents, authors, and tweeters immediately latched onto this claim that publishers actually have no idea what they are doing. This week on the pod, we show how all of those things are wrong and how to deliver factually based P&Ls!

Thank you for watching the People's Guide to Publishing vlogcast!
Get the book: https://microcosmpublishing.com/catal...
Get the workbook: https://microcosmpublishing.com/catal...
More from Microcosm: http://microcosmpublishing.com
More by Joe Biel: http://joebiel.net
More by Elly Blue: http://takingthelane.com
Subscribe to our monthly email newsletter: https://confirmsubscription.com/h/r/0...
Find us on social media
Facebook: http://facebook.com/microcosmpublishing
Twitter: http://twitter.com/microcosmmm
Instagram: http://instagram.com/microcosm_pub

Before long, it is not difficult to see the limitations of being a small publisher. So this week on the pod, we answer a reader question about how to become an imprint of a larger press, based on Elly's experience of merging her company with Microcosm and keeping her job. What are the benefits? What are the drawbacks? How do you do it? What are the advantages for both parties?

Thank you for watching the People's Guide to Publishing vlogcast!
Get the book: https://microcosmpublishing.com/catal...
Get the workbook: https://microcosmpublishing.com/catal...
More from Microcosm: http://microcosmpublishing.com
More by Joe Biel: http://joebiel.net
More by Elly Blue: http://takingthelane.com
Subscribe to our monthly email newsletter: https://confirmsubscription.com/h/r/0...
Find us on social media
Facebook: http://facebook.com/microcosmpublishing
Twitter: http://twitter.com/microcosmmm
Instagram: http://instagram.com/microcosm_pub

This week, a reader got in touch because they are publishing a values-based anthology with 20 contributors. 19 have signed the agreements but one is concerned that the agreement isn't fair and doesn't want to relinquish rights to the publisher. So this week on the pod, Elly and Joe explain "fairness" as well as what these agreements typically look like and offer advice about how to proceed.

Thank you for watching the People's Guide to Publishing vlogcast!
Get the book: https://microcosmpublishing.com/catal...
Get the workbook: https://microcosmpublishing.com/catal...
More from Microcosm: http://microcosmpublishing.com
More by Joe Biel: http://joebiel.net
More by Elly Blue: http://takingthelane.com
Subscribe to our monthly email newsletter: https://confirmsubscription.com/h/r/0...
Find us on social media
Facebook: http://facebook.com/microcosmpublishing
Twitter: http://twitter.com/microcosmmm
Instagram: http://instagram.com/microcosm_pub

What's in a name? Why do so many books have the same title? What if another author has the same name as you? What if you change your name or pseudonym? How do you protect the names of yourself and your various projects? We tackle all that and more in this week's episode!

Thank you for watching the People's Guide to Publishing vlogcast!
Get the book: https://microcosmpublishing.com/catal...
Get the workbook: https://microcosmpublishing.com/catal...
More from Microcosm: http://microcosmpublishing.com
More by Joe Biel: http://joebiel.net
More by Elly Blue: http://takingthelane.com
Subscribe to our monthly email newsletter: https://confirmsubscription.com/h/r/0...
Find us on social media
Facebook: http://facebook.com/microcosmpublishing
Twitter: http://twitter.com/microcosmmm
Instagram: http://instagram.com/microcosm_pub

Last week a tweet appeared, interpreting testimony from the Penguin Random House/DOJ trial to mean that half of all books published sell fewer than a dozen copies! Quickly, it went viral and people shared their opinions about whether or not this is real. Soon, experts were commenting on this. Where did this statistic come from? Is it true? What can we learn from it? How can it better inform your own publishing?

Thank you for watching the People's Guide to Publishing vlogcast!
Get the book: https://microcosmpublishing.com/catal...
Get the workbook: https://microcosmpublishing.com/catal...
More from Microcosm: http://microcosmpublishing.com
More by Joe Biel: http://joebiel.net
More by Elly Blue: http://takingthelane.com
Subscribe to our monthly email newsletter: https://confirmsubscription.com/h/r/0...
Find us on social media
Facebook: http://facebook.com/microcosmpublishing
Twitter: http://twitter.com/microcosmmm
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Twitter lit on fire when Barnes & Noble announced that, due to low sales and high return rates, it would no longer carry as many middle reader fiction hardcovers. What does this mean for authors, publishers, indie stores, and other aspects of the publishing industry? The intrepid Joe and Elly dig deep and come up with a take that you aren't likely to hear elsewhere!

Lots of news and cold takes about the Penguin Random House / Simon & Schuster attempts at a merger this week, so this week on the pod, we offer some perspective and analysis about the two separate but not equal book publishing industries. Does the trial matter to small presses? What have we learned? How much is oversaturation affecting the Big Five? All this and more.

