Why the slow burn matters more than the sell-out launch in small press publishing. Success is a slippery thing in indie publishing. If you ask a large publisher what success looks like, the answer is usually straightforward. Full market coverage from independent bookshops to online via the chains and the supermarkets. Copies sold and rights deals. Reviews in the big papers and celeb or two mentioning it on their podcast. A prize if everything aligns. There are numbers that can be measured and...

And Why They Matter Last week, in my post about poetry pamphlets, I mentioned standing at the back of launches counting chairs. I wasn’t being metaphorical. It’s real life. And maths. Not quite the maths I expected to be using when a teacher once promised I’d “need this later.” Thirty chairs out. Sixteen filled. A quick, silent debate about whether to remove the back row so the gaps don’t glare. Two people text to say they’re “just parking.” A group pauses at the door. Are they coming in? How...

I unapologetically love poetry pamphlets. Not because they’re small and therefore quaint. They aren’t inconsequential filler, nor half-hearted small fry knocked out to plug a gap in the schedule. For many independent presses, pamphlets are the lifeblood. They keep the conversation moving, allow new voices in. They create momentum. There isn’t much money in them. That’s the honest truth. A pamphlet costs almost as much to produce as a full collection once you factor in editing, design,...