What is a regional trade association? What can they do for you as a bookseller or a publisher? This week on the pod, we feature Larry Law, executive director of the Great Lakes Bookseller Association, to learn more about this ecosystem and how it can work even better.
Corporate publishing has the distinct advantage of scale: they command more sales dollars, so they can push customers and vendors around more. This week, we take a look at options and opportunities for small publishers to band together and share resources, learn from each other, and be stronger together. Andrea Fleck-Nisbet, CEO of the Independent Book Publishers Association, unpacks it all for us and more!
You may know King’s Coop Bookstore as the winner of our How to Resist Amazon display contest a few years back, but they are so much cooler than just that! This week on our continuing Bookstore Solidarity Project, we bring you a deeper dive into the realities of bookselling. From attempting to rip a book in half to walking around campus and seeing everyone reading the same thing, it’s all in here!
For more on King’s Coop Bookstore, check out their Bookstore Solidarity Project interview on the blog.
Have you ever wondered whether your neighborhood has hidden histories or radical roots? Our surroundings are the sites of rich cultural histories, whether or not prevailing systems of power deem them worthy of preservation. In our hometown of Portland, OR, an innovative new digital history project is bringing forth stories of community strength, vibrancy, and resistance—a legacy that even includes Microcosm’s headquarters!
“Hidden Landmarks of Albina’s Black Community” is a new, interactive digital exhibit and Storymap created by Oregon Black Pioneers, a Portland-based organization working to illuminate the over 400-year history of African American Oregonians across the state; and Moreland Resource Consulting, a community development firm founded by author and community leader Kimberly Moreland, who was granted an Oregon Heritage Excellence Award earlier this month. Both organizations worked on the project in partnership with Restore Oregon’s Albina Preservation Initiative.
The digital exhibit takes a close look at Albina, a historically Black neighborhood in Portland, documenting the cultural significance of thirty properties around the area. Some remain today, while others have been lost to intentional displacement and so-called development and urban renewal efforts over the past half century. Oregon Black Pioneers write that the exhibit “highlights structures hidden in plain sight, which together reveal the social, political, and entrepreneurial bonds of 20th-century Black Portlanders.”
Explore the map, and you might notice some familiar places, including Microcosm’s Portland office! This building was once the NAACP Credit Union, which provided loans and banking services to Black Portlanders who were denied services at other banks in the city. We love seeing our home base included in this project, and we take seriously the responsibility of our presence in this culturally and historically significant place. We are excited to see this property included in a project that could change the course of how preservation is approached on a much larger scale, and we’re grateful to our neighbors and these organizations for bringing this and other untold stories of our city to light. By celebrating the radical histories of the cities, landscapes, and communities we inhabit, we keep their liberatory spark alive, strengthening our coalitions across generations.
Take a closer look at the trailblazing work Oregon Black Pioneers have been doing since 1993!
Learn more about Portland’s civil rights history through Oregon Black Pioneers’s “Racing to Change” digital exhibit, which makes a great companion to The Enduring Legacy of Portland’s Black Panthers.
At the release event for this very book, the first question was about making money from audiobooks. The answer? It’s complicated. And increasingly so with Spotify joining the fray. This week we tackle best practices, best approaches, and how to sell audiobook content—with special guest Jane Friedman of the Hot Sheet!
It’s almost one of our favorite days of the year— Independent Bookstore Day! To celebrate, here’s a roundup of some of the stores we’ll be visiting, why we love indies, and a big ol’ giveaway we’re doing to help share the love.
Independent Bookstore Day is held the last Saturday in April every year as a way for stores to celebrate their communities (and vice versa!). Some stores do special edition releases, merch, signings, and other fun shenanigans, and we’re really hyped to be celebrating the celebration this year!
It’s no secret (we hope) that we love indies. We have books about protecting bookstores, stickers, and a whole project centered around the fact that indie bookstores are an incredible community resource and ally in the fight against a certain online monopoly trying to eradicate them.
We’re going to try and visit some of our local (and not-so-local) stores this Saturday! Kalen, Elly, and Joe are hanging out at IBPA in Denver, but they’re hoping to swing by Shop at MATTER and Munity Information Cafe. Terry and Anna-Lisa are going to try and stop by Spoke & Word and Annie Bloom’s. Abby (me!) is pumped to finally visit Possible Futures on our way to the Connecticut Fiber Festival. Other staff are going to their indies, too! We hope to see you there.
We wish we could check out EVERY STORE because they’re all kickass, but alas, we haven’t invented time travel or perfected our cloning techniques, so you’ll have to go in our stead. Click here to see if an indie near you is joining the party this weekend.
The Big Microcosm IBD Giveaway!
As a fun celebration for IBD, we’re doing a giveaway!
We’re giving one lucky winner a prize pack of Microcosm titles from our first decade of publishing, valued at over $230!
To enter, simply purchase or special order a Microcosm-published title at a US indie on Saturday the 27th. Online orders count, but due to shipping costs the giveaway is only open to folks with an address in the United States.
Then you just upload your receipt or proof of purchase to this Google Form by April 30th to be entered to win. Other details, terms, and conditions about the giveaway can be found on the entry form. Winners will be contacted within the week.
Thanks again for supporting indie publishing and bookstores. We genuinely can’t do any of this without you.
See you at the bookstore!
Leah Hernandez has a story unlike that of most publishers. With a background in business, she realized that children relate better with younger authors and set out to do the thing that small presses do best: fulfill a need that big publishers cannot even detect. This week on the pod, we interview her about how she built Muse and Young Authors Publishing as well as the creative solutions that she’s created for distribution!
