#small publishers

[tgsparks]

SELF PUBLISHED AND SMALL PRESS AUTHORS: CHECK YOUR AMAZON PAGES

Recently I found out that my book was just gone. Completely wiped from Amazon. My author page said I never published anything. I got word from my publisher that this was a glitch with Amazon and they were working on fixing it. That was three days ago, and my book is not back up.

According to my publisher, small presses (between 200 to 1000 books) randomly had several titles “dropped” from Amazon.

My worry is that this may have also affected self published books that are only sold through Amazon. Please go check and make sure your work is still up. Even if just to make sure.

#writing #writeblr #writer #amazon #small press #small publishers #publishing #publishing industry #reading #bookblr #writers life #writers struggle #psa #online #online shopping

[cloudcuriogames]

Cloud Curio's first ever crowdfunding campaign is live until March 12th! We're creating 2 home-brew ready, system-neutral ttrpg adventure zines.

Broken Heart of the Castle is a gothic fantasy steeped in mystery, romance, & tragedy. Sleeping Heart of the Garden is a a pastoral fantasy filled w ith exploration, discovery, & ritual.

We've already fully funded so we are ready to get these pdfs completed and zines printed! We have only 2 stretch goals and we're coming up on the first one soon! We're a tiny company of only 4 people so it would be wonderful to get more eyes on our first big project.

#ttrpg #zine #zinemonth #indiettrpgs #smallbusiness #small publishers #system neutral #system agnostic #studio ghibili #ghibli aesthetic #ryuutama #dungeons and dungeons #dnd #adventures #modules

[brightbeautifulthings]

Hello, lovelies! Tell Me Something Tuesday is a meme created by Rainy Day Ramblings and currently hosted by Because Reading Is Better Than Real Life, That's What I'm Talking About, For What It's Worth, Book Girl of Mur-y-Castell and Offbeat YA. It provides weekly discussion prompts on various book and blogging topics with optional participation. You can sign up for prompts here.

This week’s prompt is: What are some of your favourite indie/small pub authors/books?

I adore this prompt because I have SO many small/indie press books that I love that don't get enough attention. It's the saddest thing to love an incredible gem of a book and know it’s not getting the proper hype. I was going to try to narrow this list down to five (and then ten), but these all deserve my love and recognition, so here are ten indie/small press books you might not have heard of, and two you probably have (although if you've spent any amount of time on my blog, you’ve probably heard me screeching about all of them before).

The Art of Escaping by Erin Callahan (Amberjack Publishing) I could scream forever about Callahan's writing. She's easily one of my favorite small press authors, and I would read anything she ever published without question. A very well-done YA contemporary coming-of-age story about authenticity and friendship, with barely a hint of romance.

Dream Keeper by Amber R. Duell (The Parliament House) Why why why haven't more people read this book? It's A Nightmare on Elm Street (1984) meets Rise of the Guardians (2012), complete with Sandman and Weaver, a sweet romance, and some truly spectacular world-building. I haven't stopped raving since I read it.

The Goblins of Bellwater by Molly Ringle (Central Avenue Publishing) There isn't enough goblin fiction out there, in my opinion (and I've looked), but this is easily my favorite of what I've read. It's a paranormal romance with complicated characters and a gorgeous setting, where goblins are pure and simply the villains-- no sexy goblin king here.

The Shadow Glass by Josh Winning (Titan Books) Speaking of sexy goblin kings. Hi, hello, have you heard me screaming about this book too? Fans of 80s nostalgia fantasy like The NeverEnding Story (1984) and Labyrinth (1986) will find so much to love about this. It’s basically a spiritual sequel to those films about what happens when we grow up and don't believe in magical worlds anymore--and how much we still need them, even as adults. Complete with talking puppets!

Daphne by B.C. Johnson (self-published) Technically, this is a horror novella set in the Deadgirl universe, but it's my favorite in the series, and I don't think readers unfamiliar with the other books will have trouble following it. If you need a violent, lesbian harpy in your life, with a blend of Greek/Norse mythology and a body count, this is for you. You had me at eat them alive.

Smoke and Key by Kelsey Sutton (Entangled Teen) Yet another book I can't believe more people haven't read. It's such a strange, gruesome little afterlife story with a dash of romance, like The Corpse Bride (2005) without the slapstick humor or the singing. Exactly my kind of weird.

The Chronology of Water by Lidia Yuknavitch (Hawthorne Books) A gut-wrenching and beautifully crafted memoir about what happens to women in particular when we don’t fit the labels our culture has made for us. Fans of Cheryl Strayed will adore it.

