Lesbian Publishers

(this post was originally presented on 7/7/06. But I’ve decided to bring it up to the front again.)

There’s a cool site called AfterEllen.com. They focus on “queer women entertainment”. They keep track of all sorts of stuff from stars to sitcoms to movies to books. I was recently directed there, by a post on the Golden Crown Literary Society (GCLS) list, to read an article titled A Survey of the Lesbian Fiction Publishing Industry by Jane Chen

In June of 2002, Martin Arnold wrote in his “Making Books” column in the New York Times that gay and lesbian bookstores were “seriously endangered” and may “soon be extinct.” Now, four years later and their numbers diminished, gay and lesbian booksellers are still struggling in the age of big book chains and Internet retailing.

Yet despite the austere retail picture, there have been sparks of life emanating from the lesbian publishing industry in particular. Fueled by Internet writing communities and fan fiction, a number of new presses have sprung up in recent years. Some, such as Bold Strokes Books have grown quickly following traditional publishing models while others, such as Regal Crest have taken advantage of new digital print-on-demand technologies.

Bella Books–which took over the authors and backlist when Naiad went out of business–now has a distribution arm that not only markets and ships Bella’s books to retailers but also distributes for other publishers such as Bold Strokes Books. The result is the greatest selection of lesbian fiction in retail markets– even mainstream stores such as Barnes & Noble and Borders–in recent years.

I like the digital print-on-demand technology. Not only for the number of trees saved, but also because there’s no physical warehouse with books gathering dust, the overhead is lower which can then lower the price or up my profit.

The article continues with:

According to Charles Flowers, Executive Director of the Lambda Literary Foundation, there were roughly 100 gay and lesbian independent bookstores across the United States in the early nineties. He estimates that number to be around 50-60 today.

(snip)

Also, the large book chains such as Borders and Barnes & Noble are starting to provide better LGBT selections, further diminishing the unique role played by independent booksellers. Giovanni’s Room in Philadelphia, the second oldest LGBT bookstore in the country, has to compete with a Borders that opened just seven blocks away. Dominique Johnson, who runs the women’s booklist for Giovanni’s, says that they often get customers who come in to browse and ask questions but then leave to buy books on-line or at the big chains.

And no, not any Barnes & Noble I’ve been in. If better means two foot of shelf vs a foot, then hey, go them! Sure Amazon has almost all of them, but then they’ll sell almost anything, plagiarized or not.

It is unclear if the small footprint left by lesbian book buyers is a supply or demand issue. Of the more than 75,000 members of InsightOut Book Club, only 20% of them are women according to InsightOut’s director Michael Connor and they buy fewer titles than their male counterparts. Male book club members buy on average 2 books every three months while women buy only one book every three months. Similarly, Johnson estimates that two thirds of the customers at Giovanni’s Room are men and their purchases are more varied ranging from fiction to art books to porn.

The InsightOut Book Club (ISO) is almost predominantly male oriented. Perhaps women would buy more if they had more to choose from. The owner of the on-line store says this later, as in several paragraphs later, but by then the damage is done to the reader with this huge assumption. The article also fails to mention Star Crossed Productions (SCP) which carries the books for almost every small publisher out there, and carries only women/lesbian-oriented books. They are huge supporters of lesbian authors (and readers, of course) and participate/support GCLS.

Finally the article gets around to discussing publishers:

While Bold Strokes Books is a traditional publisher–meaning that they publish their books in advance and in bulk and hold inventory–a number of small presses have sprung up around digital print-on-demand technology. The largest of these is Regal Crest Press (formerly known as Renaissance Alliance Publishing). Regal Crest features a number of writers who got their start writing fan fiction; particularly for the television show Xena: Warrior Princess.

Now this really ticked me off.

First, I’ve never understood fanfiction. Well, yeah, I guess I do. But I don’t understand how it can so easily extend into the rest of fiction. In Xena, the heroine was tall, dark-haired. The sidekick was shorter, blond. Ever since the show, almost any lesbian fiction that has physically similar characters is given the label of Xena-uber. WTF? Like that combination didn’t exist before? I’ve purposely ensured my characters do not fit that mold.

Second, as for Regal Crest (my publisher, btw) being associated with Xena fanfiction, I believe that is a totally inaccurate statement. That and it is Regal Crest Enterprises, not Press. Perhaps a few writers once wrote fanfiction. I once–and still do–write nonfiction. What label does that give me?

Thirdly, RCE acquired Renaissance Alliance Publishing, not was formerly known as. It acquired RAP the same way Bella acquired Naiad. Did Ms. Chen do any research beyond one or two publishers? Didn’t she bother to look at the websites of publishers she mentions by (incorrect) name?

I’m ranting. Pardon me while I wipe the spittle from my keyboard.

The proliferation of new publishers and titles do not necessarily signal that the lesbian publishing industry is a highly profitable venture. Connor states “I don’t think any gay authors are currently sitting back in their lounge chair by the pool ordering their servants around. Everyone I know writes on the side and has a job that pays the bills.” The publishing industry as a whole is a hit-driven business that relies on volume for profits. A quick back-of-the-envelope calculation proves that there are easier ways to earn a buck than publishing lesbian fiction:

Snort. I can believe this paragraph easily. Some day I’ll get brave enough to ask such wonderful and prolific writers such as Karin Kallmaker if they ‘make a living’ writing. I don’t think any of us are in it for the money.

In conclusion, the article is misleading starting with its title. It’s not about publishers, it’s about the life expectancy of gay/lesbian fiction and gay/lesbian bookstores.

UPDATE:

After a complaint from the publisher (and from others for the inaccuracy) all references to RCE have been removed from the article and the author has been notified.