Thank you for watching the People's Guide to Publishing vlogcast!
Get the book: https://microcosmpublishing.com/catal...
Get the workbook: https://microcosmpublishing.com/catal...
More from Microcosm: http://microcosmpublishing.com
More by Joe Biel: http://joebiel.net
More by Elly Blue: http://takingthelane.com
Subscribe to our monthly email newsletter: https://confirmsubscription.com/h/r/0...
Find us on social media
Facebook: http://facebook.com/microcosmpublishing
Twitter: http://twitter.com/microcosmmm
Instagram: http://instagram.com/microcosm_pub

While we have little things that we've always bickered about, this week on the pod we take a deeper look at fundamental differences and disagreements between Elly and Joe!

Thank you for watching the People's Guide to Publishing vlogcast!
Get the book: https://microcosmpublishing.com/catal...
Get the workbook: https://microcosmpublishing.com/catal...
More from Microcosm: http://microcosmpublishing.com
More by Joe Biel: http://joebiel.net
More by Elly Blue: http://takingthelane.com
Subscribe to our monthly email newsletter: https://confirmsubscription.com/h/r/0...
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Twitter: http://twitter.com/microcosmmm
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Before too long in your publishing quest, you will quickly be dumped into various ethical quagmires. We offer some experience, advice, and tools for tackling this quandary. The short answer is that through a series of careful decisions, hesitating when your gut indicates, and moving intentionally, you can create the world that you want to see.

Thank you for watching the People's Guide to Publishing vlogcast!
Get the book: https://microcosmpublishing.com/catal...
Get the workbook: https://microcosmpublishing.com/catal...
More from Microcosm: http://microcosmpublishing.com
More by Joe Biel: http://joebiel.net
More by Elly Blue: http://takingthelane.com
Subscribe to our monthly email newsletter: https://confirmsubscription.com/h/r/0...
Find us on social media
Facebook: http://facebook.com/microcosmpublishing
Twitter: http://twitter.com/microcosmmm
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On this episode of the People's Guide to Publishing podcast (https://microcosm.pub/podcast), we interview Eric Sandy about his new book Speak In Tongues: An Oral History of Cleveland's Infamous DIY Punk Venue. (https://microcosm.pub/Speak)

Thank you for watching the People's Guide to Publishing vlogcast!
Get the book: https://microcosmpublishing.com/catal...
Get the workbook: https://microcosmpublishing.com/catal...
More from Microcosm: http://microcosmpublishing.com
More by Joe Biel: http://joebiel.net
More by Elly Blue: http://takingthelane.com
Subscribe to our monthly email newsletter: https://confirmsubscription.com/h/r/0...
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So much time is spent debating the waste, morass, and outdatedness of the publishing industry and so little ink is spent offering practical solutions about how to fix it. So this week on the pod, we take a stab at looking at pragmatic ways for publishers to make decisions, why this works, and what the outcomes of this could be!

Most people have educations or backgrounds that influence how they approach their work. Often, these influences cause them to replicate similar power structures back into publishing. So this week on the pod, we take a look at our own influences and how they have shaped the way that we pursue our craft. Who are your influences?

So many people have suffered endless rejections and want to know how to get their foot in the door. They think that if they can just get the right editor on the phone or get someone to listen, they can get published. To be fair, much of publishing is gatekept, preserving the experiences of certain people's experiences with certain educations from certain schools. So this week on the pod, we take a look at how to sidestep that and get your foot in the door! Ariel's new book, The Wayward Writer, addresses this point directly!

Thank you for watching the People's Guide to Publishing vlogcast!
Get the book: https://microcosmpublishing.com/catal...
Get the workbook: https://microcosmpublishing.com/catal...
More from Microcosm: http://microcosmpublishing.com
More by Joe Biel: http://joebiel.net
More by Elly Blue: http://takingthelane.com
Subscribe to our monthly email newsletter: https://confirmsubscription.com/h/r/0...
Find us on social media
Facebook: http://facebook.com/microcosmpublishing
Twitter: http://twitter.com/microcosmmm
Instagram: http://instagram.com/microcosm_pub

So many people have suffered endless rejections and want to know how to get their foot in the door. They think that if they can just get the right editor on the phone or get someone to listen, they can get published. To be fair, much of publishing is gatekept, preserving the experiences of certain people's experiences with certain educations from certain schools. So this week on the pod, we take a look at how to sidestep that and get your foot in the door! Ariel's new book, The Wayward Writer, addresses this point directly!

