Inside Independent Publishing (with IBPA)

All the conventions of book publishing have been disrupted in just a few months as a result of the COVID-19 pandemic. How many of these changes are permanent, and how is indie publishing likely to evolve as a result? Podcast host and book publisher Peter Goodman takes a pause in his regular interview format to speculate on our emerging future.

• New Reality #1 Greater adoption of ebooks by readers
• New Reality #2 Fewer indie booksellers
• New Reality #3 Corollary to #2: Increased influence of wholesalers and online vendors
• New Reality #4 Second corollary to #2: More competition for Amazon
• New Reality #5 A vast new world of virtual book marketing and promotion
• New Reality #6 A proliferation of author publishers
• New Reality #7 The domination of print on demand

Peter Goodman (host) is publisher of Stone Bridge Press (www.stonebridge.com) in Berkeley, California. He began his publishing career in Tokyo, Japan, in 1976. A longtime member of IBPA, he has served on the IBPA board and as IBPA board chair.

For more information, go to IBPA at https://www.ibpa-online.org/.

What kind of virtual author events are successful in getting the word out, supporting booksellers, and developing enthusiastic online communities? Maria Dismondy of children’s book publisher Cardinal Rule Press has had recent success and discusses strategies and goals.

• online book launches and book “tours”
• partnering with bookstores
• sign-up events vs public streaming on Facebook and other platforms
• advance sales before the event
• sponsored and partnered events with giveaways as a way of developing and sharing contacts
• how to find partners for a virtual event: be sure to match the audience to the mission
• keeping pitch letters effective and succinct
• how the pandemic crisis may be creating new and permanent opportunities for new kinds of book promotion
• advice: pick 1 platform and be consistent with your message and timing
• be sure to spend more time “giving” than “selling”; you may not have a direct ROI but you will be building community
• how far in advance should you contact sponsors? participants?
• the growing importance of bookshop.org
• why traditional media are still important
• good advice: “do one thing every day!”

CardinalRulePress.com
www.cardinalrulepress.com

Maria Dismondy
www.mariadismondy.com

Sample a reader's guide: Evie's Field Day by Claire Noland
https://cardinalrulepress.com/uploads/pdf/Evies%20Field%20Day%20FINAL.%5B1%5D.pdf

Author and founder of the publishing company, Cardinal Rule Press, Maria Dismondy inspires and educates others in the book industry.

Her background in early education and research enables her to touch lives the world over while touring as a public speaker in schools, community forums, and at national conferences. When Maria isn’t working, she can be found embarking on adventures throughout southeast Michigan and beyond, where she lives with her husband and three book-loving children. 

Peter Goodman (host) is publisher of Stone Bridge Press  in Berkeley, California. He began his publishing career in Tokyo, Japan, in 1976. A longtime member of IBPA, he has served on the IBPA board and as IBPA board chair.

For more information, go to IBPA at https://www.ibpa-online.org/.

The city of Portland, Oregon, is one of the centers of Pacific Northwest publishing. Laura Stanfill of Forest Avenue Press discusses her own journey and describes how the special bond among Portland publishers, readers, and booksellers leads to the small victories that can get us through these tough times.

• the story of Forest Avenue Press
• NAB (Pacific Northwest Booksellers Association)
• engaging with local booksellers for advice, events, advance orders and buzz
• focusing on regional authors
• the role of Powell’s bookstore as a sales powerhouse and community gathering space
• the Espresso Book Machine (no longer but a great tool for local events and galleys!)
• the challenge of launching books when no bookstores are open or ordering books
• getting by with online orders and curbside delivery
• are books an “essential” business?
• publishers connecting with readers
• the story of The Royal Abduls and its online launch (the virus hit just when the book was headed for an important pre-release launch!)
• will NY publishers win all the eyeballs with their big money and big noisemakers?
• now is the time for publishers, booksellers, and readers to all rally together!
• refocus on truly good, truly essential titles that can cut through the noise and garner attention
• savor even the small victories: they’re why we do what we do!

