We talk about why the hell we do this Independent Publishing lark. What do we get out of it? Would we ever take a corporate publishing job? How does Influx feed into our personal identities?

Plus tips and advice for anyone wanting to start their own independent publishing house.

Meena Kandasamy talks to Kit Caless about the poet Kamala Das and the social reformer, jurist and politician Dr B.R. Ambedkar

Nell Stevens cuts Eley Williams's hair during UK Lockdown for our Instagram Live Friday night broadcasts. They talk about writing, stories, and how to live with another writer, writing processes, and a whole host of lovely things. 

Very funny and you can even hear the scissors chopping away!

We talk about Book Covers. Why do publishers still insist on acacia trees to tell us the book is in Africa? Why do book covers have trends? Is following a trend going to help the book sell? How much can you piss your designer off? Should authors ever get involved?

All this and more.

Isabel Waidner talks to Kit Caless about the author CA Conrad's influence on their writing and development as an artist.

We talk about Prizes. What is a prize-winning book? How much can a prize benefit and author, and a publisher? Do prizes discriminate? Are they just 'posh bingo'? Does the prize ecosystem naturally favour corporate publishers? What changes would we like to see?

Plus... do prizes even matter?

Courttia Newland talks to Kit Caless about the author Percival Everett's influence on his writing and life.

Fernando Sdrigotti talks to Wendy Erskine (author of Sweet Home) about his latest book JOLTS, his writing career, short stories and much more. This audio was taken from an Instagram Live video broadcast of the conversation.

We talk about Money. What do authors earn? How much is a realistic income from *just* writing. Is the idea of a full-time writer living off their fiction a fallacy? Where is the 'hidden money' with writers who celebrate a certain bourgeois literary lifestyle?

Plus... what is exactly wrong with having a job *and* writing on the side?

We talk about Social Media. What is good social media practice for a public author? What are the pitfalls of Twitter? When to engage, when not to engage. Does social media affect the way you think and the way you write?

Is it better to be bad on social media than be on it all?