If you read author forums, you can watch them complain about gatekeeping all day long. "If only the agent/editor/publisher/buyer would READ my book, they'd see how great it is!" so this week on the pod, we take a look at how to manage these characters, why they are good for authors, and how some gatekeeping is old fashioned racism/classism/xenophobia.

It's entirely too typical to be told by a new author that there is no way to get their foot in the door. It's easy to only look at and see the hardships and roadblocks. So this weed on the pod, we construct a path to success as a writer. And even making a living.

Thank you for watching the People's Guide to Publishing vlogcast!
Get the book: https://microcosmpublishing.com/catal...
Get the workbook: https://microcosmpublishing.com/catal...
More from Microcosm: http://microcosmpublishing.com
More by Joe Biel: http://joebiel.net
More by Elly Blue: http://takingthelane.com
Subscribe to our monthly email newsletter: https://confirmsubscription.com/h/r/0...
Find us on social media
Facebook: http://facebook.com/microcosmpublishing
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Every few months there's a news story about a new, "innovative" publishing model. These are typically variations on funding or author compensation. This week on the pod, we take a look at these models, how different they really are, and more importantly, how effective they are and how long they last.

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Sometimes we're on the sidelines, really excited for a book to come out. And then it doesn't. Why? This week on the pod we take a look at those reasons, despite everyone's intentions and common goals.

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Sometimes it's just not working out for the author or for the publisher or both. Circumstances, trends, and relationships change. Even though publishers and authors are aligned in bringing each book to its audience, sometimes it becomes clear over time that one party's interest is not aligned with another's. So this week on the pod, we take a look at how to end a contract!

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Often, walking through the many complexities of publishing and all of its contexts, you will have revelations about how to simplify and streamline things. This week we take a peek at that!

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Most inquiries seem to believe that the most successful titles are the ones with the broadest appeal, like "anyone could love this book!" but in reality, those books are mythological. To have any appeal, a book must have a concerted audience. When we try to be for everybody, it's hard for anybody to be excited about it. This week, we look at our most specific titles and how they are bestsellers.

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Back to basics this week! We are looking at everything that you need to think about when a pallet of books arrives at your door!

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It's a common and seemingly logical question. A would-be author learns that publishers screen manuscript submissions through relationships with agencies and decides that they can begin pitching their own work as their own agent. How well does this work? Does this solve any problems?

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You may have noticed that we were Publishers Weekly's fastest growing publisher so we've given a lot of thought to leverage over the past few years. So this week on the pod, we talk about that. How do you grow? Where do you grow next? What is the lowest hanging fruit?

The most common request when we create an agreement to publish a new book is that the author wants to publish as soon as possible! So this week on the pod, we cast some exposition about what goes on during those years between signing and books on shelves and why that delay is so important!

Thank you for watching the People's Guide to Publishing vlogcast!
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For this week's episode of the People's Guide to Publishing podcast, Joe and Elly are interviewing (live!) Carla and Josh, authors of our new book, If Animals Could Talk. We'll discuss the hilariously viral first edition, the perils of book development, what it's like to make a heavily illustrated book, and the importance of humor.

Find out more about the podcast here: https://microcosm.pub/podcast

Find If Animals Could Talk here: https://microcosmpublishing.com/catalog/books/11489

And the accompanying coloring book here: https://microcosmpublishing.com/catalog/zines/13474

After a long week at the AWP conference, we sat down with Katie and Joe for a discussion on zines, their paths to success, the implications of creative work, what they are most excited about, and what they are planning next! Katie and Joe (Biel) have worked together for nearly 20 years, and it's been a fascinating journey to watch the growth and development of her work as an author.

Thank you for watching the People's Guide to Publishing vlogcast!
Get the book: https://microcosmpublishing.com/catal...
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Ayun Halliday, playwright turned author/zinester/producer, learned an important lesson early in her career. When told that she could get parts in commercials by compromising her values, she didn't even consider the thought. Instead, she doubled down on these values, creating art that was a expression of herself and finding success in that honest reflection. Creative, Not Famous: The Small Potato Manifesto teaches these lessons through an elaborate cast of characters who share what they've learned through a lifetime of creative expression.
https://microcosmpublishing.com/catalog/books/8966

Thank you for watching the People's Guide to Publishing vlogcast!
Get the book: https://microcosmpublishing.com/catal...
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Five years ago the conversation about how Amazon undermines not only commerce, publishing, and culture, but also bookselling was limited to inside the industry. In 2018, he extended that conversation to the broader world when he arduously enlisted his staff to staple thousands of zines. Today, it's a bestselling book and Danny shares the backstory about why it's been so popular.