Forest Avenue Press
http://www.forestavenuepress.com/

NW Book Lovers Reviews campaign for The Royal Abduls by Ramiza Shamoun
https://nwbooklovers.org/2020/03/10/face-out-extravaganza-the-royal-abduls-by-ramiza-shamoun-koya/

Radio interview with Forest Avenue author Julia Stoops on KBOO
https://shar.es/aHtwuG

Pacific Northwest Booksellers Association (PNBA)
http://www.pnba.org/

Laura Stanfill is the publisher of Forest Avenue Press, which she founded in 2012. She earned a certificate from the Yale Publishing Course in 2018 thanks to an IBPA scholarship. She believes in indie bookstores and wishes on them like stars.

Peter Goodman (host) is publisher of Stone Bridge Press (www.stonebridge.com) in Berkeley, California. He began his publishing career in Tokyo, Japan, in 1976. A longtime member of IBPA, he has served on the IBPA board and as IBPA board chair.

For more information, go to IBPA at https://www.ibpa-online.org/.

The COVID-19 pandemic has changed American life overnight. How are booksellers faring, what kinds of issues do they face, and what measures are they taking to survive? John Mutter of industry newsletter Shelf Awareness makes some initial observations.

• The plight of booksellers and their employees
• Is relief in sight?
• Do stores already doing online selling have an advantage?
• The logistical challenge: you can sell, but can you ship?
• Resources at hand: the ABA, BINC
• How can authors and booksellers support each other?
• Virtual author tours and events and other strategies for staying afloat
• Is bookselling an “essential” business?
• Ingram’s major role in sales and fulfillment

https://www.shelf-awareness.com/
Shelf Awareness newsletter

https://www.bincfoundation.org/
Book Industry Charitable Foundation
https://www.bookweb.org/
American Booksellers Association

https://www.ingramcontent.com/retailers/direct-to-home
Ingram Direct to Home shipping service

https://www.aer.io/
Sell your books online with Ingram fulfillment

https://lunch.publishersmarketplace.com/2020/03/reference-supporting-booksellers-in-these-dark-times/
Publishers Lunch guide to supporting booksellers

https://www.publishersweekly.com/pw/by-topic/industry-news/bookselling/article/82823-bookstores-seek-essential-exemptions.html
US booksellers fight against closures and develop new ways of serving customers 

John Mutter is the co-founder and editor-in-chief of the book industry and reader newsletter Shelf Awareness. Before that he was the longtime executive editor of bookselling at Publishers Weekly and executive editor of the former PW Daily for Booksellers. John is a former Board member of IBPA.

Peter Goodman (host) is publisher of Stone Bridge Press in Berkeley, California. He began his publishing career in Tokyo, Japan, in 1976. A longtime member of IBPA, he has served on the IBPA board and as IBPA board chair.

For more information, go to IBPA at https://www.ibpa-online.org/.

Getting the look and content of your book right is priority 1. But looming changes at Amazon may be beyond your control. What to do? This is part 2 of our interview with Ian Lamont of i30 Media.

• 3 keys to success: a great cover, powerful keywords and metadata, solid content
• Using social media to drive traffic to Amazon
• How Amazon is changing: increasing costs of advertising and, surprise, Amazon may no longer consider books very important to its business model
• Any other competitors on the horizon? (um, not really)
• But, you can use other platforms to sell books: Shopify, Ingram Spark, Aerio among others

Lean Media
http://leanmedia.org/

Lean Media YouTube Channel
https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCsYGJf9h3mJHS9KP6H5ldYQ/videos

Amazon Deep Dive
http://deepdive.leanmedia.org/

IBPA Publishing University: Using Metadata and Amazon to Expand Your Business, Thursday, April 2, 8:30 am - 12:30 pm (Redondo Beach, CA )
https://sched.co/YAAX

Ingram Spark
https://www.ingramspark.com/

Aerio
https://www.aer.io/

Shopify
https://www.shopify.com/

Ian Lamont is the founder of i30 Media Corporation and the creator of the Lean Media framework. He started his publishing business in 2012 with a single how-to guide on Amazon KDP. The company has since expanded to a complete line of utility nonfiction (the IN 30 MINUTES series) as well as several ancillary product lines. Ian uses a range of Amazon programs, including Amazon Advantage, Amazon Advertising, Seller Central, and the Amazon Brand Registry to develop and market new products, and is a frequent speaker at publishing events on Amazon-related topics. He lives in the Boston area with his family. Ian is a former Board member of IBPA.

