When publishing is discussed on public forums, often only the biggest houses garner attention. Examples of high profile news coverage include the Amazon vs. Hachette disputes, and the price-fixing Apple vs. the Big Five issue. It’d be inaccurate to say that independent publishers don’t receive attention, but the influence they have is limited when it comes to the general population.
This week, I found an article on Flavorwire that highlights 25 successful indie presses, emphasizing the fact that their success is the reason many consider right now the “Golden Age of Independent Publishing.” The attention given to the Big Five is understandable: they’re the ones with the most push in the industry, and many measure their health as an indicator of the health of publishing in general. But there’s something to be said about the success of indie publishers, and with the increase of startups and unique niche publishers (Two Dollar Radio, for example, or Future Tense Publishing), it could be said that big publishers have more low-level competition that challenges their assumed positions of power.
Check out that “25 Independent Presses that Prove This Is the Golden Age of Indie Publishing” and let us know what you think! Is it really the Golden Age of Publishing? Are there too many new indie startups?
L top to R bottom: Dzanc Books, Melville House, Artistically Declined Press, New Directions, Other Press, and Feminist Press.
Also, check out these recent Indie press-related articles:
Another piece of notable news: this year’s Indie Bookstore Day was a success! It was the first annual, and due to its widespread success, plans for 2016’s event are in the works, Publisher’s Weekly reports. Read the full report here.