Minorities in Publishing

Jenn speaks with nonfiction writer/notable essayist in Best American Essays (2014 & 2015) Karrie Higgins about her experience writing about disability and being part of this community, intersectionality in the minority community, recognizing White privilege, and staying true to your representations in work when it's not considered "the norm." 

In the latest episode Jenn speaks with design director for one of the Big 5 publishers Claudia Martinez about the "fluke" of her starting in publishing, how she's worked her way up, and also about the importance of standing up for yourself when no one else may do so in order to get ahead in the industry.

[Please note this interview was conducted via Skype so there may be some audio sensitivity.]

Happy 1-year anniversary to the Minorities in Publishing podcast! In this episode Jenn interviews award-winning & acclaimed writer of short fiction & novels, as well as film, Tananarive Due about her upcoming collection Ghost Summer: Stories with Prime Books, about how writing saved her, the importance of diverse stories and where they come from, as well as encouraging writers to scribe their truth.

In honor of this milesetone episode Jenn will give a printed copy of Tananarive's Ghost Summer: Stories to one listener who tweets at @MinoritiesinPub about what advice they took to heart from Tananarive's episode. Thanks for listening!

[Please note this episode was conducted via Skype so there may be some audio sensitivity.]

Jenn speaks with Managing Editor of BookRiot Amanda Nelson, an avid reader and advocate for equality in diverse representation in books/media. Amanda talks about recognizing internalized preferences when it comes to hiring and also reading people's work and the need to be aware, how she goes about incorporating more diverse books in her children's reading, as well as the need for media outlets to be more active and less passive when it comes to promoting diverse authors and work. 

Jenn talks to VP/Publisher Phoebe Yeh who has had an extensive career with various Big 5 Publishers about her love for editing and how that translated into her growing experience in acquiring good stories, how she's pursued good stories as well as diverse ones and the two don't have to be mutually exclusive, and the need for more of these stories in addition to the responsibility of publishers to make sure they sell.

Books recommended by Phoebe in this episode include:

Monster - Walter Dean Myers

Shooter - Walter Dean Myers

Hiroshima - Laurence Yep

The Magic School Bus series - Joanna Cole/Bruce Degen

The Joy Luck Club - Amy Tan

Waiting to Exhale - Terry McMillan

One Crazy Summer - Rita Williams-Garcia

Let’s Talk About Race - Julius Lester/Karen Barbour

The Seven Chinese Brothers - Margaret Mahy/Jean Tseng/Mou-sien Tseng

Jenn speaks with literary agent Linda Camacho and they discuss Linda's trajectory from working for Big 5 publishers to entering the field of agenting, her understanding of how authors feel when seeking representation, in addition to the frustration of dealing with the lack of diversity in the industry yet the hope that this appears to be changing.

Jenn speaks with writer/editor/speaker Ashley C. Ford (Buzzfeed, The Guardian, Elle, The Butter, co-editor of the upcoming anthology Not That Bad) about the publishing industry as a whole recognizing the buying power of marginalized groups, how important it is for everyone to speak up on issues they feel strongly on as well as listen, and what motivates Ashley to keep writing the stories she does. 

Jenn talks with VP/editorial director at a major children's book publisher and New York Times best-selling author Andrea Davis Pinkney. Andrea discusses her trajectory from working at Essence magazine to becoming one of the most well-known editors in publishing and how seeing the dearth of African American representation in books lead her to being a huge advocate in writing them as well as acquiring them. 

Jenn speaks with Tracy Sherrod, editorial director of Amistad Books (an imprint of HarperCollins focusing solely on Black voices). They discuss Tracy's love of books and publishing, her desire to be an advocate for Black artists, the tenacity it takes to get in and stay in the industry, as well as how important support is from the consumer end to make sure more diverse books reach shelves. 

***In a post to publish after this I'll be listing the books Tracy recommended in the podcast for you to check out.***

Jenn speaks with award-winning authors Zetta Elliott (author of books like Bird, A Ship of Souls, and The Deep) and Renée Watson (author of This Side of Home and Harlem's Little Blackbird) about their trajectory as authors of color, the need for educating youth on American history, and also the necessity of not just diversity but equity when it comes to the publishing industry and lifting up of marginalized voices.