Really enjoyed reading this. At the risk of getting too personal, I graduated with a BA almost two years ago and have had no luck finding a job in publishing, even though I worked as an intern (then moved on to a "contract worker" at the same place, getting paid very very low for projects that took weeks to complete). A year ago, I decided to pave my own way as a freelance designer/typesetter, because I love doing book design. However, this path has also been very rough, filled with the ups and downs that come with starting a business (+ dealing with many publishers saying my prices are too high, even though I'm making less than minimum wage on nearly every project). I'm fortunate to have some financial backing, but it's concerning how long it's taking me to make a livable wage after graduating. And if it's been this hard for me, I'm constantly reminded of how difficult it is for those who have less privilege than I do. I appreciate your analytic look and critical analysis of the publishing industry, and it really spoke to me today.
Thank you for this! I remember seeing a study from Portland State University a few years ago when I was in library school that said Black and Latinx millenials were some of the most avid book "engagers." I'm curious if there's more recent and/or granular data on those demographics, for example a break down by genre. It's exciting to see this scholarship in public!
This is really interesting! I defended my dissertation on the publishing industry in December and am glad to see other people in the academy taking this on as a subject. I can definitely see this post as a useful citation for making strong arguments about what we need to do in the publishing industry to improve, so thank you! Does your book have a pub date yet?
Great post! I'm enjoying this substack.
Thanks, Naomi!
Really enjoyed reading this. At the risk of getting too personal, I graduated with a BA almost two years ago and have had no luck finding a job in publishing, even though I worked as an intern (then moved on to a "contract worker" at the same place, getting paid very very low for projects that took weeks to complete). A year ago, I decided to pave my own way as a freelance designer/typesetter, because I love doing book design. However, this path has also been very rough, filled with the ups and downs that come with starting a business (+ dealing with many publishers saying my prices are too high, even though I'm making less than minimum wage on nearly every project). I'm fortunate to have some financial backing, but it's concerning how long it's taking me to make a livable wage after graduating. And if it's been this hard for me, I'm constantly reminded of how difficult it is for those who have less privilege than I do. I appreciate your analytic look and critical analysis of the publishing industry, and it really spoke to me today.
Thank you for this! I remember seeing a study from Portland State University a few years ago when I was in library school that said Black and Latinx millenials were some of the most avid book "engagers." I'm curious if there's more recent and/or granular data on those demographics, for example a break down by genre. It's exciting to see this scholarship in public!
This is really interesting! I defended my dissertation on the publishing industry in December and am glad to see other people in the academy taking this on as a subject. I can definitely see this post as a useful citation for making strong arguments about what we need to do in the publishing industry to improve, so thank you! Does your book have a pub date yet?