Brand(ing) Independence: In praise of small presses

Research background: In 2004 the ABS ceased collecting data on the publishing industry at a time of massive change due. Knowledge and understanding of local independent publishing was particularly impacted; many statistics on the ‘big five’ multinationals were still accessible by other means. Stinson and Davis have gone some way to address this lack of information on literary publishers and publishing, but there is little discussion of how non-literary, nonfiction independent publishers are navigating the new landscape. Research contribution: In 2014 I was invited to present my own experience at an early Independent Publishing Conference hosted by the Small Press Network. My knowledge was unique: I had worked at two presses that reflected the most-common independent publishing models (at a Melbourne press with a multi-million-dollar turnover, and as co-founder and director of an entrepreneurial start-up, recorded as an earlier ERA portfolio), and am a professional writer published exclusively by independent literary presses. The research article that resulted is at the intersection of publishing research (in content) and creative practice (in its non-traditional form). It incorporates the conversations that my presentation generated among publisher participants, as well as my own reflections on how the independent publishing industry works. Research significance: Given the lack of hard data, this research was significant for starting a conversation within the community on the importance of case studies to capture publishing practice – which would lead to a co-authored book chapter in the 2019 edition of Book Publishing in Australia (Monash University Publishing). The resultant NTRO was peer-reviewed and accepted unedited by Logos: The Journal of the World Publishing Community, leading to five invitations to write or edit for other international journals, receiving over 300 views on academia.edu, and generating two emails from other researchers.