A New Business Model - Bindery's Influencer Curated Imprints Where The Influencers Get a Stake In the Success of the Books

On July 28, 2023, Sophia Stewart reported in Publishers Weekly about a new start up publishing house, Bindery.

The goal is to have micro-imprints where an influencer, in concert with their fans/followers, chooses one book that will get published by the publishing house that year. The success of that book, ostensibly driven by the influencer's authentic enthusiasm (a.k.a. promotion), is then shared 50% for the author, 25% for the publishing house, and 25% for the influencer.

From my perspective, this changes the game in a few ways: 

Seems that the way publishers interacted with influencers in the past was to try to get the influencer themselves to write a book. But they're not necessarily good at being authors. (No shade, it's a different skill set).

And previously, when influencers got behind a book they didn't write and the book succeeded, the influencer didn't share in that success in any material way.

Since no one's been able to harness the viral enthusiasm of book influencers on social platforms like TikTok (even folks who've had their books succeed in that way aren't exactly sure how it happened, and no one has the formula to do it on demand) this is new attempt to leverage that influence and set a book up for the kind of viral success #booktok has become famous for.

However this shakes out, it will be fascinating to follow!

Illustrate, Translate, and Write On,
Lee

Reaching Out to Influencers: A Guide, An Example, and Some Great Advice from Jeniffer Thompson

Jeniffer is a branding expert who wrote up this blog post, Reaching Out to Influencers: Advice from someone who’s done it!

Identify your influencers, engage with them (before making any 'ask'), and have a plan -- there's so much good advice here. The piece includes an interview with author Laura Engel, who followed the steps and landed an interview on the influencer's podcast -- directly reaching their shared audience!

Laura's advice to the rest of us?

"Just do it. Be brave and reach out. You will be pleasantly surprised at how many authors and influencers are kind and generously want to support other authors. Many times they are looking for individuals to interview or interesting stories for their own podcast, blogs, etc."

It's well worth reading, as you work to connect with the influencers, who are, as Jeniffer puts it, "the people who influence your desired audience."

Illustrate, Translate, and Write On,
Lee

Bookstagang Book Awards

Three towers of picture books and board books are stacked in my studio. There are also eight unopened boxes, piles of books by themes, and books in my car waiting to be unpacked. This is the scene of a busy season as a judge for the Bookstagang Book Awards, a book award for children’s picture and board books judged by kid lit bookstagrammers. That’s right, children’s book influencers bringing you the best of the best via our Instagram channels. This year we had over 500 books submitted by many big publishers including Penguin, Simon & Schuster, Harper Collins and smaller publishers including Soaring Kite, Little Feminist, and Moon Dust Press. 

About the Book Awards

The Bookstagang Awards began four years ago founded by Alessandra Requena, who’s on Instagram as @readwithriver. Originally called the Read with River Book Club, it then transitioned to Bookstagang. Bookstagang is a community and professional discussion hub for those with a passion for books. This group has grown over time with a community who works and collaborates together year round. I have formed genuine connections with the members and keep in touch with them. It truly is a wonderful community of members who help one another and always share the best book recs.

Book Categories 

Over 100 publishers submitted this year for 8 main categories:

️ -Biography

️ -Board Books

️ -Bookshelf Builders

️ -Conversation Starters

️ -Future Classics

️ -Illustration

️ -Innovative Nonfiction

️ -Read Aloud

We also had a new community award voted by the general public.

Kelly @inclusivestorytime, Corrie @thetinyactivists, and Jenna @kidlitbrain created detailed scoring spreadsheets and helped with logistics this year. 

The 2022 Winners

10 winners were chosen in each category for 80 total! Check out the winners on this post.

Meet the Judges

16 judges participated this year in the book awards. Follow them all here for amazing book recommendations! 

@thetinyactivists 

@kidlitbrain 

@aventuras.en.esl 

@inclusivestorytime 

@ihaveabook4that 

@readwithriver 

@ohthebookswelove 

@bookoholicmom 

@librarymombooks 

@kidlitismagic 

@bonniemonnier 

@booksgrowminds 

@babylibrarians 

@iamsueannhall 

@raisingalegacybookshelf

@myliteracyspace

“Each year, our panel of diverse judges reads, discusses, and assesses hundreds of books to find the very best picture books published in that calendar year. We’re honored that judges of all sizes (both large publishing houses and small) submit their favorite books of the year for consideration. We begin our process as early as August and it culminates in the release of our awards list in early December, just in time for holiday shopping.” -Jenna, Bookstagang Judge 

Learn more at www.bookstagang.com

Delia Ruiz (she/her) is a Latinx author, content creator, and book reviewer. She has served as a judge for the Jose Marti Awards, International Latino Book Awards, and the Bookstagang Awards. She enjoys stories showcasing BIPOC joy and everyday life. Join her on social media at @aventuras.en.esl 

www.AventurasEnESL.com