QBR The Black Book Review – Cover Feature
July 2002; used with permission

Black Publishers at the Crossroads: To Survive, or to Thrive?
By Milca Esdaille

Our History

Third World Press (TWP) celebrates its 35^th anniversary this year. Established in 1967, it’s the oldest independent black publisher in the country. Johnson Publishing Company, founded in 1942, has a book publishing division, but as the home of Ebony and Jet magazines, and of Fashion Fair Cosmetics, this publishing company has an entirely different focus. TWP’s publisher, renowned poet, writer and elder statesman Dr. Haki Madhubuti, began this labor of with $400, a used mimeograph machine and a vision. "The essential vision has not changed. It was always about ownership: ownership of self, ownership of community and ownership of ideas. When we started Third World Press, I was most concerned about publishing those persons who for the most part would not want to compromise their voices, and who were serious about the development of the African world–or the black world–view."

Madhubuti’s emphasis on ownership is at the crux of why, when we survey today’s landscape of book publishing in general and independent black book publishing in particular, we find a chasm in terms of resources and philosophy. Consider that our ancestors were slaves in the late 1700’s, when Mathew Carey gave birth to modern publishing on this continent by establishing the first general publishing house in Philadelphia. Harper & Brother’s (1817), John Wiley & Sons (1828), Little, Brown & Company (1837), Charles Scribner’s Sons (1846) and Houghton Mifflin Company (1849) were founded well before the end of slavery. We did not come to own our very selves until December 6, 1865, when the Thirteen Amendment to the United States Constitution declared all slaves as free.

At the dawn of a new century black books abound, courtesy of independent black and white presses, university presses, mainstream publishers, ethnic imprints, and the unexpected successes of the self-published. The winners are our writers and our readers, as both generate and wade through the best and the worst of our ideas, captured on paper and bound between book covers.

In 1992 Terry McMillan established the boundary between then and now in black publishing by proving not only that blacks indeed do read, but also that whites will buy black books, and that black writers can get paid. Just this year Stephen L. Carter received a $4.2 million two-book deal; his very first fiction offering is this summer’s buzz book, "The Emperor of Ocean Park." Beyond trade publishing, literary icons such as Dr. John Henrik Clarke, Sonia Sanchez, Gwendolyn Brooks and Dr. Henry Louis Gates have proven that intellectual wealth and financial health need not be strangers.

Black publishing giants like Haki Madhubuti, W. Paul Coates (Black Classic Press), Kassahun Chécole (Africa World Press), and Jawanza Kunjufu (African American Images), along with the late Julian Richardson (Marcus Books), Dudley Randall (Broadside Press), and Glenn Thompson (Writers & Readers), dropped the first planks on the bridge that our writers have accessed to present their views and express their creativity to the world at large. These publishers have of necessity historically defined their mission based on the struggles of black liberation. Can they stay on point with their original mission, which unfortunately is still in no danger of becoming obsolete, while adapting to changing market dynamics? What must they do to evolve beyond the role of struggling and surviving standard bearers towards more fully capturing opportunities to thrive financially in a shifting environment?

Our Voices

We explored these questions with a few of the thought leaders within black publishing. What emerged was a blend of visionary optimism and skeptical warnings, often delivered from the same mouths and peppered with speculation and disclaimers. These voices also provided thoughtful assessments of where we come from, where we are, and where we might possibly go.

Dr. Haki R. Madhubuti, Publisher, Third World Press (TWP)

"While we started off publishing primarily poetry, now we are a full house with functionality in all the genres. We own a three-story building and have a staff of fourteen. We have a full publishing schedule. We’ll do at least fifteen books this year.

"It’s been a real challenge to moved from publishing chapbooks to publishing books like Role Call, a new 500-page anthology of work by young black writers around the country. Quraysh Ali Lansana, Tony Medina and Samiya A. Bashir pulled that together. When you move from chapbooks to a major anthology, it’s a major investment. There is nothing more precious than our own ideas–wrapped in covers–that reflect our culture, our images. The key challenge is finding money to do the books. For instance, the book I just mentioned, that’s $25,000, and that’s not including distribution and marketing.

"We have to compete not only with the seven or eight imprints out there, but also with the major white publishers. I don’t see the black book publishers as competitors. We have separate niches, and we respect each other enough to help each other often. So Chécole and Coates, and Glenn Thompson when he was alive, Wade Hudson from Just Us Books, we recognize the difficulty, and we share ideas.

