My favorite paragraph here begins "There’s almost nothing you can learn from this press release. . ." The mindset you criticize describes why Borders went belly-up: They kept hiring CEOs who saw selling books as no different from selling crackers. Instead, they "moved units" of "product." (I think their last CEO actually had run a cracker company.)
Despite (or maybe because of) a career in private equity, I have always been sceptical of the race for scale (read outsized profits). Personally, I feel ideas that are, by nature, locally concentrated and replicable create more impact by staying true to their mission. Not-for-profit publishing seems to be one of those ideas!
Chad, this was a phenomenal post. “What should a literary non-profit do differently?” “Well, stoke literary curiosity among its readers and create an alternative space for their readers to engage with the literary aesthetic the organization is supporting.” - this was my big takeaway, and I think articulating it is very important when, like you said, most booktalk seems to be announcements about announcements about announcements. We need a literary discourse that is substantial and vigorous, we need communities building on the back of such real talk. This is precisely the thought behind initiatives like the Living Tamil Literature Festival. Happy to see you resonated with it :) Writing to you offline to chat more on these lines.
I come to this as someone writing in Tamil, still early in the journey with a few published short stories, while also living in the very different world of AI research and tech in the Bay Area. That crossing of worlds probably explains why your line about organizations that “stoked my literary curiosity and provided a context for engaging with the literature they support” stayed with me.
Certainly the Living Tamil LitFest event is a step in that direction. Not just showcasing literature, but actively creating those contexts of encounter. I was part of it! Through the translation of a Tamil short story into English for The Sound of the Eastern Waves collection which you mentioned (and which was released during the lit fest). Even that small act made clear how much invisible scaffolding is needed for literature to travel, connect, and be read with care.
I also keep thinking of a parallel with the FOSS movement in software. Not that literature should always be free, but in how nonprofit structures can build ecosystems. FOSS didn’t just produce code, it created pathways, lowered barriers, and made participation clearer.
It feels like literature, especially for newer writers, could benefit from similar connective tissue. Nonprofits not only as patrons or curators, but as bridges between writers and publishers, between languages, between local readerships and wider worlds. Not replacing the existing system, but making it more permeable.
This piece of yours certainly captures that sense of possibility!
This was a really wonderful post. I’ve been thinking about these questions a lot from the author side, having a recent book published by Beacon Press. I feel my own pressure to post on social media about it, but it does often feel like a useless press release. And at the same time, I don’t want to be a social media influencer and use those tricks. An ongoing struggle.
I bought but did not read The book of Desire. Obviously, your festival was about Tamil literature, but worth mentioning Heart Lamp by Banu Mustaq that won the International Booker, translated from Kannada.
My favorite paragraph here begins "There’s almost nothing you can learn from this press release. . ." The mindset you criticize describes why Borders went belly-up: They kept hiring CEOs who saw selling books as no different from selling crackers. Instead, they "moved units" of "product." (I think their last CEO actually had run a cracker company.)
Despite (or maybe because of) a career in private equity, I have always been sceptical of the race for scale (read outsized profits). Personally, I feel ideas that are, by nature, locally concentrated and replicable create more impact by staying true to their mission. Not-for-profit publishing seems to be one of those ideas!
Informative and inspirational!!
This is a great write-up, Chad.
Thank you for reading it!!
a Chad Post, some might say
Hahahah
Chad, this was a phenomenal post. “What should a literary non-profit do differently?” “Well, stoke literary curiosity among its readers and create an alternative space for their readers to engage with the literary aesthetic the organization is supporting.” - this was my big takeaway, and I think articulating it is very important when, like you said, most booktalk seems to be announcements about announcements about announcements. We need a literary discourse that is substantial and vigorous, we need communities building on the back of such real talk. This is precisely the thought behind initiatives like the Living Tamil Literature Festival. Happy to see you resonated with it :) Writing to you offline to chat more on these lines.
-Suchitra
Thanks, Suchitra! (And I can't wait to talk to you about all of this—and Jeyamohan!!)
This is an excellent post, Chad!
I come to this as someone writing in Tamil, still early in the journey with a few published short stories, while also living in the very different world of AI research and tech in the Bay Area. That crossing of worlds probably explains why your line about organizations that “stoked my literary curiosity and provided a context for engaging with the literature they support” stayed with me.
Certainly the Living Tamil LitFest event is a step in that direction. Not just showcasing literature, but actively creating those contexts of encounter. I was part of it! Through the translation of a Tamil short story into English for The Sound of the Eastern Waves collection which you mentioned (and which was released during the lit fest). Even that small act made clear how much invisible scaffolding is needed for literature to travel, connect, and be read with care.
I also keep thinking of a parallel with the FOSS movement in software. Not that literature should always be free, but in how nonprofit structures can build ecosystems. FOSS didn’t just produce code, it created pathways, lowered barriers, and made participation clearer.
It feels like literature, especially for newer writers, could benefit from similar connective tissue. Nonprofits not only as patrons or curators, but as bridges between writers and publishers, between languages, between local readerships and wider worlds. Not replacing the existing system, but making it more permeable.
This piece of yours certainly captures that sense of possibility!
- Vijay Rengarajan
I love all of this! And totally agree!
This was a really wonderful post. I’ve been thinking about these questions a lot from the author side, having a recent book published by Beacon Press. I feel my own pressure to post on social media about it, but it does often feel like a useless press release. And at the same time, I don’t want to be a social media influencer and use those tricks. An ongoing struggle.
So odd that I happened to find my way to this one after thinking, totally unrelatedly, about Tavares’s Jerusalem.
late to express my appreciation for this post, Chad.
I bought but did not read The book of Desire. Obviously, your festival was about Tamil literature, but worth mentioning Heart Lamp by Banu Mustaq that won the International Booker, translated from Kannada.
Incredible work, thank you, bravo and amen.