After a blistering year of 119% growth, we took some time to reassess and think of what's next for Microcosm. And then we made a list and reviewed it with our staff. What will it mean when we are five times this size within the next ten years? The revelations are staggering and planning gets us there.
https://microcosmpublishing.com/blog/2022/01/microcosms-2021-annual-mony-report-with-infographics/

2021 was our busiest year ever—by a wide margin. We sold $3.449M in books and grew 119% while we heard a lot of publishers worrying, grumbling, freezing budgets, and experiencing different outcomes. So this week on the pod, we spend some time looking at why our experience was so different and how it can be replicated by others!
https://microcosmpublishing.com/blog/2022/01/microcosms-2021-annual-mony-report-with-infographics/

The dust has finally settled and we've got our numbers for 2021. Wow! This marks the end of a year of more than doubling our previous “busiest year ever” with a growth of 119.24% over 2020. We believe that publishing our annual financial and business recap is a vital part of our vales—financial transparency helps everyone! And this year, it’s extra nice to be able to show that all the news is good. In February, 2021, we doubled our warehousing space (and shortly after that our warehouse staffing) with the opening of our Cleveland warehouse. And still, we struggled to keep up with shipping and receiving at the end of the year. https://microcosmpublishing.com/blog/2022/01/microcosms-2021-annual-mony-report-with-infographics/

We've constantly heard falsehoods thrown around like "There's no way to know how many books to publish per season" or "There's no science for how to figure out how many books to publish" so this week on the pod, we cast that science. It's remarkably simple with math and a little bit of critical thinking!

Reader question this week focuses on a book that's had publication thrice delayed. Why do books get delayed, sometimes for years? We walk through this general and specific example, as a way to understand the logic of publishing schedules and how they are used to leverage the desired results.

One of our first ten episodes remains one of our most popular, about the fundamentals of designing a book cover. Fans of the program have routinely continued asking for more information about clarification about covers, so we thought that we'd give you the sequel: about making your cover great!

For every publisher, their motivation arrived because of a pivotal work discovered at an earlier age. We all know the magical, transformative nature of a good book! So this week, we take a look at what those were, why they were so influential, and how we channel that into our work today!

A year ago, this week, we opened an additional book warehouse in Cleveland, OH (not so coincidentally, this is also where Microcosm was founded). Wow! What an adventure. From turning on the electricity to occupancy permits to setting up sales tax exposure in a new state, we learned a lot. And we've laid it all out here!

This question is remarkably common: someone publishes something and stores don't flock to put it on their shelves. What do you need? This week on the pod, we figure out which is the cart and which is the horse and what sequence of events can put your books into stores!

One of the most exciting aspects of being a publisher is watching it grow. A little at first but compared to two or five years ago, it can often be a lot. How do you measure this? How do you keep up? What if it stops? All this and more!

2021 was a year where the old tricks didn't work. But what are the new tricks? How do we find and choose the ones that are right for us? This week on the pod, we take a deep dive into experimentation and how its best implemented!

One of the most confusing aspects of publishing is the branding. With hundreds of thousands of active publishing companies in the world, we constantly run into confusion about who is big, who is small, who is independent, who is corporately controlled, and why you have never even heard of this publisher before. Largely, this is because branding is done to the industry, rather than to the public. This week on the pod, we take that apart and put it back together!

Here is a a funny reader question that happens sometimes: your publisher pays you an advance but then cancels your book. Why? What do you do? What can you do? What should you do?

Reader question this week is asking us to predict how the changes we've seen over the past year will take hold over the next five years and what that will mean for publishers. How should publishers prepare for this? How should publishers pivot? What can we do to set ourselves up for success?

Why do publishers make stickers, magnets, shirts, patches, buttons, and the like? What is gained? Where does this get you? This week on the pod, we jabber on about how we have leveraged these items to get our books into new and unlikely places!

For many publishers, the bulk of income can come from licensing deals: the same book translated to Japanese, as an audiobook, or even a videogame or interactive version. An 80% share in Dark Horse Comics was sold to a videogame developer, for example. This week we look at these deals, how to do them, and why they are so important.

Generally unbeknownst to each us, we have a set of experiences that form how we see the world. These experiences form what we see as acceptable, unacceptable, normal, and marginal thoughts, ideas, values, and actions. For example, one person only wears Armani suits while another only wears second hand clothes. This point of view accepts our publishing, as it informs what kind of books appear interesting or relevant to us.

Publishing news has been brewing over a story of a protest resignation from a board member from the American Booksellers Association (ABA) over "old" vs "new" definitions of "free speech." Personally, we hate that "free speech" has been codified to mean "hurtful speech," but this week we tackle these thorny issues and more!

The book industry was shocked in April of 2016 when Baker & Taylor was purchased by their primary competitor in the library sales market, Follett. So imagine the surprise when they sold them off five years later. What does this mean?