"Black imprints are basically a response to the market, a capitalistic move. [We’re] the fastest growing reading public in the country, the numbers tell us that. Any shrewd businessperson will see that and say, OK, I need to get on the bandwagon. Just like with rap music. They see there is money there. Some of them will be around, not all of them. I don’t want to be overly optimistic about their demise. The strength of AWP, BCP, and TWP is [quality of] content. The publishing in the major publishing companies is irregular–it’s not consistent. You have some books that should never have published at all. That’s not to say we’ve never published bad books ourselves, we have. But mostly our books are still in print. They stay in print because of quality.

"My responsibility is finding money, finding investors. We’re trying to contact Tavis Smiley; Wesley Snipes is an investor. I spent three hours with Russell Simmons this morning. He’s concerned about publishing the Def Poetry Jam poets, so we’ll see if we can work that out. Whether it will happen or not, I don’t know, but at least we’re investigating it."

We discussed the implications of Walter Mosley’s deal with Black Classic Press to publish Gone Fishin’ in 1997. "Walter Mosley was not the first, Gwendolyn Brooks was. She left Harper & Row and went to Broadside Press in 1968. When Broadside Press changed ownership, she came to Third World Press. I don’t know for a fact, but he and Gwendolyn were close, so I’m sure she influenced him in a way. It was a magnificent act, unselfish. An act of commitment to the community he is a part of and writes about. I have such great respect for him I dedicated Tough Notes [his 23^rd and latest book] to him [among others].

"We know the kind of contract a Toni Morrison or Maya Angelou have with their publishers–multi-million dollar contracts. I cannot compete with Random House. Toni Morrison wanted to do an anthology on Gwendolyn Brooks. I say, OK, I want to have that done, but I don’t want to come to you as a beggar. I want to find the money to give you an advance. If I went to a major black writer and said I’ve got $20,000 as an advance, can you work on this project, I think many would say yes. We cannot pay the kind of advance the writer is used to, but we can certainly do something around royalties.

"What am I proudest of? Gwendolyn Brooks coming on board, Amiri Baraka, Sonia Sanchez…we’ve got the writers. Their coming on board has been very confirming. We’ve built a community that believes in what we are doing."

W. Paul Coates, Publisher, Black Classic Press (BCP)

"I came out of the Black Panther Party with a desire to build and institution that worked for the liberation of people of African descent. And that liberation, I felt, was significantly tied to our ability to educate ourselves, to think for ourselves, to speak for ourselves and to project ourselves into the world arena. We began with a plan to build a bookstore, a publishing company, and then a printing company. In 1972 we opened the bookstore, The Black Book. In 1978 we closed the bookstore and opened the publishing company. In 1995 we expanded, opening a printing concern.

"We not only publish our own books, we pioneered in printing. We are one of the first companies–period–to acquire digital printing equipment and advance the art of publishing books on demand. That is the only way we survive. Taking in other jobs, taking in printing work, is what now subsidizes our publishing. Many people did not think it was a wise investment at the time. We were fortunate; the ancestors blessed us and guided us through.

"The older black publishers, almost to a core, came out of the struggle to express the voices of black people. I came out of the Panthers. TWP comes out of the Black Arts Movement and Black Nationalism. AWP comes out of the struggles of the Eritrean Liberation Front. Glenn Thompson, who passed last year and was the best of us all, came out of the social struggles in Britain. Kunjufu of African American Images comes from the struggles of the 1960’s and 1970’s. None of us went into publishing to make money.

"The African American imprints are there because they recognize there’s a market and they want to make money. I have no problem with that. It would be a pretty dull world if everyone were shouting political slogans. If we put all the black publishers together, there is no way they can publish even a tenth of what the [mainstream] imprints are publishing [collectively]. But they are not infringing on any of our customers.

"I am not Random House, and I am not One World. I have to do what fits me. Now here’s the big, big secret. They can’t do what I do, and they better not try it–they won’t survive. I met with a publisher from one of the white houses, last year I guess it was. He wanted something for nothing; he never made a serious offer…I refused. He said, "Look, be realistic. How long can you go on like you are?" What he meant is that we…don’t have a publishing schedule; we have no intention of publishing twenty-four books a year. If we get twenty books out this year, I will be happy. Last year we probably added ten books. We’re interested in keeping in print the books we do, and introducing, slowly, other books to that list. So he says, "How long can you go on like this?" And I told him, "As long as I have the ability to print my books on demand, I can go on forever, just like this!" He could never do it. His business would collapse.

"And the other thing is, he’s interested in building a business for his grandchildren, not in keeping the words of black people alive. When the time comes for me to step away, I hope to invite someone in to continue the legacy. That’s what I live for.