After Always by Barbara J. Hancock (Entangled Teen) Sometimes the blend of paranormal and romance hits exactly the right note, and this book nails it. I adore the haunted house setting and the lovely, atmospheric writing, but I stayed for the excellent character arc of Lydia both grieving her lost boyfriend and realizing he wasn't good for her.

Theories of Forgetting by Lance Olsen (Fiction Collective 2) If you like experimental fiction at all, you absolutely need to read some Olsen. While I feel it's not quite as thematically whole as Calendar of Regrets, it might be a bit more accessible. It's smart and easy to read if not to understand, since while there are a lot of big concepts in here, the writing itself isn't overly complicated (also assuming you can decide where to start, since both sides look like the back cover of the book-- good luck!).

We Told Six Lies by Victoria Scott (Entangled Teen) This is a weird, fucked up little thriller about a toxic relationship, so of course that's exactly why I love it. The characters are complex, codependent, and completely unaware of how badly they behave, and the plot is tense and mysterious. One of my favorite underrated YA thrillers.

Not Your Sidekick by C.B. Lee (Duet Books) We've reached the part of my list where you've probably heard of these books, but they're well-worth mentioning, especially for superhero fans. Great characters, fun world-building, and excellent queer representation across the board.

The Foxhole Court by Nora Sakavic (self-published) You knew this was going to make the list, right? This book is so immensely popular on Tumblr that sometimes I forget it was a self-pub. I've read and reread it so many times, and the characters are so compelling, the story so immersive, that once I've started the first, I can't stop until I've finished the trilogy. Well-deserving of its hype.

#underrated books #indie press #indie publishing #small press #small publishers #tell me something tuesday #booklr #discussion post #list #book list

[deadrabbitohno]

I have a poem in this little Paul Thek anthology. Can confirm the other work in it is ridic good. They're looking for pre-orders cos printing has become spenny this year (and she's a big boy). If anyone wants some poems and essays about Paul Thek's painting Untitled (eye with comet), then here's yr chance <3

#poetry #poets on tumblr #paul thek #AIDS epidemic #queer artists #lgbtqia+ writers #lgbtqia+ writing #queer poet #essaying #art writing #pilot press #ekphrasis #poetblr #writeblr #queer press #small publishers #indie publishing

[joseph-hogan]

le mariage

48 pages

13,5 x 19 cm

reliure cousu à la main

primitivepress

#bruxelles #photography #analog photography #wedding #35mm color film #Edition limitée #Fanzine #art zines #film photography #small publishers #independentpublishing #self-publish #photo zine

[fcfvafeed]

Navigating the Challenge: FCFVA.com's Removal from Bing and the Struggle of Small Publishers

The recent disappearance of FCFVA.com from Bing’s search results has raised important questions about the influence of major tech companies on smaller publishers. Let’s delve into the potential reasons and the broader implications of this exclusion: Overshadowed by Giants: Large tech companies, with their vast resources and influence, can inadvertently or intentionally push smaller entities like…

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#Bing #Digital Exclusion #fcfva.com #Media Challenges #Small Publishers #Tech Giants #Terms and Conditions

[redshift-13]

https://twitter.com/action__books

actionbooks.org

#small publishers #books #book publishers #radical #visionary #feminist #futurist #books in translation

[sunfish-swimming]

Maiden Magazine, Issue No. 2

#poetry #online journal #poems #small publishers #literary journal

[radioactive-earthshine]

NGL I have STRONG opinions about digital releases omitting the letters to the editor section of older comics. I feel like the letters are a part of comic history and should be aggressively preserved.

#look i was a weirdo and loved the letters so much #so much #so fucking damn much #i still to this day mourn that we don't have them #sometimes the editors would publish blatant aggressive criticism and promise to do better on some things #it was rare but it did happen in a handful of things involving stereotypes #also there is queer history in them such as in superboy and the ravers where people wrote in about hero #asking WHY he was not interested in women and this editor had to so professionally explain that he was GAY and where they stood on it #you also got to read queer readers writing in about these queer characters and the JOY in their words is priceless #also sorry but geoff's letters are fun and stupid at the same time and are a huge insight to what his hcs were #he LOVED tiny krypto so much it likely inspired him making dex starr bc he loved the idea of a small overly powered animal #not saying that was the main reason why ofc but it is interesting that he created dex after praising that mean little mutt #i say with the most love #my venting #my rambles

[seabrrd]

IT IS FINISHED. anchiornis huxleyi dinosaur of all time

#paleoart #paleontology #anchiornis #dinosaur #my art #painting #one of my favorite dinosaurs of all time fr #rushed submission for a small magazine my uni helps publish idk. its midterms season #seabrrd.png

[michaela-o]