For this week's episode of the People's Guide to Publishing podcast, Joe and Elly are interviewing (live!) Sarah High from Bookshop, the new online book retailer that is pointing the way to successful online bookselling that supports independent bookstores as well as authors and publishers. We'll talk about bookselling during the pandemic, the future of books, and positive ways to make connections between books and tech.

Find out more about the podcast here: https://microcosm.pub/podcast

Check out Bookshop here: https://bookshop.org/

Last week, the U.S. Federal Government sued to prevent Penguin Random House from purchasing one of their biggest competitors, Simon & Schuster. This is a stark change in federal policy after years of happily allowing Hachette, HarperCollins, and others to acquire their biggest competitors. As well, as six years ago when Penguin and Random House merged themselves. What does it mean?

After decades of U.S. manufacturing disinvestment coinciding with decades of rapid production investment in China, book publishers have largely moved to printing in China. So why have we seen a return to domestic printing this year? Spoiler alert: One Big Five publisher recently cited 18 week delays for reprints from China. This means that for smaller publishers, this delay is MUCH longer.

The past year has been plagued with U.S. labor shortages. Publishers can't get a break. But neither can workers. Conditions haven't markedly improved in decades and publishers and distributors are having huge troubles with warehouse staffing, leading to weeks of fulfillment delays. We take a look at why the same systems are no longer working and what can be done about it!

Because of Amazon's relentless marketing campaign, one of the most common questions is "What can a publisher actually offer that self-publishing cannot?" so this week on the pod, we tackle the considerations, pros and cons of a publisher or self-publishing as well as other things to consider.

We just returned from the Pacific Northwest Booksellers Association show (PNBA), the first in-person trade show in nearly two years! So this week on the pod, we talk about what we observed, what we learned, and what it will likely all mean in the long term, as publishing continues to evolve from COVID!

Most books have multiple contributors in varying capacities. Some have two authors. Many have an author and an illustrator. This week on the pod, we answer a reader question about how to create fair agreements and structure them so that no one is left in the lurch no matter if the book is very successful, very unsuccessful, or the most likely scenario unfolds. We take a look at what to consider, how to communicate, and how to put it in writing.

Often, when you create something and the world likes it, they have a strong tendency to use it without asking. Or conversely, people have questions about when or how they can use someone's else's writing or art in their own and what constitutes fair use or what is just theft. So this week on the pod, we tackle all this and more!

When you create something, like writing a book or drawing an illustration, you have the power to decide who gets to use it and how. This week on the pod, we talk about the many things to consider, what standard agreements look like, and how to best make decisions about the future of your work!

We frequently hear concerns from authors about how their books are handled. They think that "signing" with a publisher is giving up their ability to handle and own their book. Nothing is further from the truth. In almost every contract, an author still owns their own work and licenses aspects of it to a publisher for the purpose of the publisher (hopefully) having greater ability to increase its value. This week on the pod, we take a deep dive walkthrough over these issues!

The past five years have become a vigilant fight to claim the word "Indie" in publishing. Who is Indie? What are they independent of? What are they dependent on? How are these terms confusing? How is this phrase used in misleading ways? This week on the pod, we have some real talk about dependence and independence!

The gift segment of publishing is the both the largest potential and one of the fastest growing. While there are around 2,500 bookstores in the U.S., there are over 1 MILLION independent brick and mortar stores, and they are on a 10 year growth pattern and shopped at by 80% of people in one study, estimated to grow income 12% this year to over $4T (22% OF U.S. ECONOMY). This week we take a look at one such marketing outlet to gift, Las Vegas Market!

It was announced last week that Workman Publishing had agreed with a buyout from Hachette Book Group for their entire company, including seven divisions and imprints that would form a new division within Hachette. What does this mean? How will this continued consolidation of once independent publishers affect the book industry?

This week on the pod, we interview April Street, author of Women on Wheels, the fabulous story of how women shaped bicycling. Streeter had an incredible ability to jump right back into her research, recall both the executive summaries and then the most fascinating details, as well as visiting how sexism, classism, and racism were factors in cycling.

In 2006, our friend, Richard the Roadie, asked "Hey, did you ever figure out how to do health insurance?" I explained our convoluted system of stipends at length and he said "Oh, okay, so you haven't." Fifteen years later, we have! We now provide healthcare to our staff through many bureaucratic hours of wading through locating the right people and asking the right questions. This episode is how you can too!

This week on the pod, we answer a reader question. Anyone in the bookstore or publishing industries are very concerned about being undercut on price so the tendency is to price based on Amazon. Is this a good idea? How do we combat this race to the bottom? How can bookstores and publishers set a better baseline?