"I am especially proud that we successfully published Walter Mosley’s book, Gone Fishin’…its not like noted black writers have not given their books to black presses before. Gwendolyn Brooks went to Third World Press two decades ago. When you take a writer like that [Mosley], at the top of his game, the writer is literally risking hundreds of thousands of dollars. The writer is trusting that the publisher will do everything right, and that they will get back as much money as with a white press. The idea isn’t to give away a book. You’ve got to have a publisher with trade experience, able to juggle the money to make things work…with a promotion and distribution system in place that can actually get the book out. Most of all, the publisher has to have vision. So often we lack it because of resources. When you don’t have resources, your vision gets hampered. With vision, you can meet challenges, you can figure out how to get money. With the writer–they have to be committed…not to money; they have to be committed to something else.

"Readers should stay tuned to or the next BCP & Walter Mosley collaboration. There is something in the works."

Kassahun Chécole, Publisher, Africa World Press (AWP)

"We have been around since 1983. Our basic mission has been to build a body of literature that solidly represents the perspectives, the views of African and African American communities. We’ve done fiction, poetry, coffee table books, but our main focus is nonfiction. We did 96 books last year, and we’ll publish 120 new books this year. We see ourselves as a global African publishing house. We work hard to make sure our books are available in Africa and in Europe. We publish primarily in English, but also in many African languages. [Our mission] has been validated by time and by our experience. We will continue to build on that.

"You know how difficult it is to be in the publishing world–financially, structurally, logistically. But we’re here. I am very proud that we have survived along with the other black publishers–TWP and BCP. Our greatest challenge, to be honest, is within ourselves. It’s not necessarily external. Other publishers will always be there. They will do what they want to do. Our mission is different. We’ve got to stay on this course for a long time…to build a tradition. So to me, the challenge is within. How true can we remain to ourselves, to the mission, and how consistent and resilient will be.

"We need to go back to square one, to our communities, do readings, book fairs, go where the normal publishers would not go. I think we have slacked down in the last few years. Our books do not do well in the trade stores, but we do very well when we go out to our communities. I was in Philadelphia for a meeting on race and repression. We have a few books on the subject, and the author was there. Over 200 attended, and we sold out. Our mission is outreach…and people are waiting, they are hungry for information, hungry for a good read.

"Brother Haki will tell you we are a very small community…we seek support from each other. We publish in different genres, and luckily for us, our community, in terms of its writing resources, is untapped. We have not yet even scratched the surface. So there is a whole lot of room and very little time for us to spend on competition. Those things I leave to folks who have excess resources and time. A few years ago, Brother Haki and Brother Paul and myself and a few others started an organization–the National Association of Black Book Publishers…it faded, to be honest, because the fight for survival is not easy. In the midst of that we sometimes slack off. We need to revive that again, to learn from each other, to support the idea of doing black books together. It’s time to think about that in a wider and stronger fashion."

Walter Mosley, Author

Mosley has authored twelve books, and his short fiction has been widely published. He is among our brightest literary stars. "The publishing world is taking black writing seriously. But audiences change, that’s why you can’t always rely on [majority houses], that’s why we need black presses. In the 1930’s, 40’s and ‘50’s, if you were black and got published, you were a genius. You were Ralph Ellison, Richard Wright, Zora Neale Hurston. Today, people who write books like sexual romances, nearly mindless adventures–people are reading this, and some of the writers aren’t very good. Maybe they never will be, maybe they’ll become better. The thing is, you need all kinds of writers out there. But this is not Paul’s job; he shouldn’t be publishing those books. It would be a waste of his energy, his heart. But I’m glad a Simon & Schuster is doing it. Let them do it. Random House, Time Warner, they’re there to make money, period. If you bring a book to them, and they don’t think they can sell it, they’re not going to publish it. And your book might be very important…it might prove Cleopatra was black. So Paul is going to publish that, or Haki, or Kassahun. That’s why black presses should survive, because they are going to keep alive what’s important.

"Publishing, culturally, is one of the most important enterprises in America. Books are for people who read, and the people who read are the people who think, the people who lead. You are part of the cultural vertebrae of America if you’re in publishing. But that doesn’t always translate into profits…you have to be willing to take a risk.

"Lot’s of people understood the message when Paul published Gone Fishin’. Within the year we’ll have another book out. Paul is a great man, a great spirit. I think a lot of young black writers who have yet to make their bones were influenced by it, but we won’t see them do so for a few years yet. Wonderful writers: Edwidge Danticat, Colson Whitehead, Junot Diaz, Nellie Rosario. People do various things. Terry McMillan has expressed a desire to do it if the right thing comes along. She does an awful lot for black people. She gets people working in Hollywood, she’s always going to schools, and doing all she can. Alice Walker…the kind of work she does and where she does it. E. Lynn Harris is one of the most supportive people in the world to black writers, editing, connecting people, getting them published. So that is the work that they are doing. And then some people aren’t doing anything; they’re just publishing books. And that’s fine. I can’t expect more of a black writer than of a white writer. Then you’re never free to be yourself."