Merry Christmas everyone😭😭

( SOUND ON PLS ) Have dirty dancing Rodimus😳❤️

#transformers #transformers headcanons #transformers x reader #mtmte #tf mtmte #transformers mtmte #maccadam #idw mtmte #mtmte rodimus #idw rodimus #rodimus prime #lost light #mtmte drift #mtmte ratchet #idw publishing #digital art #small artist #art #procreate app

[trans-axolotl]

Image description: [Black text on lined paper. Text reads: Share your story with the Psych Survivor Archive. Hold the psychiatric system accountable for the violence and coercion we've survived. Make space for our anger. Grieve together. Celebrate our resistance. The Psych Survivor Archive is a forum for psych survivors to share about their experiences and be believed. You can share as much or as little as you want. Your story will be anonymously published on the website with writing from other psych survivors. The archive is open to anyone who identifies as a psych survivor, including people who survived inpatient hospitalization, rehab, troubled teen industry, partial hospitalization, outpatient programs, ABA, and any other form of coercion psych treatment. Check out the prompts, participant rights, and content guidelines. Share your story now: www.psychsurvivorarchive.com/submit-your-story]

Hey everyone. I wanted to share this here as well. The Psych Survivor Archive is looking for anyone who wants to share their story and have it anonymously published on the website, in order to create a collection of our experiences navigating the psych system. Your responses will be anonymous and can be as detailed or vague as you want. On the website, there are prompts, but you can feel free to share in whatever format makes sense to you.

This is a more informal way to participate in the Psych Survivor Archive if you are not interested in creating art for the zine, but still want your story to be heard and validated.

For me, it has felt very cathartic to write out my story, on my terms, in the way that I want to be known. I hope that the archive can offer that space to other psych survivors as well, and I can't wait to keep developing this project and offering even more. In the next couple weeks, submissions will open up for the second edition of the zine, so if you're interested in submitting creative art or writing keep an eye out!

love and solidarity always <3

#personal #psych survivor #antipsych #survivingpsych #mad liberation #mad pride #madpunk #neurodivergent #mental illness #psych abolition #antipsychiatry #thank you SO much to everyone who's submitted stories so far. they are now live on the website #for me i process through writing. it means a lot to feel seen #and this is a small thing that i would like. to do with other people as well. idk #i know writing and sharing is really not everyone's thing and that's totally okay. as always there's #no pressure to participate. just an option #hopefully will be publishing some more zines soon about basic antipsych topics which would be lovely

[emry-stars-art]

Whalemack!

He’s a gray/grey whale, very nice and VERY big (though about half the size of a blue whale). He’s been mostly solitary for a while, sometimes joining other whales on their migrations, but then he starts collecting little mer children that make travel hard. I’ll probably add some scars from boats/etc to this design. And we need to figure out if mers have tattoos 🧐

#hello half dolphin/half whale Kevin #ahem #yeah the little unmarked thing at the top of the size comparison chart is me figuring out exactly how small a basking shark pup should be #there is a certain little lost basking shark baby that Wymack finds floating dangerously in the middle of the ocean #so he takes him and carries him while he sleeps #and after that the shark kind of swims in and out of his care #little thing’s got a habit of slipping away from him #(until he can’t) #but this is for another post that I’m publishing in like three seconds #or like three minutes #ANYWAY #whalemack can carry all his kids at once #big strong dad #fan art #my art #aftg #all for the game #david wymack #mer au #oops all mers au #whalemack #mer research notes

[nanowrimo]

When Is a Small Press a Good Fit?

When it comes to publishing, many writers will think about big publishers first. However, there are a lot of different publishing options out there to explore. NaNo participant and author, Clara Ward, talks about their experience publishing with a small press and gives you questions to consider while you think through your publishing options!

NaNoWriMo inspired me to write. Signing with a small press gave me the support I needed to publish a book I love. 

I’d published books before—starting with NaNoWriMo sponsor deals in the early days of online publishing—but I never had the right skill set to promote those books. As a result, they never truly found their audience. 

In November of 2020, I poured my heart into a genre-blurring near-future tale of sailing across the Pacific and building a neurodiverse, queer, and possibly magical chosen family. In 2021, I titled it Be the Sea and asked myself: What am I going to do with that?

1. Are you looking for fame or family?

Small presses are as varied as the people who form them. If you read widely, you may already have a treasured book on your shelf from your publisher-to-be. Try asking NaNoWriMo friends who share your interests if they’ve discovered any surprising or emerging sources for great reads. (At the very least, you may find books you’ll love in unexpected places!)

Admittedly, a small press doesn’t have a fortune to spend on paving your path to fame. But I have never felt as seen as when my soon-to-be publisher, E.D.E. Bell at Atthis Arts, wrote back, “I’m really in love with what you are doing and would like to talk about it.” 

