A Chat with Indie Insider | Big Green Experts

In this issue of Big Green Experts, we chat to Elise, Ellie and Grace about their newsletter Indie Insider.

1. In a time of budding start-ups and other independent publications arising, what made you want to start the Indie Insider? (Elise)

Having almost a year of job-hunting definitely made me want to both find some sort of purpose and also a way to prove myself. Seeing so many brilliantly entrepreneurial publishing people make the most of what they could do and contribute positively to the industry made me want to get involved, so I started thinking about what it is that I could do. It was the news of the mega Super Thursday that got me thinking about publicity opportunities for smaller and indie presses. The time I spent with Bloomsbury at the beginning of the year showed me how much hard work it takes to get the limited spaces in papers/magazines etc., and I recognised that it would be even harder for smaller presses. 

Creating The Indie Insider with the inimitable Grace, and then being so lucky as to get Ellie onboard, has been such a bright spot in a very strange year. It feels so rewarding to do our bit to support what is one of the very best parts of the publishing industry, and I love working in our small but mighty team. 

2. Why a newsletter, and what do you think the format owes to how people receive their news? (Elise)

In all honesty, initially I thought a newsletter would be pretty easy to do - basically sending an email, right? Well, it certainly takes a lot more work than I had first assumed! 

I really like that when people subscribe to newsletters they’re inviting that content into their inbox on a regular basis, and there’s a commitment and loyalty that can lead to a wonderful community growing. I think it can also breed a familiarity that makes the news more digestible and engaging. There’s also such a wonderful opportunity for flexibility. As much as it does take plenty of hard work, it is an email at its heart, and that gives us the opportunity to get creative and allow it to be dynamic.

3. For anyone who is already a reader, they'll be aware that you feature indie bookshops as well as publishers; why do you think this balance is important to establish? And how do you think these two entities should interact with one another beyond the normal retailer and supplier relationship? (Ellie) 

All of us buy our books from local independent bookshops and I think because of that we all share the belief that indie bookshops are vital spaces for communities. They are spaces that encourage creativity, connect communities and foster a thirst for knowledge. For us then, indie bookshops are pillars of the book industry, and that’s why we like to spotlight them as much as indie publishers.

Local indie bookshops nurture incredibly meaningful relationships with their local customers, which means their opinions, i.e., on what to read next, are often highly regarded and trusted. With that in mind, I think independent bookshops can be wonderful advocates for publishers’ latest releases as their influence on locals’ TBR list is far superior than that of a highstreet store. We’ve seen this a lot already since the outbreak of coronavirus, but I hope these two entities just continue to support and advocate for each other’s value and significance – teammates, not competitors. 

4. The past year has thrown up a lot of questions about how we operate within the publishing industry; what do you think the future holds for independent publishers & booksellers, and how do you think it will change? (Grace)

On the one hand, this year has been undoubtedly difficult for independent presses and booksellers, who obviously have much less support and financial security than big publishing corporations. However, I hope that the outpouring of support for small businesses that the book world has seen in the past few months means that people are realising the importance of supporting small presses and businesses; the conception of Bookshop.org is surely an indicator of that shift. Hopefully, as the economy picks up again as the country gets a grip on the health crisis, people will continue to support independents in the way they have during the pandemic and therefore smaller businesses will see a big boom. We won’t let people forget about the indies at any rate! 

5. A wider community has shown a great interest in independent producers, do you think indie publishers will ever become as successful as the 'Big 6'? (Ellie)

I’d like to think so! Bloomsbury already have established themselves as a key player, so I have no doubt that other indie presses will do so too. I also think it really depends what we mean by ‘successful’; indie presses may not make quite as much money, but they already are publishing award-winning titles that rival ones from the Big 6. I think the key thing is to make sure that when there’s a successful indie title, we also take care to emphasise the press behind it and their other offerings! I spoke about this last week with Katie from Storytellers, Inc., and she pointed out that too often indie presses can be obscured by their successful titles. 

