Black readers have been challenging major western publishers to bring us stories that represent us for decades. But that call has never been louder than it has been over the last five years. In the wake of George Floyd's death, many Americans woke up to just how systemic anti-Blackness still is in this country, and in much of the world. And that had a profound impact on the publishing industry. People who had previously been content to read whatever was in front of them began recognizing that it is important to get very intentional about diversifying and reader spaces joined in asking for more stories that spoke to not only our struggle, but also just our existence in every part of the world. And with that wave of conscientious readers came a boost in Black books hitting the market.

This is all very important for the conversation I want to have because, as we have come to expect, Americans saw an inch of progress and began clapping long before the problem was solved. Which is not a condemnation on anyone who celebrates progress. Only a commentary on how our premature celebrations often contribute toward derailing actual movement.

Fast forward to 2025. There is still a massive demand for Black books, even beyond the Black readers who have always been present and waiting for these stories, and yet, outside of the occasional promise of change, the industry hasn't moved much. Not only are white authors still massively overrepresented, but the publishing companies that are promising this change haven't even made much progress on diversifying the staff who chooses and supports their publishing projects.

Let's take a look at last March. You know exactly where I'm going... Oathbound. One of the most anticipated fantasy books of the entire year and readers were heading into that launch wondering what Simon & Schuster was doing to give it the attention it needed. Still fresh off of the memory of readers heading into Barnes and Noble after Tracy Deon's previous book had launched only to find that it was not being given proper shelf space, Black readers took matters into our own hands and began fighting for Oathbound. We talked about it for weeks, promoted it on our platforms, demanded the major retailers shelved the book. Many readers even partnered with indie bookstores to host Midnight Release parties and to promote them on their platforms to make sure that Oathbound received the love it deserved. And as expected, it hit best sellers lists and was the massive success it was destined to be.

I bring that up because Tracy Deonn is an incredibly well known author...and yet Black readers felt the need to take her marketing into our own hands because we have watched over and over and over again as major publishers and major retailers have worked hand in hand to underserve Black authors. And despite that, readers still walked into major retailers on launch day and found her books being underrepresented, considering their popularity and the massive amount of time, energy and money that had been thrown into the marketing of that series, and specifically that book.

Why does it matter, if the book went on to be a massive success? Am I just being dramatic?

It matters because even though Black readers consistently show up for Black authors with this same kind of deep loyalty and energy, it is not sustainable, and it is not progress. Major publishers are pointing to the success of books that Black readers fought for and using it to point to progress that isn't happening.

I want to be very clear. This post is not about condemning any specific publisher or telling you how and where to spend your money. Those conversations are worth having, but that's not my goal here today. My goal right now is to point out the importance of recognizing what progress actually looks like so that we can collectively stop allowing these incredibly rich companies to fall short of it.

While the recent boom in conscientious readers has forced major publishers to take Black authors more seriously, it has not forced them to invest in them with the same level of dedication and with the same budgets that they invest in other authors. I hear story after story of Black authors who sign a publishing deal just to have their work be put on a shelf and never properly marketed. And while many of you will just call that the way the business works, we need to acknowledge that it is disproportionately BLACK authors who are given that kind of treatment.

When Black authors reach massive success, it is almost always because Black readers have come together and used our collective platforms and reach to make sure that they do. Over and over again, Black authors are left to just figure it out. Meanwhile, a major publisher recently published a book by an anonymous author on their roster and threw so much marketing money into their book that it became a near over-night success without the author contributing anything to its marketing.

Do you see the disparity there?

I am not saying that publishers do not care about Black stories. And I am not saying there are not imprints, editors and marketing teams fighting hard for Black authors. There are MANY. I KNOW many of them and love to work with them. But we have to be honest that Black authors are not being invested in the way that white authors are. And this is true for authors with other marginalized identities as well.

This is a real problem and it's not one that I think we can ever solve by yelling at publishers to do better. At the end of the day, these are billion-dollar companies that are trying to thrive in a system that rewards, and covets, anti-Blackness. Resisting Black progress is ingrained into the very dream of capitalism. And while I think we can move them on a lot of their discriminatory practices, we need to come to terms with the fact that actual progress means more than a few extra Black authors being published each year. Change is going to require the industry fundamentally shifting its goals. Change is going to require publishers that are comfortable with the idea of not just publishing Black authors but actively using their money and resources to resist white supremacy in the market they serve.

Pro-Blackness cannot exist anywhere that white supremacy is not being actively resisted.

And the solution I am hinting at is not just what we are doing here at Bindery. I am talking about something much bigger than a few individual imprints who are joining the fight. I am talking about a shift in the way that bookish communities even engage with literature. I am talking about collectively renegotiating our understanding of this industry and the work that is needed for Black authors to ever achieve meaningful access.

I want to do a series of blogs talking about the ways that classism and antiblackness have helped inform how many of us approach reading, but for now I want to leave you with this:

• Publishing can be reformed, but it will not be major publishers who reform it.

• Indie bookstores are far more invested in the fight for change than major retailers.

• The majority of Black authors are indie and therefore fighting for Black authors requires us to take indie publishing seriously.

What all of that looks like and what we can do, practically, is another conversation. One we will be having. But this is what I want to leave you with for now. Spend some time thinking about it and watch your email! I have some interviews and blogs coming your way SOON!

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