2. Do you have the bandwidth for working with others?

Even with the most supportive small press, you may have to push outside your comfort zone. I know authors who love the absolute control and freedom of self-publishing. For a time, I felt very comfortable just posting my NaNoWriMo fanfiction novels on Archive of Our Own. At most, I had one or two beta readers to offer feedback on those works. Whereas E.D.E. told me in one of our earliest conversations that in addition to our three rounds of editing we’d need “a good number of betas” to cover the range of topics we were working on together.

I was delighted! I knew what I’d written was ambitious, and I welcomed all the feedback I could get. But it turns out, each extra person in a process adds new challenges and delays. I had to stretch my empathy as well as my publishing timeline because, to quote E.D.E. again: “It’s a lot of emotion (as well as brain cycles) to go through...” Outside perspectives will only improve your writing if you are willing to work with them, to truly listen and learn.

3. Can you handle the two-way commitment?

No form of publishing is easy. The myth that authors write while others handle business and promotion is not true at the top, and certainly not with small presses. In my experience, working with Atthis Arts was like joining a team or chosen family. Beyond certain paid tasks, such as editing and sensitivity reading, I discovered a community of authors who freely offered coaching before my first public reading, social media boosting, tips for author webpages, and an extra pair of eyes on letters requesting bookshop readings or other events. While not all small presses work the same way, this supportive culture proved to be an excellent fit for me. Naturally, I wanted to give back whenever possible.

Small presses can only succeed with community. This month, as I promote the launch of Be the Sea at bookshops in Mountain View, Davis, and Sacramento, I will be introducing many Californians to my Michigan-based small publisher, Atthis Arts. When I stand up as a panelist at Norwescon in Washington state or at various science, library, or Pride events later in the year, I’ll be promoting more than Be the Sea by Clara Ward. I’ll give back by sharing my appreciation for small presses, the supportive and inclusive practices they can normalize, and the opportunities they open up for future writers and readers. 

Clara Ward lives in Silicon Valley on the border between reality and speculative fiction. Their latest novel, Be the Sea, features a near-future ocean voyage, chosen family, and sea creature perspectives, while delving into our oceans, our selves, and how all futures intertwine. Their short fiction has appeared in Strange Horizons, Decoded Pride, Small Wonders, and as a postcard from Thinking Ink Press. When not using words to teach or tell stories, Clara uses wood, fiber, and glass to make practical or completely impractical objects. More of their words along with crafted creations can be found at: https://clarawardauthor.wordpress.com

Photo by Hümâ H. Yardım on Unsplash

#nanowrimo #now what #writing #publishing #small press publishing #by nano guest #clara ward

[columboscreens]

#columbo #season 3 #publish or perish #columbo publishes extremely meticulous detective noir paperbacks and has amassed a small cult following #he sits unbuttoned at his typewriter with a stogie smoking from his lips #hammering out his newest caper about a 1940s private eye who's Just A Little Unorthodox #he needs a synonym for ''ponder'' so he just says it out loud and his wife reading on the couch responds with ''ruminate'' #but he doesn't expect to be a great writer

[unstablebill]

For Pride as a Special Treat™ I'm buying a BLAZE of my queer murder mystery novel! 🤩 PLEASE LOOK UPON IT!

I love cozy mysteries but there is a distinct lack of them in queer/furry spaces, so I wrote one 😌 You can find it on lovely indy press Furplanet at the link below! 4 illustrations and covers by @jayfitzmaurice

A Summer Vacation to Die For

Dr. Ino Reamer has a lot of plans for his summer vacation — relaxing, working out, trying to conquer the crushing ennui of his 30s. Solving a murder was not part of these plans. But when a colleague's grim demise very nearly ends Ino's tenure, the hyena can't help but apply the scientific method to his search for the truth. When a few suspicious characters take note of Ino's investigation, the case takes on a new urgency, and now Ino must crack the case before Finals Week becomes his final week! 😱

386 pages, rated R (murder off screen)

https://furplanet.com/shop/item.aspx?itemid=1202

(you CAN get it on Amazon but please support my independent publisher!!)

"Enthralling murder mystery? Check. Loveable furry characters? Check. Adorable/cheesy romance? Double-check. If you share any of these interests, I highly recommend picking up this book, you won't regret it!" - review

This is part 1 of a planned 4 part series so please watch me for updates on my upcoming books. I am a small author so I appreciate the support - please follow and reblog and like and share and subscribe and whatever else we do these days!

Thank you for reading! 😁

#murder mystery #cozy mystery #furry #hyena #novel #independent publisher #small author #anthro