This week on the pod, we review four new zines that fell into our laps as well as lots of tangents and nonsequitors. Autism, Tulsa, Racism, corking, bicycles, Black Lives Matter, COVID, prison, books to prison!

There's a common belief among both writers and publishers that books are written by authors and editors are more like a delivery mechanism before the book arrives at the printer. The reality is that most books receive as much contribution from editors as they do from the author. This week we tackle how that process happens and why it's so important not to let an author bulldoze their editor.

In 2011, the publishing industry was poised for ebooks to kill print. This week on the pod, we talk about why the opposite happened and how an unexpected format launched a tremendous comeback and claimed ebooks' rightful market share.

This week on the pod we review the Audio Publishers Association numbers about growing trends in audiobook listening. What do they tell us? What does it mean? How does it impact future plans to publish a title in audio?

Two PSU professors conducted extensive scientific surveying about people's book reading habits. This week on the pod, we walk you through some of what we find interesting and notable about the results.

Last week we answered how to pitch your book and this week we received a similar, though different question. Graphic novels are a bit of a puzzle with lots of moving pieces. We tackle the mysterious process of seeing these ideas onto paper!

One of the most common weekly questions that we receive, we take a different approach than most in answering the perilous journey towards showing someone the value of your work—whether that's an agency, publisher, reader, licensor, or future date! It all boils down to a few basic approaches.

This week on the pod, we field another reader question. You've got your focus and passions crystal clear. Now what do you DO? We tackle this answer through some various experiences and advice based on our combined 35 years of experience.

Over a year ago we answered a question (https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=gPHmueANjRQ) about how a new publisher finds manuscripts. At the end of the episode, Elly mentioned that she had a lot more to say and the question asker got back in touch to request a follow-up where we discuss those things as well. So this week, we take another stab at this stuff.

Big news this week in publishing: Ingram announces that the experiment to have books from its client publishers available in all of its warehouses didn't work and those orders will have to ship from Jackson, Tennessee. We take a look at what this means and what industry changes have made this difficult.

One of the Kickstarter backers for our Gold Lyre Tarot deck is planning their own deck, and as one of the reward levels for that project, we answered a bunch of their questions about how to do it. Is it better to work with one artist or multiple artists? How do you set your deck up for print? How do you choose a printer? How do you choose paper stock? What resolution should your artwork be? How do you market your deck? How do you set yourself up for a successful Kickstarter project AND a successful life for your creative work beyond that project? We tackle all these questions and more. Most of the answers apply to any creative project, whether it's a book, a board game, a zine, an oracle or tarot deck, a magazine, or... whatever your creative brain has imagined!

Thank you for watching the People's Guide to Publishing vlogcast!
Get the book: https://microcosmpublishing.com/catal...
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More from Microcosm: http://microcosmpublishing.com
More by Joe Biel: http://joebiel.net
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Big news this week! HarperCollins Publishers bought Houghton Mifflin Harcourt's trade division! The giants gobble on each other some more as Penguin Random House's attempt to purchase Simon & Schuster proceeds and the rumors that Amazon was the other leading bidder. We tackle this news in pod style and evaluate how it impacts the industry.

At a book event in 2019, a reader asked why more publishers are not more upfront about their own mistakes. Quickly realizing the answer to his own question, he moved on. So this week on the pod we explore this matter more thoroughly and look at 25 years of crushing errors and how you can learn from them.

For a lot of publishers, their own work as an author is their primary driver for what got them involved. While this wasn't either of our motivations, we are also both authors. This week we tackle the intersection of our roles as authors and publishers.

Question on the pod this week: Where can I find a banks that will help loan me money without having to put down your house and second child? So we take a look at how to fund your publishing operation!

It can feel dizzying to muddle through the array of topics and genres that you could produce into the world. How does a publisher decide? After all, we are mostly but mere mortals. So this week on the pod, we answer the reader question of how to narrow that down in order to be effective.

This week on the pod, a reader got in touch. She's having trouble being accepted by distributors but received an offer to license her books from an established publisher. What is in her best interest?

There is a far-fetched and wrong-headed idea that distributors are like ATM machines, marketing machines, and can just infinitely ship books to stores in return for a paycheck. This is very far from the truth so this week on the pod, we are going to answer a reader question, "How do you know what a distributor specializes in?"

Almost every time, new publishers that get in touch are asking for help with variations of how to be sold into various stores or simply to get the attention of a trade distributor. So we've boiled this down, what distributors look for, and told some anecdotes about our own experiences with trade distributors.

Two years ago, this pod was just an idea: that two publishing nerds could answer reader questions for ten minutes each week since we no longer have time for consulting and do not see other human beings. But 100 episodes later, we decided to recall our favorite publishing memories!