Get the People’s Guide to Publishing here, and the workbook here!
Want to stay up to date on new podcast episodes and happenings at Microcosm? Subscribe to our newsletter!
Whatever way you grind, roll, vape, bake, or smoke it, cannabis is a multifaceted—and increasingly de-stigmatized—substance with a remarkable array of applications. To mark the weed-based holiday touted (and toasted) around the world, here’s a collection of titles that showcase this special plant and how to use it.
Feminist Weed Farmer by Madrone Stewart
Weed is a powerful medicine, and growing your own is as empowering as it gets. Experienced Humboldt farmer Madrone Stewart shares her hard-won knowledge gained from years of growing cannabis, Zen meditation, and surviving as a woman in a male-dominated industry. She walks you through the big picture and details of growing six backyard plants, from selecting seeds to harvesting and processing. Humorous, sage, and with a big heart, each chapter is infused with what she’s learned about equalizing the weed industry, applying mindfulness to pest management, and the importance of owning each step of the process. If you’ve ever wanted to grow your own pot or make hash or kief at home, this book is your wise guide.
High on Design: The New Cannabis Culture by Tarditi Santiago Rodriguez
No longer relegated to back-alley dealings, the world of cannabis has evolved into a snazzy, appealing business. With striking imagery, high-art photography, and thoughful writing, this book highlights the creators, entrepreneurs, brands, consumers, and designs that have made cannabis what it is today. While the focus is on new trends in the cannabis as a revolutionized industry, High on Design also provides a holistic view of cannabis culture by examining crime, addiction, science, hemp in clothing, and marketing cannabis as a recreational or a medical product. All hail the new en vogue herb!
The CBD Solution: Sex – How Cannabis, CBD, and Other Plant Allies Can Change Your Everyday Life by Merry Jane
One of the most asked topic concerning CBD is how it can help improve your sex life. In this all-encompassing, no-hold-barred exploration, you will find a range of recipes, bedroom activities, and tricks for enhancing your sexual experience. With explanations on how cannabis can help increase pleasure and intimacy, you will learn the how-to on everything from dirty talk to erotic massage. For anyone interested in either solo or partnered sex exploration, you are sure to learn something to help cultivate a satisfying sex life.
Ganja Bruja #1 by Cynthia Marts
There’s more to the high life than good kush. Get educated and inspired to live your best smoker life with this zine that includes: Weed 101!—a simple introduction to types of cannabis and what makes it work, from cannabinoids to terpenes to the “entourage effect”; Why I Smoke Weed—explorations of the question so many non-tokers ask with honesty and no judgement; Notes on Race and Stigma—including why the term “marijuana” should probably be avoided (hint: its racist origins!); Tips and Tricks—from how to make a pipe out of a strawberry to the easiest cannabutter recipe around, and a bit more.
Growing Weed in the Garden: A No-Fuss, Seed-to-Stash Guide to Outdoor Cannabis Cultivation by Johanna Silver and Rachel Weill
As much an art book as a how-to guide, this gorgeously photographed book walks you through the hows, whys, whens, and wheres of growing your own pot in places where it’s legal to do so. It doesn’t have to be terribly complicated, and Johanna offers the basics you need, from choosing and starting seeds and clones through planting, cultivating, harvesting, drying, curing, and trimming, and what to do with the finished product. The beautiful pictures throughout illustrate every stage of the process, as well as introducing you to a variety of cannabis growers and their gardens.
The Stoner Babes Coloring Book
by Katie Guinn
This meditative, art-filled adult coloring book is inspired by the beauty of women and gender fluid people who savor the qualities of the cannabis plant. They are empowered, intelligent, motivated humans who pay no mind to judgment, for they’re making their mark in this world no matter their color, shape, size, age, or gender. You’ll enjoy coloring these highly detailed and varied pages, with tattoos, patterned garb, shape-filled backgrounds, marijuana bouquets, and gorgeous faces. While you color, partake in the transcendental qualities of weed and contemplate what empowerment means to you.
Shop the list for more 420 friendly material. Stay safe and have fun with the sweet leaf. Better yet: score the Your Best High Life Starter Pack for 50% off and share spare copies with your community!
The Funk Brothers, the legendary bestselling band (possibly of all time) and house band of Motown Records, wrote and performed on more tracks than you could possibly guess. This week on the pod, we take a look at how their approach informed our approach to book editing: taking an author’s expert views on a topic and expanding them into servicing the reader’s interest and needs.
Get the People’s Guide to Publishing here, and the workbook here!
Want to stay up to date on new podcast episodes and happenings at Microcosm? Subscribe to our newsletter!
Want to meet us in person, check out our books, or see an author speak? We’ve got author events and convention events coming up!
None right now, check back soon!
Interested in having an author at your store or event? Reach out!!
Microcosm at the Buckman Book Fair!
Usually not open to the public, these industry events are a chance for store buyers to peruse our books, write orders, and chat about terms. We plan to either attend or exhibit at the following events. If you’ll be there too, drop us a line—we’d love to meet you.
Microcosm at the Mental Health & Addiction Association of Oregon’s Peerpocalypse!
Microcosm at Roller Con!
Microcosm at XOXO Fest!
Interested in having an author at your store or event? Reach out!!
Planning an event and want us to be part of it (speaking, author readings, movie screenings, setting up a book and zine pop-up shop, etc.)? Let us know!!
In the Portland area? We can set up a book fair at your workplace like the ones your school used to have.