Manie Barron, Literary Agent, William Morris Agency

Barron has worked on all sides of the industry: retail, wholesale and publishing. He founded Strivers Row, originally called Griot, while at Harper Collins. This coming July, he’ll celebrate his first year with the William Morris Agency; he is the first black Literary Agent in the firm. He lists seven African American imprints: Dafina Books at Kensington Publishing, Amistad, the oldest, a black independent publisher acquired by Harper Collins. Random House owns Striver’s Row, One World, and the latest arrival, Harlem Moon. Time Warner has Walk Worthy, specializing in spiritual titles, and Hyperion has Jump at The Sun, publisher of children’s book.

"We should never look at the imprints as competition. All of us have the same prime directive, which is to bring books to the reading public, and put out books for black people. When Terry McMillan sold 750,000 copies, that’s when the publishers started going after some of these books. But the concept of these imprints, [majority publishers] don’t really like them, they’re just doing it to reach out to this audience. So everybody on the outside thinks that everything is great. You have no clue what’s going on the inside. It ain’t great, it’s a constant battle, because in none of those imprints does a black person have the final say in acquiring a book.

"I’m happy when I see black people reading. This has nothing to do with ethnicity. If you look at the numbers of books that sell compared to other mass media, books are not something one does for entertainment. People go to movies, rent a video, put in a CD."

According to Target Market News, which tracks black consumer purchasing, we spent $356 million on books in 2000, up 38% over 1996. But in 2000 we also spent $2.3 billion on entertainment and leisure, $1.7 billion on toys, games and pets, and spent $392 million on sports and recreational equipment. This can be viewed as a negative, or as an opportunity. In a world where 44% of all adults (black or white) have not read a book within the year, one can choose to see a huge untapped market to be wooed. The self-publishing boom has tapped into that market to create new readers.

"You have [white publishers] who want to publish into an audience, but didn’t know what this audience wanted, because for many years they didn’t believe this audience existed. So a lot of what comes out of self-publishing has been rejected by the major publishers. The majority of this stuff…does not fit into the canon of great literature–but neither does Danielle Steele. But they couldn’t go the route of a Steele, there are cultural languages that are not shared. This is why [Zane’s] Addicted can sell 100,000 copies. This is why E. Lynn [Harris] initially self-published. The world of gay men was not being looked at on a commercial level. When it was at the level of a James Baldwin that was fine. So the self-publishers are filling a need."

Speaking in general, Barron says, "I thought the writing would be better. I don’t blame the writers, they see what is out there and say, I can do this. The reader is the end user; everything is geared to give them what they want. I thought the readers would become more sophisticated."

Looking at the future, Barron shares his goal of seeing more fiction books published for the black male audience. "That would be a trend I would like to see happening. I would like to see more brothers reading. For us to read, it has to reflect where we’re from, what we’ve gone through. It’s about the street, its about honor and strength. I don’t see those books coming from the major houses because they’re run by women, and women are looking for one thing, and men have other needs."

Barron is skeptical that the Mosley/BCP Gone Fishin’ collaboration can be duplicated. "Walter has the wherewithal to do that. He has the work. Most publishers are not going to allow Joe Blow to publish one book with them and another with a black publisher. The object of publishing is to build an audience, continuity. They’re not going to say, "Yeah, go ahead," that’s not going to happen. While everybody talks about that, Walter was able to do that because it was a book his publisher rejected. That happened a long time ago, and let’s face it, it hasn’t been duplicated."

Women in the House

From Harriet Tubman to Sonia Sanchez, women have always been actively engaged in both the struggle and the work of giving a voice to the struggle. Reflecting historical realities, we do find only one woman, Cheryl Hudson (Just Us Books) who has ownership of her effort at a key black publisher. There is much promise in the horizon, as black women have seized the opportunity to lead in mainstream publishing and in the self-publishing realms.

The recently established African American imprints boasts lead editors Dawn Davis (HarperCollins/Amistad), Janet Hill (Doubleday/Harlem Moon); Malaika Adero (Simon&Schuster/Atrium); and Karen Thomas (Kensington/Dafina). Publishers Linda Gill (BET Books) and Andrea Pickney (Disney) lead the publishing efforts for their conglomerates. Self-published authors Linda Dominique Grovsner (Sadorian), and Nancy Flowers (Flowers in Bloom), among others - have successfully established efforts that publish other writers, and could well be the seasoned veteran publishers of tomorrow.