Undeniably this has been a difficult and complicated year for publishers. But more interestingly, there are already long-term changes to the industry and account behavior that will outlast COVID. This week we take a look at how those things impact the book industry!

Amazon has manufactured a faux rivalry, driving a wedge between authors and publishers. This week on the pod, we diagnose and explain the difference between cover royalties, gross royalties, and net royalties...and how they are usually just misleading ways at the same outcome, yet Amazon's royalties are the smallest of all!

A year later, even as consumer habits resume and stores have reopened, account buying has changed their basic behaviors. This week, we look at how this affects publishers and how it will continue to change the industry even after COVID is contained.

How does a publisher evaluate their success? What are the numbers and measurements to look at? This week on the pod we take a good, hard look at how to chart your metrics and see how things are going for your press!

Tomorrow marks our 25th anniversary of Microcosm Publishing so we bring you one formative memory from each year that creates the amalgamated experience of our success and story.

You've created a pile of data about your books. Where do you keep it? Who do you send it to? How does it get there? We've got the answers!

Before long, publishers are juggling a lot of information. How many books do you have? What at their attributes? What is interesting about them? Who are they for? Who has responded well to them in the past? What do they look like? How do we order them? This week, we tackle how to store and deliver that data to everyone you work with!

What are International Standard Book Numbers? How and why do publishers use them? When do you need them? What information is contained? What is useful about them? When do you not need them?

Every year—like a nonprofit—we publicly post our financials with some analysis and comparison to previous years. What's changed? What's exciting? What's difficult? And now we'll also review it on the pod every year.

With lightning precision and relentless candlelight editing, we publish a handful of new zines every month. So in our latest pod feature, we are going to add a monthly roundup of them!

Harvey Pekar's American Splendor showed the world that comics didn't have to be restricted to superheroes in tights embroiled in epic battles. And in Joyce Brabner's latest book in the new American Splendor Family series, they show that one epic battle can be rebuilding our children after a sexual assault and that comics can be an effective format for teaching this.

Barnes & Noble was recently purchased by a new parent company invested in brick and mortar retail during a year of COVID closures. They cleverly used this time to shift layout and planograms in their stores, change inventory management, buying habits, and what is centralized versus localized. What does this mean for publishers? What do we think about all of this?

In publishing you make plans and try and stick to them. Then everything in the world insists on sticking a screwdriver into your front spokes. We discuss how that impacts us, how we respond, and how we need to pivot on a double nickel.

Penguin Random House has negotiated the purchase of Simon & Schuster for over $2B. Sterling Publishers has been for sale, on and off, for years. Houghton Mifflin Harcourt's profitable trade division is for sale. Why are all of these corporate giants merging?

Due to the difficult year, we've had many publishers ask us for advice on how to find a buyer for their publishing company. Essentially, this is a prospect for some small and medium presses, so this week we look at the things to do in order to make that happen and some unforeseen consequences!

Improve your relationships, get better at boundaries, and end toxic cycles
Accountability means accepting responsibility for your actions and repairing any harm you have done. This book can be used by anyone who is ready to do the work to change toxic behaviors and patterns, from quitting smoking to atoning for abuse or crimes. At its heart, accountability is understanding that your actions do not always have the impact that you intend. Sometimes this is as simple as getting to know yourself and apologizing. Sometimes it’s a years-long process to recognize the motivations and behaviors that you see inside yourself and feel like you have no control over. Ultimately, accountability is something we each must choose for ourselves; nobody else can do it for us. The results can be unexpected and transformative, and improve your friendships, relationships, work, and community; most of all it's about coming to peace with yourself. The authors share tough lessons learned through many years of personal and professional experience. This book will walk you through your own head to understand your own patterns and behaviors, untangle them, and live the kind of life you want. Event on Nov 29, 2 PM: https://zoom.us/webinar/register/8415953613507/WN_FWCIWjXmSgSFfzWgXtQZxQ

GG Allin, the scumfuck king, set out to make music dangerous. He died 27 years ago from a heroin overdose. So why did we make two books about him? Well, because no prior books actually told his story, preferring to lay out a red carpet of glorification in his wake.

Harvey Pekar fundamentally changed the way that comics convey information and entertainment. The advent of the nonfiction comic allowed books like these, to share the history of the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA) and how a young anarchist prince became influential anarchist philosopher Peter Kropotkin. We talk about these books and how we came to publish them!

Another week, another pair of new books! How did they come to be? Why did we choose them? How are they received? This time it's Practical Witch's Almanac by Friday Gladheart and Trans-Galactic Bike Ride by Lydia Rogue, with a contribution from Charlie Jane Anders!

