Celebrating Independent Book Publishing with Lee Wind of the IBPA

In this episode, Christopher Robbins speaks with Lee Wind, Chief Content Officer for the Independent Book Publishers Association (IBPA), about the vital role independent publishing plays in bringing diverse voices and stories to readers. They discuss IBPA's history and mission, the advantages of mission-driven publishing over purely profit-driven models, and how independent publishers create communities around their content. The conversation also addresses the concerning trend of book banning and censorship, and IBPA's innovative "We Are Stronger Than Censorship" program that buys and donates two books for everyone book challenged. Lee provides valuable advice for aspiring authors and publishers, emphasizing the importance of professional development and community collaboration in the independent publishing world. Episode Highlights 00:00:10: Christopher Robbins introduces the Helping Families Be Happy podcast and himself as co-founder of Familius, husband, father of nine, author, and various outdoor enthusiast based in California's Central Valley. 00:00:59: Introduction of guest Lee Wind as Chief Content Officer for the Independent Book Publishers Association (IBPA), the largest trade association for publishers in the United States. 00:01:13: Lee's personal mission described as writing books that would have changed his life as a gay Jewish kid and teen, including his award-winning non-fiction books "No Way They Were Gay" and "The Gender Binary Is a Big Lie." 00:01:35: Discussion of the "We Are Stronger Than Censorship" program that buys and donates two books to offset every one book challenged, run by IBPA with the American Library Institute and over 75 industry partners. 00:01:59: Lee expresses enthusiasm about joining the podcast to discuss book publishing. 00:02:12: Christopher shares his history with IBPA, having served on the board and participated in strategy that helped the organization grow. 00:02:34: Lee explains IBPA's origins in 1983 when about a dozen Southern California publishers pooled resources to send one representative to a major New York trade show. 00:03:27: Discussion of how IBPA has evolved while maintaining its core mission of advocacy, education, and tools for success to level the playing field for independent publishers. 00:04:15: Lee emphasizes the importance of independent publishing to prevent four or five corporations from deciding what everyone reads, highlighting the diverse and mission-driven approaches of independent publishers. 00:05:21: Christopher encourages the audience to explore independent books, music, and film as sources of exceptional content. 00:05:35: Christopher shares a personal memory of Jan Nathan, IBPA's founder, inviting him to dinner in 1990 and being welcoming and encouraging to him as a young industry newcomer. 00:06:20: Lee discusses how mission-driven independent publishers differ from corporate publishers focused solely on financial bottom lines, using examples like Patagonia and Just Us Books. 00:06:53: Christopher compares this to Familius's philosophy that revenue is simply fuel for the mission. 00:07:26: Lee explains how independent publishers understand the power of community and niche markets better than corporate publishers, with four out of five books in bookstores from corporate publishers but that fifth book representing hundreds of different independent voices. 00:08:38: Discussion of the advantages of direct-to-consumer sales for publishers vs. sales through major retailers like Amazon, where publishers don't own the customer relationship. 00:09:31: Lee cites Brandon Sanderson's successful Kickstarter campaign as an example of authors leveraging their platform and community. 00:09:45: Christopher mentions that Brandon Sanderson teaches at his alma mater BYU and that his niece has been one of Sanderson's test readers. 00:09:56: Lee shares that some of Brandon Sanderson's BYU lectures on topics like world building are available on YouTube. 00:10:15: Christopher discusses how Famis provides value to nearly 50,000 engaged subscribers through biweekly free content about helping families be happy. 00:10:45: Christopher acknowledges the highly competitive nature of the book industry, particularly regarding physical shelf space where getting one book on a shelf means removing another. 00:11:14: Lee shares IBPA's motto "helping each other achieve and succeed" and explains that bookstore sales are actually a small portion of most publishers' revenue. 00:12:09: Discussion of how quality books naturally generate word-of-mouth marketing and how AI- generated content makes quality even more important. 00:12:48: Christopher introduces the topic of book banning and censorship through Famis's book "Down with Lime Books," expressing his discouragement with how some have weaponized religion to deny people their own voice. 00:13:59: Lee agrees that while parents should have input into what their own children read, they shouldn't control what other people's children read. 00:14:53: Lee explains that book banning creates a chilling effect that makes schools and libraries afraid to bring in diverse books, resulting in sales drops of up to 50% for some independent publishers focused on marginalized voices. 00:15:55: Lee provides the example of "Everywhere Babies" illustrated by Marla Frazee, which depicts diverse families including same-sex parents and has been called pornography despite being innocent family scenes. 00:17:02: Christopher simply states "love your neighbor" as his religious perspective on book banning. 00:17:08: Lee describes meeting with Dr. Tessel Magnusson and creating the offensive strategy of buying and donating two books to offset every one book challenge. 00:18:10: Christopher shares that he always recommends aspiring authors get involved with IBPA to help them succeed. 00:18:35: Lee explains that IBPA helps people become professional publishers, with membership including about 1,200 authors who publish their own work and 2,000 independent companies of various sizes. 00:19:35: Lee directs people to his personal website at LeeWind.org and IBPA's website at ibpa-online.org. 00:20:04: Christopher concludes by thanking Familius for supporting the podcast and encouraging listeners to subscribe, leave reviews, and choose independent books for their next reading adventure. Key Takeaways Independent publishing is essential for maintaining diversity in what people read, preventing a handful of corporations from controlling all published content. Mission-driven publishing creates different outcomes than purely profit-driven publishing, allowing publishers to maintain control over their values and production methods. Building a community around your content and selling directly to consumers creates stronger relationships and more sustainable success than relying solely on major retailers. Book banning is not about the content of specific books but rather an attempt to create a chilling effect that erases diverse identities and perspectives from libraries and schools. Quality content will ultimately win out even in an age of AI-generated material, as authentic books generate word-of-mouth recommendations that drive long-term success. The "We Are Stronger Than Censorship" program demonstrates how the publishing community can go on offense against book banning by buying and donating two books for every 1 book challenged. Aspiring authors and publishers should join professional organizations like IBPA for business guidance while also developing their craft through specialized groups like the Society of Children's Book Writers and Illustrators. Independent publishers understand niche markets better than corporate publishers, creating content that serves specific communities rather than trying to appeal to the broadest possible audience. Quotable Moments "The idea of only four or five corporations deciding what everyone reads is a really terrible idea." "If the bottom line is financial, it's a very different outcome than if the bottom line is a mission, a vision for our to make our world a better place through books." "The revenue that we generate is simply fuel for the mission." "The magic of it is that if you have a community, if you have a niche and or niche and you're publishing books that are what those people really want, then that's sort of the recipe for success." "We have a motto at IBPA, it's helping each other achieve and succeed." "In this age of AI slop that we are on the cusp of, it's nice to know that quality will win out." "The idea that I should be able to control what your kids read is really wrong." "They're attacking books because books help people have empathy and I think that empathy is in short supply these days." "Love your neighbor." "We don't have to just sit back and let this ridiculousness continue. We can fight back"