Tagged books

Ben Snakepit Returns to the Snake Pit in 2025 | A People’s Guide to Publishing

Every day for 25 years, Ben Snakepit has drawn a simple, 3 panel comic about his day. There’s no overarching plot or theme, just Ben answering the question “what did you do today?” But answering that question daily for half his life (and collecting them in volumes) has led to insights about himself, the world, and what it means to live each day.

This week on the podcast, Ben joins Joe and Elly to talk about the comic, punk life, and how the scene has changed.

Check out all the Snake Pit comics here.

Prefer an audio experience? Listen to the episode on your favorite podcast app.
Get the People’s Guide to Publishing here, and the workbook here!
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May Zine Blast

When we said Year of Zines we meant it!

We publish new zines each and every month (you read that right!), and we want to make sure you don’t miss any that could help you change your life and the world around you. So every month this year, we are sharing a roundup of what’s been released, and maybe a few sneak peeks at what’s ahead in the zine pipeline. Let’s dive in!

Queer Mediations for Dark Times by Rosśa Crean
Trauma specialist, multidimensional artist, and magickal practitioner Rosśa Crean draws upon their work with clients and their own experience with abuse and recovery in this powerful selection of reflections, prompts, and musings to support others navigating dark times.

Resist Monopolies: How to Fight Corporate Control and Support an Economy that Matters by Ron Knox
What can we do to resist monopolies in a world that tells us they’re too big to fail and too strong to fight? We take them on anyway! Written by a worker for the Institute for Local Self-Reliance, this zine documents the battles and triumphs of the growing antimonopoly movement, and shows how you, too, can fight against corporate control where you live and work.

Queer Platonic Relationships: A Guide to the Aro/Ace Spectrum, Friendships, Zucchinis, and Other Terms by Athens Webster
What happens when you leave the relationship mold of romance and sexuality—or when you try to negotiate boundaries, expectations, and intimacy platonically? This zine is your guide to learning more about the history of Queer Platonic Relationships, what it means to be in a QPR, and other commonly used terms (glossary included!).

The Sexual Assault Survivor’s Guide to the Legal Process by Emma Alice Johnson
This step-by-step zine is designed to be a written companion to the legal process following incidents of sexual violence, because while helpful resources may be offered (such as a victim advocate), progress and updates are often communicated quickly and verbally, leaving survivors little time to process or make deliberate decisions about their cases.

Books and Math: A Manifesto on Publishing Tools by Joe BielElly Blue, and Sara Balabanlilar
Learn what you need to succeed in book publishing—and more importantly, how to determine what success means for you. For fellow publishers, future publishers, book industry comrades, systems nerds, and other kindred spirits, this zine is packed with what you need to know about distribution, automation, data analysis, and how to blaze your own bookish path—without making our same mistakes.

Dangerous Gifts: Using Internal Family Systems to Channel Your Madness and Transform Your Life by Sascha Altman DuBrul
For the sensitives, the imaginatives, for anyone who has struggled to fit in or see the world in the normative way, this compassionate zine offers new pathways for thinking about—and treating—different kinds of psychological distress through the lens of Internal Family Systems, and through recognizing the connections between individuals’ mental wellbeing and the health of their communities, families, environments, and social structures.

Ticks and How to Love Them by Emma Alice Johnson
From identifying their markings to cool trivia (fossilized ticks have been found on dinosaur feathers in amber?!), Emma Alice Johnson shares her diverse array of tick-based knowledge, and busts some tick memes and myths along the way. Even if love is too tall an order, this zine will fill you in on useful tick facts, features, and types, which will help keep you stay safe and attuned to your surroundings.

To stay on top of the latest Microcosm news, including the zines digest delivered straight to your inbox, sign up for our newsletter! Also often includes cute pet pics and good (bad) puns.

How do I publish thematically? w/ Jelani Memory of A Kids Co | A People’s Guide to Publishing

Readers love knowing what to expect from a publisher. Having consistent theming in your titles can help with discovery, trust, and bringing readers back for more.

But how do you find your theme? And what happens if you want to diverge from your theme? Jelani Memory of A Kids Co is back on the pod this week to talk about it!

Prefer an audio experience? Listen to the episode on your favorite podcast app.
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!

Unfuck Your Communication: Using Science to Connect, Collaborate, and Make Yourself Heard

A toolkit for successful relationships

In so many facets of our lives, it can be surprisingly hard to speak up, listen well, and find mutual understanding. At some point, all of us will experience an unfortunate miscommunication with a friend or intimate partner, and sometimes there’s just no escaping a difficult conversation with a family member or colleague.

Rather than eating your words or running from confrontation, learn to communicate confidently and listen empathetically with the help of Dr. Faith G. Harper, bestselling author of Unfuck Your Brain and Unfuck Your Intimacy. In this no-nonsense guide, you’ll find conversational templates, guidance for setting boundaries, and tips for talking effectively at home, at work, at school, in everyday encounters, and even with social services and other bureaucratic entities—all of which form a handy toolkit for successful communication.