"Workbooks are the new coloring books" we declared to Publisher's Weekly last year. "Prove it." they responded, unimpressed. A year later, publishing nearly a dozen of them and selling around 100,000 copies, we believe that we have. Here's how you can too!

Many years ago we ran out of a 600 sq' office and we would repeatedly hear rumors that it was a false front, like the Hershey's fake factory in Hershey Pennsylvania. I liked the myth that we had a secret, larger operation elsewhere. So let's face the facts. What happens in our building? How do we do it? Where do we keep things? How does it all work together?

The minute that you open the boxes of your first books, it's SOOOO EXCITING! Then a few days, weeks, months, and years go by and...where do we put all of these? How do we make sense of them? How many do we have? How do we keep track? How do we know when to print more? We tackle all of that and more this week!

Most of the time in publishing, when we talk about brands, we are talking about authors. But recently, in independent publishing, we've seen the rise of the series and its own form of unique branding. So we are going to explore best practices and how to manage your brand!

Last week we talked about the evolving definition of midlist so this week we are cracking the lid open on how to write a midlist book or twenty! The lens is Marc McCutcheon's book, Damn, Why DIdn't I Write That? which you can snag a copy of here: https://microcosmpublishing.com/catalog/books/9585

Recently we ran into an article claiming that the publishing midlist no longer exists. So we talked about it and realized that the definition of it is merely changing. So this week we took a look at the up and downsides of that evolving definition and who the culprits are (spoiler: some familiar subjects).

In 2010 we published Firebrands. In 2013 we published Grow. In 2020, we hired a bindery to rip the covers off thousands of existing stock and redevelop them with new covers and titles. Learn why!

This week we answer a reader question about the brain science of how many words go on a page and how many words in a manuscript!

When the bookstores closed up shop, the publishers suddenly lost their ground troops. What should publishers do to promote their newest titles? Here's what we did!

One of the most frequently asked questions of us are how authors have successfully approached us to get their books published. Here are two of those stories and some ideas about how to get published yourself!

You've seen them floating around bookstores and in freeboxes! Perhaps you've received them to review! This week, we explore the purpose, benefits, and costs of Advanced Reader Copies (ARCs) and how they serve the industry!

Book marketing is that dirty phrase with an innocuous meaning: what allows the book to reach its audience. This week we walk through some examples and best practices to make sure that you are getting read by and reaching the people who want to read your books!

Over the past 25 years, Microcosm Publishing has come to sell millions of books, against all odds, and seemingly by accident. This week we explore what the motivations, key decisions, mistakes, and underlying factors were that led to this success and becoming a proper "Midlist" publisher.

We frequently meet authors who don't understand all of the things that can go right or wrong between the time that a book is acquired and found on a store shelf by a hapless reader!

Over the past 25 years it's been awkward to watch how publishers try to paint themselves as plain enough for all people. The events of the past year have demonstrated the timeliness of expressing our values. Rather than trying to avoid having stances on issues, modern publishers are succeeding by aligning themselves with modern movements.

When most people think of bookstores, they think of the corporate chains. But yet, that's only 25% of the bookstores in the U.S. at this point. What happened?

We frequently talk to publishers who do not realize that publishing is quite a bit more legislated than they realize. So this week we explore that and what is required of publishers by the Robinson-Patman Act!

People are often shocked to learn that ebooks comprise a mere 8% of book sales. Consumers are often under the impression that it costs much less to make an ebook than a paperback so we explode these rumors this week!

You might have seen the news stories about consumer protections about pricing collusion. Often when you go to publishing conferences, you can't talk about pricing. So this week we talk about how these things work and why they exist.

At first an author is so excited that people have read their book and wants to engage with them but quickly this can simmer into resentment. This week, Faith G Harper (Unfuck Your Brain) and Joseph Green (CIA Makes Science Fiction Unexciting) help us to understand what healthy boundaries

This week we answer reader questions from Anastacia Ferry: What did you think of Diamond stopping production and how it's affected the comic book world?

What do you think of Diamond in general as a small publisher?

How do you think the world of comics needs to change after the pandemic?

You'll soon find yourself deluged with offers of people to hire or help you. This week we walk through how to choose who to bring on!

Differences of opinion and disagreements are inevitable. Relationship breakdowns are preventable with sufficient communication and planning. This week, Dr. Faith Harper (Unfuck Your Brain) and Joseph Green (CIA Makes Science Fiction Unexciting)

The viewer question on the pod is "What job duties are there at a publisher?" so we tackled that one from our new, secret, underground warehouse bunker.

Publishers are words people, but it's also important to be a numbers person. In this episode we discuss how to plan for the best, worst, and most likely financial scenarios!