So you’ve got your company. You’ve got your book. You’ve got an idea. But how do you get it out into the world?
Releasing the first book as a press can be a lot like making the first pancake—you learn a lot in the process. There are a lot of traps and pitfalls presses can fall into, and Jane Friedman of the Hot Sheet is back to talk to Joe and Elly about how a press can get their first book out there.
Microcosm VP Elly reports on one woman’s quest to befriend the bean beverage trade
Elly prepares for the Fest
Last week, I attended Coffee Fest in Portland. Cafes are one sector where Microcosm’s business is holding steady, despite the fact that we haven’t been doing much much to reach out to them. I wanted to learn how to better serve these shops and see what I could learn, so I spent one Friday walking around a giant Oregon Convention Center hall, recklessly accepting every sample someone offered me and talking to a lot of really kind people about the many facets of the coffee biz.
But actually, our data revealed that coffee shops tend to buy more in line with stores we classify as Gift: places that use books to convey a vibe. Our top bestsellers to these accounts, by a wiiiide margin, are the coloring books My Vag and Stoner Babes. One store owner, Katie Prinsen of the gorgeously curated Prince Coffee here in Portland, spelled out why: “Atmosphere and vibe are key in any coffeeshop,” she explained during a panel on merchandising. She aims for her shelves to “look like beautiful art” and believes that “books are in line with a perfect morning coffee experience.” I couldn’t agree more!
Interestingly, most of the cafe owners and buyers I spoke with at the trade show don’t sell books yet—and they assumed the same thing I did, that their customers would just want books about coffee. It’s easy to think of themselves as running a specialty store, and surely some of them are, with people coming in to sample different blends, do cuppings, and gain a coffee education. But I suspect that most would do better thinking of themselves as gift stores, or even something more akin to a bookstore (yet another market channel!)—places where customer purchases are driven by the atmosphere.
Our Walking with Ramonamakes an appearance in the convention center’s Magic Box!
I know when I go to a coffeeshop I love, it’s because they’ve created a welcoming place to talk with friends or have a moment of calm to reflect on my day (or take a break from reflecting on my day). I’m almost never thinking about coffee, except to enjoy my beverage. The last thing I bought from a coffeeshop was a branded sticker that said “Keep it local!” from the aptly named Kind Coffee, where I keep coming back because they always effusively compliment my dog.
I came away from Coffee Fest with a caffeine buzz and an appreciation for the basic kindness of people who go into this industry built on creating hospitable third places. I also came away thinking in new ways about “stores that don’t normally carry books,” which make up the majority of our customer base. I wonder how many of them we could better serve by inviting them to think of themselves as a different type of store than they usually do. It’s so easy to put ourselves, and each other, into boxes; and so glorious to have the moment of connection when a customer lights up, seeing something on your shelves that they didn’t even realize they wanted.
Want to keep learning along with me? I’m going to a garden show next and am excited to share whatever insights grow from that fertile ground! Stay tuned right here.
Marketing Manager Abby (hi) recently did a presentation for some of our store and library customers, featuring some of our new titles, old favorites, and insights on what The People are buying these days. Elly also joined us for a few minutes to run through our fun new buying portal for stores. It was a good time. We might even do it again!
(If you want to skip the cool new portal and get straight to the books, jump to 8ish minutes in!)
Tariffs! We’ve talked a lot about how they affect American bookstores and publishers. But what has the impact been for our neighbors to the North? Our friend Kim Werker of Nine Ten Publications sat down with us to talk about being a niche publisher in Canada, how knowing who you are makes you a better publisher, and of course, tariffs.
Publishing a book can feel like this insurmountable wall that you have to climb over while also screaming that your writing is valid. How can publishers make it more accessible to writers, from submitting a manuscript to marketing? Jelani Memory of A Kid’s Co is back to talk about it!
Does author marketing have an impact on sales? Can you move the needle yourself, or do you need to rely on your publisher for all of your marketing and outreach? There is a lot of conflicting information out there, and Jane Friedman of the Hot Sheet is back on the pod this week to talk it out with us.
How do you “make your books get found” (as Joe puts it)? This week it’s a throwback to Joe and Elly chatting about marketing your book, search engine optimization, good description writing, and more. If you like this one, check back soon for a deeper dive into marketing talk!
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.
We publish new zineseach 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.
The Sexual Assault Survivor’s Guide to the Legal Processby 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 Toolsby Joe Biel, Elly 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 Themby 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.
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!
