While attending the 2018 Toronto Comic Arts Festival, I dropped in on the Small Press Publishers Unite! panel session. The intimate gathering focused on the process of starting and growing as small press publishers, including how books are selected and approved, as well as the topics of finances, distribution, and marketing.

The panel organized by Hope Nicholson of Bedside Press also included Alexander Finbow of Renegade Arts Entertainment, Andy Brown of Conundrum Press, Luc Bosse of Pow Pow Press and Neil Christopher of Inhabit Media.

The publishers discussed the process for curating content including how books are developed and promoted.

Neil discussed how he worked with the elders of Nunavut to bring the languages of the north come to life through various publications to help educate the children of the region.

Andy talked about the challenges of small publishers getting funding from specific councils and the necessity of educating those councils about the intricacies of graphic novels that recognize both the writer and artist.

Hope explained how she worked with creators through the publication of new anthologies rather than accepting individual pitches.

Alexander relayed his personal experience about managing the debt of publishing that can incur sigificant costs and cash outlay without the ability to recoup expenses for months.

Luc discussed how he’s needed to be more risk-responsible when it comes to taking on projects even though he’s seen many great works for potential publication.

The panel also discussed the differences between printed publications and digital distribution. They also touched on the challenge of being a publisher in Canada especially when it comes to shipping costs. The panel concluded with all the publishers promoting their upcoming books for the rest of the year.

 

You can discover more about the panel presentation online at http://www.torontocomics.com/portfolio/special-post-exhibition-program-small-press-publishers-unite/

Bedside Press is on Twitter at @bedsidepress and online at http://bedsidepress.com/

Renegade Arts Entertainment is on Twitter at @RenegadeArtsEnt and online at http://www.renegadeartsentertainment.com/

Conundrum Press is on Twitter at @ConundrumCanada and online at http://www.conundrumpress.com/

Pow Pow Press is on Twitter at @powpowpress and online at https://powpowpress.com/

Inhabit Media is on Twitter at @Inhabit_Media and online at https://inhabitmedia.com/

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