For those of you who are not aware, September 30th is Black Funding Day. Which exists to highlight the disparities that exist for Black businesses. And as you might imagine...

...I have a lot to say about that.

I have spent the last several years running a publishing imprint that is specifically focused on not only producing Black and brown stories, but on challenging the barriers within the publishing industry that deeply impact how successfully authors of color can navigate it.

You know that. It's all I talk about. And, quite frankly, it's why you are here. Because you have seen my passion for creating change and, more importantly, you share that passion.

And I am not going to pretend we are struggling at it. We are not. We have built something truly formidable here at Left Unread. From the start, this community has been a force to be reckoned with. We have been able to take stories that other publishers may have seen as a risk and to absolutely excel with them precisely because this community is an immovable force.

What I want to talk about today is how much work it has been to keep that immovable force moving. (See what I did there? Bahaha)

Publishing is expensive.

I know. Tell the tabloids, I'm spilling secrets. lol. But it is. Far more expensive than most of you realize. To publish in the way, and at the level, that we are takes an unbelievable amount of effort and money. Without going into specifics (because every book is unique and there are no exact formulas in the arts), take a look at the back of any Left Unread book and you will see pages of names in dedicated thank you lists. Each of those names is a person who is investing directly into the work we are doing here. And really, it only accounts for about half of the people investing, because we only list our $12 and $25 subscribers. There are still hundreds of people pouring into this work monthly who aren't on that list. And despite that, the budget to produce and market one of our books is slightly higher than what our community is collectively investing annually.

Yeah, you read that correctly.

Publishing is expensive.

One of the reasons that we have been so successful at Left Unread is because I have put an insane amount of time and energy into casting this community's vision so that we could grow and have the resources and reader support we need to publish consistently. That consistency has mattered. Which is why growth is such a central part of my plans for the future.

Right now, we are in a position to publish two to three books a year. Which is incredible. I am thrilled and honored to be able to invest in multiple incredible authors every single year. And my goal is to take us even further and to get us to a point where we can publish every three to four months. Which helps us accomplish a few things:

1. We keep momentum: Motion is life. By keeping our publishing schedule full, we are keeping the conversations we are having about the industry in constant motion. There is a volume that we reach as a community when we are working on a launch that is often lost in between. I want to keep that volume going. I want bookish spaces to be constantly talking about the work this community is engaged in, and constantly waiting on the next story we are championing. This enables us to have a constant conversation about the fight for Black and brown authors and to get more and more readers engaged in it. My hope is that as we keep that excitement loud and moving, it will spill over into what readers expect from publishing as a whole as well. (Important to note that we continue fighting for stories long after they publish. I am NOT saying we should only be talking about upcoming launches.)

2. Community engagement: I am not looking for the same type of project over and over again. Our goal is to fight for marginalized voices and to engage in large conversations about identity, systemic power and the future we want to build. Which means every project we take will look different and say something different. By publishing more books a year, we help to ensure that everyone who invests in this community has at least one project they are excited to lend their voice to. I appreciate those of you who are here and invested whether you love every book we publish or not, but I want you to be able to be truly excited about the work we're putting out. More projects helps us to put out a wider variety of stories and keep everyone more engaged, while also drawing in even more people who are passionate about Black and brown voices.

3. More variety: I come across so many stories I love. Seriously, I read multiple manuscripts a week and I want to invest in as many authors as possible. I truly am in this to fight for Black and brown people and there are many deserving authors out there. But I do not want us to be in a position where we have to choose between investing in more voices or continuing to champion the authors we already believe in. And truthfully, that is where we are right now. I want to continue investing in the authors who want to keep working with us and invest in even more authors who need us. More projects a year makes that easier to accomplish.

Where we are is incredible. I want to make sure that is clear. I am not complaining in this blog. I am dreaming. What we are accomplishing is beyond my wildest dreams. And yet... here I am still dreaming anyway.

I want our impact to widen. I want our voices to grow louder. I want our resources to grow and our investment into change to be undeniable and, more importantly, EFFECTIVE.

I want to change this entire damn industry. And I believe that Black and brown authors deserve the kind of effort we will be able to pour into them as we grow this community.

At the end of the day, every goal I set is about positioning this community to do something that will fundamentally shift the way publishing engages with Black and brown authors and readers.

I WANT CHANGE.

Today, Black Funding Day, is about highlighting the disparities in the industry. So here is the truth:

Publishing does not invest in Black people. It does not invest in Black voices. It does not invest in Black publishing professionals.

And Left Unread exists to break the system that lets them keep getting away with that. So I am asking you to invest in us and to help us do exactly what we set out to do.

Invest in the work we are doing here. Help me build this community so that we can collectively do what everyone has considered virtually impossible for as long as white people have had a grip on the industry.

I have been telling you since the beginning that I can't do it without you and I mean that.

By subscribing for just $5, $12 or $25 a month, you are helping us to build something truly important. You are changing the lives and careers of authors that often get left behind in publishing. And you are helping to take this Black business and make it more sustainable and impactful. There are already hundreds of readers investing every single month. And to accomplish our ridiculously large goals, we need many many more. So please come be a part of this work.

That's all I'm asking. A few dollars a month invested into change.

Subscribe today. Thank you.