Read on for a sneak peek at Unfuck Your Communication: Using Science to Connect, Collaborate, and Make Yourself Heard by Dr. Faith G. Harper, available for preorder from our site (shipping starts 6/3/25!) or your local bookseller (officially hitting shelves 7/1/25)!

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Unfuck Your Communication: Using Science to Connect, Collaborate, and Make Yourself Heard

In so many facets of our lives, it can be surprisingly hard to speak up, listen well, and find mutual understanding. At some point, all of us will experience an unfortunate miscommunication with a friend or intimate partner, and sometimes there’s just no escaping a difficult conversation with a family member or colleague. Rather than eating your words or running from confrontation, learn to communicate confidently and listen empathetically with the help of Dr. Faith G. Harper, bestselling author of Unfuck Your Brain and Unfuck Your Intimacy. In this no-nonsense guide, you’ll find conversational templates, guidance for setting boundaries, and tips for talking effectively at home, at work, at school, in everyday encounters, and even with social services and other bureaucratic entities—all of which form a handy toolkit for successful communication.

How do you market a book publisher? w/Jane Friedman | A People’s Guide to Publishing

How do you market your press? It’s not just social media and newsletters. Everything from your cover design, format choices, to who is on your marketing team tells the story of your publisher. Jane Friedman is back to talk to Joe and Elly about staying true to your brand and representing your press.

Prefer an audio experience? Listen to the episode on your favorite podcast app.
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!

Does AI innovate books or just add noise? w/Yehuda Niv of Spines | A People’s Guide to Publishing

AI has been a topic of near-constant debate in publishing the last few years. Is it a great democratizer, making writing, editing, and publishing accessible to everyone? Or is it just adding lower-quality, uncreative slush to the pile? This conversation became even more prominent a few months ago with the launch of Spines, a company that says “harnessing the power of cutting-edge AI, Spines revolutionizes every facet of the publishing journey, including proofreading, formatting, cover design, distribution, and marketing across all major channels and platforms.” Yehuda Niv, founder and CEO of Spines, joins Joe and Elly on the podcast this week for a discussion about AI, traditional publishing vs Spines model, and whether or not data actually supports the argument that AI is the great publishing disruptor.

Prefer an audio experience? Listen to the episode on your favorite podcast app.
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!

Unfuck Your Brain Graphic Guide: Using Science to Get Over Anxiety, Depression, Anger, Freak-outs, and Triggers

A classic made accessible for adults and teens

Your brain has a mind of its own. And sometimes, even when it’s doing its best, it can feel like it’s out to get you. If you’ve ever had a meltdown in class, suffered emotions nobody understands, or found yourself shutting down at the worst time, you know this all too well.

Thankfully, this graphic guide is here to help you understand your brain and retrain it to better respond to serious upheavals as well as everyday indignities. Sit with Dr. Faith as she explains her insights and neuroscientific nerdiness (and swearing) in the form of a nonfiction graphic novel with artwork by Gerta O. Egy. If you’re struggling with trauma, depression, anxiety, anger, grief, or addiction, or if you just want to have a more chill response to life, this guide will help you get your brain back on track so you can take on the world.

Read on for a sneak peek at  Unfuck Your Brain Graphic Guide: Using Science to Get Over Anxiety, Depression, Anger, Freak-outs, and Triggers bDr. Faith G. Harper & Gerta Oparaku Egy available for preorder from our site (shipping starts 5/27/25!) or your local bookseller (officially hitting shelves 6/24/25)!

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The Horrors of Being a Human: A Cola Pop Creemees Comic

The band experiences a wide range of emotions

Experience every emotion and endure life’s ups and downs with this series of short comics. Featuring Desmond Reed’s unique style of fluid, cartoony lines, these everyday vignettes strike a variety of emotional chords as they tell the story of the fictional band the Cola Pop Creemees.

This standalone volume follows the adventures of the wacky personalities behind the group, letting us in on their candid thoughts and outsized reactions to experiences ranging from the chaos of the grocery store to memories of heartbreak at religious summer camp to a bona fide zombie apocalypse. Their antics will make you laugh as you reflect on life’s difficult moments and emotions. As one character muses, “Am I a strong person for doing things while feeling sad, or am I a weak person for feeling sad to begin with?” Dramedy has never looked so squiggly . . . or relatable.

Perfect for fans of BoJack Horseman, this collection serves both as an entry point to the popular web comic and as a continuation of its familiar characters and scenarios. Includes “Memories,” winner of a 2022 MICE Mini-Grant.

Read on for a sneak peek at  The Horrors of Being a Human: A Cola Pop Creemees Comic by Desmond Reed, available for preorder from our site (shipping starts 5/6/25!) or your local bookseller (officially hitting shelves 6/3/25)!

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What is the Impact of Book Bans? | A People’s Guide to Publishing

Book bans have seen an astronomical increase in the last few years. How are they impacting the book industry, booksellers, and publishers? We had the opportunity to check in with book professionals at a recent conference about what alarms them about book bans, their experiences, what kinds of books are banned, and what we can do to fight bans and challenges

Prefer an audio experience? Listen to the episode on your favorite podcast app.
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!

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