The Possibilities

Beyond Mosley and BCP’s upcoming second act, Barron may be right about the difficulties of replicating their model. But anything is possible. Kim Lawson Roby certainly believes so. She says she would be willing to consider this model, and she has options. She just signed a book deal with HarperCollin’s William Morrow imprint. She self-published her first book, Behind Closed Doors, in 1997 after being turned away by a slew of agents and publishers. She attributes much of her success to The Self Publishing Manual, by Dan Poynter, and early support from key black book storeowners. "I knew nothing about self-publishing." But she knew what it would take to launch a successful venture: money, marketing and hard work. She invested more than $20,000 in slick packaging and a national book tour. She later sold the rights to her first book to Black Classic Press, who helped her sell 40,000 more books. Nothing succeeds like success. Kensington Publishing purchased the rights to her second book based on just a 9-page synopsis.

"I would do a book with Coates again," says Roby. "It will take African American authors who have found success in the mainstream to actually go back and support the black publishing companies…it’s needed." Peggy L. Hicks, Roby’s publicist and owner of the Tricom publicity company, advises the black presses to take a page from the mainstream houses and imprints–hire publicists who specialize in promoting black titles.

Perhaps the black publishers feel they already know their market; perhaps they are constrained by budgets. Sticking to their knitting while exploring "outside the box" thinking may be what helps them evolve from survival to strongly positioned within this market. The margins are thin across the board in the industry, as Barron and Mosley remind us, "Anyone who looks at this model to invest money does so because they love it." "It’s risky, and I can’t advise black investors to take this risk," adds Mosley.

But as Terry McMillan, Stephen Carter and others know, specific projects can be profitable. "It’s a very lucrative business if it’s done the right way," says Roby. Perhaps that’s the next twist on the Mosley Model: encourage successful writers seek to flex a bit of muscle with major publishers to do one-off projects with black publishers–who in turn seek the right financing and marketing angle needed to attract deep-pocketed investors to gamble on projects with known winners. Mosley cites a 2% margin in the industry. But that’s across the board. There are money-making book projects, and while majority publishers will kick and scream to not give some of those up, some of our top writer’s might be willing to test that, to take that challenge on.

What would happen if you get our best literary minds in bed with our best financial minds and our more daring marketers and entrepreneurs–what new ideas might they give birth to? Black publishers ought to explore this. More partnerships can prove profitable.

Ask Tony Rose of Amber Books, the new kid on the block among the black publishers. Launched in 1998, Rose tells us, "Amber is doing phenomenally well. It is flowing, flowing like butter." He’s cut profitable co-publishing deals with Wiley and Sons. Rose is quick to tell you that he is committed to bringing his special brands of books, primarily "how-to" and celebrity titles, directly to the people, but he is just as committed to getting paid. His music industry background gives him another perspective as he seeks to make his books as available to his audience as bootleg CD’s. "We’re looking to package some of or music celebrity biographies with CD’s, and distribute them through venues like Virgin Record megastores. So I’m hitting those stores. Often I am the oldest guy in there, but that’s what it takes."

Black Enterprise magazine has worked with Wiley & Sons. Wade and Cheryl Hudson of Just Us Books have hooked up with Scholastic Press to distribute their children’s books. Mainstream publishers may not want to give up a lucrative book project with a top writer, but they may consider partnering with a black press to increase the size of the pie with grass roots marketing–a skill the imprints often lack. And our publishers can do all this while sticking to their knitting, to their mission.

Another thought. Have Chécole, Madhubuti or Rose discussed with Coates the possibility of cutting a printing deal with Black Classic Press? If not, why not? If yes, is it time to revisit the idea? Readers can buy books for prisons from black publishers, suggests Mosley; or match every general book purchased with a black publisher’s offering–and buy it from black book store, suggests Madhubuti. Buy Gone Fishin’ and any other book project that reflects joint efforts, joint commitment and vision.

Paul Coates’ "Big Tent" theory resonates for the idealist in me. There is room for the imprints and self-publishers, for all of us. Market realities will inevitably dictate who will prosper. Our independent publishers are institutions, which, like universities, libraries and museums, are mediums for preserving the best of the past and creating an environment from which will spring our future bests. Collectively, our top editors and writers, our Main Street and Wall Street successes, the readers–we can all do some innovative thinking on what we can do to ensure that regardless of literary fashion trends, the very best of our words–past, present and future, can be published via venues we retain ownership of.

If we theorize that anything is possible, then what we are left with is a blank page–something no one in this industry fears. From there we can access our resources, our intellect and abilities–and our willingness to collaborate in order to capture tomorrows.