Peter Goodman (host) is publisher of Stone Bridge Press in Berkeley, California. He began his publishing career in Tokyo, Japan, in 1976. A longtime member of IBPA, he has served on the IBPA board and as IBPA board chair.

For more information, go to IBPA at https://www.ibpa-online.org/.

Amazon advertising can be a great way to boost discoverability, but you have to know what it costs and how to manage Amazon issues that arise from time to time. This is part 1 of our interview with Ian Lamont of i30 Media.

• Amazon Advertising
• Customer support
• Keeping an eye on costs
• Discoverability
• Amazon as a test laboratory
• KDP, Audible, and other programs
• Is Amazon Advantage being phased out?
• Seller Central
• Problems with Amazon customer service

Lean Media
http://leanmedia.org/

Lean Media YouTube Channel
https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCsYGJf9h3mJHS9KP6H5ldYQ/videos

Amazon Deep Dive
http://deepdive.leanmedia.org/

IBPA Publishing University: Using Metadata and Amazon to Expand Your Business: Thursday, April 2, 8:30 am - 12:30 pm (Redondo Beach, CA)
https://sched.co/YAAX

Ian Lamont is the founder of i30 Media Corporation and the creator of the Lean Media framework. He started his publishing business in 2012 with a single how-to guide on Amazon KDP. The company has since expanded to a complete line of utility nonfiction (the IN 30 MINUTES series) as well as several ancillary product lines. Ian uses a range of Amazon programs, including Amazon Advantage, Amazon Advertising, Seller Central, and the Amazon Brand Registry to develop and market new products, and is a frequent speaker at publishing events on Amazon-related topics. He lives in the Boston area with his family. Ian is a former Board member of IBPA.

Peter Goodman (host) is publisher of Stone Bridge Press in Berkeley, California. He began his publishing career in Tokyo, Japan, in 1976. A longtime member of IBPA, he has served on the IBPA board and as IBPA board chair.

For more information, go to IBPA at https://www.ibpa-online.org/.

CEO Angela Bole of IBPA summarizes some of the key issues facing book publishers and authors in the coming year—hint: there are challenges, but lots of opportunities (and lots of great books!)

• important issues, some old, some new
• AB5 (the gig economy law)
• windowing ebooks to libraries (the Macimillan controversy)
• the CASE Act, on the way to passage?
• tariffs: not here yet, but not off the table either
• a continuing challenge: diversity in the publishing workspace and content
• Barnes and Noble: a new owner, but will it make the company more responsive to its community and local publishers?
• the challenge of reaching independent booksellers without a distributor
• achieving profitability by publishing more!

IBPA Comments on proposed tariffs on printed books
https://www.ibpa-online.org/news/456983/Updated-IBPA-Comments-on-Section-301-Investigation--Proposed-Tariff-on-Printed-Books.htm

IBPA’s own source of news and updates on the Audible lawsuit
https://www.ibpa-online.org/news/467194/Updated-News-Related-to-Audible-Captions-Program.htm

Mike Shatzkin’s thoughts on changes in publishing as the decade begins
https://www.idealog.com/blog/2020-zero-year-thoughts-about-the-changes-in-book-publishing/

Angela Bole is chief executive officer of the Independent Book Publishers Association (IBPA), the largest book publishing association in the U.S. serving independent publishers and self-published authors.

Prior to joining IBPA, Angela served two years as deputy executive director of the Book Industry Study Group (BISG), an organization that fosters conversation and consensus across all sectors of the book business. Before that, she served two years as BISG’s associate director and two years as its marketing and communications manager.

Angela holds a Masters of Science in Book Publishing from New York University and currently serves on the board of directors for the Book Industry Study Group. In 2017, she was awarded the Book Industry Study Group’s Industry Champion Award, given to an individual whose efforts have gone beyond the requirements of his or her position to advance the book industry.

Peter Goodman (host) is publisher of Stone Bridge Press in Berkeley, California. He began his publishing career in Tokyo, Japan, in 1976. A longtime member of IBPA, he has served on the IBPA board and as IBPA board chair.