6. The Indie Insider offers not only news but reviews as well. Because of this, what has been your favourite indie book of this year & why? And what books are you looking forward to being released in the coming months? (Elise)

This is so tough! I’ve ready so many stunners this year. I’m going to cheat and say one book that was published this year and one that wasn’t. Hurricane Season by Fernanda Melchor (trans. Sophie Hughes) and published by Fitzcarraldo Editions is a blindingly brilliant novel - reading it is such an electrifying experience, and I think I’ll remember it forever. Reading The Lesser Bohemians by Eimear McBride, published by Faber, was a similarly singular reading experience. I think McBride’s prose can be like marmite, but I was hooked from the very first page. I’d recommend both of them to anyone. 

I can’t wait for everyone to read Nobody is Talking About This by Patricia Lockwood, published by Bloomsbury - what Lockwood has achieved in this novel is astonishing, articulating life on the internet in a way nobody else has. Head of Zeus have some stunners coming, in particular I’m super keen to read LEMON by Kyon Yeo-Sun. Cockfight by María Fernanda Ampuero (translated by Francis Riddle) and published by Influx also looks incredible. It’s hard to narrow it down! More than anything, I’m so grateful to The Indie Insider and the indie community that has embraced us for opening my eyes to the glories that abound within indie publishing. 

7. As you aim to work in different sectors of the publishing industry; what challenges and/or benefits do you think this poses to the production and future of your newsletter series as it comments on industry activity? (Grace)

I think the fact that we’re all interested in different sides of the industry definitely benefits the newsletter because we’re all able to bring different strengths to the table. Ellie and Elise have marketing backgrounds which makes them brilliant at growing our following and coming up with new ideas to keep people interested: as Elise put it, the product of the newsletter itself isn’t much use unless the ‘shop front’ of the socials is shiny and enticing! I think our different interests makes us all aware of different aspects of the industry: I now work in rights, and am interested in the more international side of things, whereas Elise is gaining experience in the world of agenting in her current role, so brings knowledge of that to the table. These varying perspectives will hopefully only make the newsletter more rounded and holistic going forward.

8. Besides your personal projects elsewhere, do you think that you would ever expand outside of the newsletter format, like a podcast or a full-length magazine, for the Indie Insider? And, what are your plans for the future of your series? (Elise)

I honestly think the sky could be the limit for The Indie Insider, because we all love what we’re doing and would certainly take any opportunity to continue to grow and do our best to support fabulous indie publishers. It’s very much a question of what’s practical with the three of us working and how much time we’re able to give to it, as we wouldn’t want to do something for the sake of it - we’d want to be able to give it our all. 

In terms of current plans, over the next few months we’re really keen to work more closely and collaboratively with other members of the indie scene - like the wonderful Greenteeth Press! We’re genuinely so honoured that you asked us to be part of the Big Green Experts series. We’d love to bring more original content to our socials, whether that be interviews with publishers and authors, giveaways, or simply more of an insight into who we are and what it is we’re doing. Ellie brought so many fab ideas to the table when she joined us, and we’ve always had a sense of where we could go, it’s just a case of having the time and resources. Watch this space!

9. Previously on the Big Green Experts series we've discussed the connotations around 'publishing hopefuls' - the Indie Insider is a great tool for this group of people. What effect would you hope to have and what else would you like to do to aid in supporting hopefuls? (Ellie)

We haven’t particularly marketed ourselves towards ‘publishing hopefuls’, but we definitely want to be a great tool for any hopefuls (I still am one myself!) I think we’d like to think we provide an accessible round-up of the latest industry news, the latest titles and potential presses they could work at. People might not naturally consider working at an independent press so we’d like to encourage hopefuls to consider working in the independent side of the industry too, and highlight that it’s just as dynamic, fast-paced and innovative as the Big 6! Grace and Elise have both recently landed their first roles in Publishing, so we will definitely start looking to provide help for hopefuls in the upcoming months; however, there’s so much useful information out there, especially from The Publishing Post, that we’d want to make sure we’re offering something unique first. 

10. What is the most valuable advice each of you would give in driving the motivation for side projects like yours? (Grace)

Love what you do! All of us are now working alongside running the newsletter and so passion for the project is key in making sure we’re still enjoying it when balancing busy schedules. It never feels like a chore because we all genuinely believe in the value of what we’re doing at the Insider and we’re excited by what the future holds for the project. 

You can subscribe to Indie Insider here, and follow them on Instagram and Twitter.