For more information, go to IBPA at https://www.ibpa-online.org/.

Topics covered include:

• Marketing into the US from overseas: conforming with schedules and promotion
• Using Ingram Spark to serve world markets
• Brexit: what happens next? Customs and VAT
• UK rules and regulations, loosening libel laws
• Complying with EU privacy standards

https://camphorpress.com
https://twitter.com/camphorpress

Michael Cannings is one of the three founders of Camphor Press, an independent publisher focusing on East Asia. Now back in his native England after eleven years living in Taiwan, Michael has a background in marketing and design which has proven invaluable in getting Camphor Press off the ground, though he still describes himself as a publishing amateur. Outside work he will invariably be reading; sometimes alone but nowadays more often with his two children. Michael is keenly interested in Taiwanese history, and also follows the not-so-mighty Torquay United football club.

Peter Goodman (host) is publisher of Stone Bridge Press in Berkeley, California. He began his publishing career in Tokyo, Japan, in 1976. A longtime member of IBPA, he has served on the IBPA board and as IBPA board chair.

Wikipedia on California Assembly Bill 5
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/California\_Assembly\_Bill\_5\_(2019)

Text of California Assembly Bill 5 (see tabs for history, amendments, voting, analysis)
https://leginfo.legislature.ca.gov/faces/billNavClient.xhtml?bill\_id=201920200AB5

Publishers Weekly news article on AB5
https://www.publishersweekly.com/pw/by-topic/industry-news/publisher-news/article/81992-publishers-brace-for-california-labor-law-changes.html

December 17 news article on California freelancers filing suit against AB5
https://sanfrancisco.cbslocal.com/2019/12/17/ab5-california-freelance-journalists-lawsuit/

Jonathan Kirsch is a publishing and intellectual property attorney based in Los Angeles, an expert witness in publishing industry disputes, an Adjunct Professor on the Faculty of New York University’s Professional Publishing Institute, and a lecturer and consultant on publishing matters. He has long served as general counsel to IBPA, which presented him with its Benjamin Franklin Award for special achievement in publishing. He is the author of 13 books, including Kirsch’s Handbook of Publishing Law and Kirsch’s Guide to the Book Contract.

Peter Goodman (host) is publisher of Stone Bridge Press in Berkeley, California. He began his publishing career in Tokyo, Japan, in 1976. A longtime member of IBPA, he has served on the IBPA board and as IBPA board chair.

Topics covered include:

• What is the Frankfurt Book Fair? 302,000 visitors!
• Does it make sense for a small indie press or author publisher to attend?
• How the fair has changed over the years
• What IBPA offers at FBF: display, introducing books to buyers, a wealth of contacts and experience
• What publishers can do to get the most out of FBF
• Travel tips: start planning early!
• How does FBF compare to London Book Fair and other international book fairs?
• The indie book scene in Europe

2019 Frankfurt Book Fair Report
https://www.ibpa-online.org/news/478456/IBPA-Report-from-the-2019-Frankfurt-Book-Fair.htm

Sign up for Frankfurt 2020
https://www.ibpa-online.org/store/ListProducts.aspx?catid=568496

Frankfurt Book Fair main site
https://www.buchmesse.de/en

History of the Frankfurt Book Fair
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Frankfurt\_Book\_Fair

Year 2020 List of Book Fairs Around the World
http://2seasagency.com/international-book-fair-calendar/

Terry Nathan has held many positions at IBPA and is now the chief operations officer. He began in the world of book publishing and with IBPA (then PMA) at Publishing University in 1992. At the time, the association had reached a plateau with 900 members and the world of indie publishing was just beginning to explode. Terry has played an integral part in helping the association grow to more than 3,000 members. Under Terry’s leadership, IBPA continues to offer cutting edge educational programs, cost-saving benefits, and marketing programs. Terry also advocates for the rights of independent publishers to level the playing field for small and mid-sized publishers.

Peter Goodman (host) is publisher of Stone Bridge Press in Berkeley, California. He began his publishing career in Tokyo, Japan, in 1976. A longtime member of IBPA, he has served on the IBPA board and as IBPA board chair.

For more information, go to IBPA at https://www.ibpa-online.org/.