March 2020
“Caring for myself is not self-indulgence, it is self-preservation, and that is an act of political warfare.”
—Audre Lorde
Last month, the Events Committee hosted its first event of the year, our panel on How to Overcome Burnout. We welcomed three fantastic guest speakers to weigh in on the topic: Daniel Vazquez (Assistant Editor, Farrar, Straus and Giroux), Monica Odom (Literary Agent, Odom Media Management), and Lizette Serrano (Vice President of Educational Marketing and Event Strategy, Scholastic) at an intimate event with sixty attendees.
It became immediately evident from the start of the event that there is no obvious answer or solution to the problem plaguing people of color in our industry. As one panelist joked, “I’m not entirely sure I’m not burned out right now!”
Burnout is defined by the World Health Organization as a syndrome resulting from chronic workplace stress that has not been successfully managed. It’s characterized by feelings of exhaustion that is emotional, mental, and often physical. If left uncheck, burnout can not only wreak havoc on your career, but also affect your personal life and physical health. Burnout has become increasingly common amongst publishing professionals for a variety of reasons, but common complaints include increasing workloads and responsibilities, lack of support, and facing the burden of being the only person of color in a room at any given time.
All three panelists agreed on the importance of self-care. This involves checking in with yourself and being honest if you have a problem. One panelist pointed out that the idea that seeing a lack of productivity as a moral failing is capitalist thinking and urged everyone to remember, “break is a part of work.” They also stressed the importance of making time with family, friends, and community who understand.
When the topic of managers came up opinions were mixed. One panelist with management experience spoke to the importance of trying to build a rapport with employees by communicating about out their career goals and mentoring them. The others urged everyone to “know your audience” and one saying that sometimes the best thing you can do to look out for yourself is to leave.
Nevertheless, everyone agreed on the importance of building community and that “a room [with people] like this” is a good place to start.
As sent to Roxanne Jones
Why book publishing?
For the same reason why most other folks are in it--for the books! I've been an avid reader since I was a little kid dragging home grocery bags full of books from the library. I was extremely lucky to correspond with one of my favorite authors (shout out to Sherwood Smith for any other fans) when I was in middle school and through talking to her, realized that book publishing was an actual industry with real people creating the books. As a kid, I never thought too much about where the books came from. They seemed like wholly magical items that appeared out of thin air.
Now that I know the effort that goes into publishing books, I also believe in the power of the stories we publish. As someone who is passionate about diversity and inclusion, I know how normalizing a book can be. A book shows us we are not alone and that we matter.
Can you tell us a little bit about what you do as a Senior Director of Campaigns at Penguin Random House?
I work in the Consumer Marketing group at Penguin Random House, which is essentially corporate marketing. We are focused on understanding, reaching, and engaging with readers. My campaigns team specifically works on getting the word out about reading and books via creative marketing, reaching new audiences via multicultural marketing, and ensuring that our marketers have advertising best practices.
As mentioned above, I also do a lot of diversity and inclusion work, so I'm on the D&I council at Penguin Random House. We've been tasked with moving forward on areas of improvement for our company.
What about your role as a Communications and Events Committee Director for POC in Pub?
I've been volunteering with POC in Publishing for about a year and a half now and was excited to become co-chair of the Communications and Events Committee a year ago (with my fabulous co-chairs Carolina Ortiz and Jasmine Miranda). The opportunity arose because Saraciea Fennell, the former co-chair, stepped down. I was happy to help out. Those of us who know Saraciea know she is a superwoman and already had essentially six jobs.
As for what we do in the committee, we create and run the POC in Pub events (like the BEA party, the holiday get together, etc.) and also manage our communication channels like this newsletter and social media. It's been a wonderful role and has led to meeting great POC folks throughout the industry.
What would be your advice about POC starting in book publishing?
My advice is to be confident and to follow through. Do what you say you're going to do. Then you can build a reputation as someone who is trustworthy and gets the job done—and believe me, that's something that should take you far. Also, always be curious. I love talking to people who work in all types of roles because I never know when there's going to be something that pops up later which relates to that random conversation I had with someone in the elevator. Curiosity can also often lead to great relationships with people throughout your company, so you're networking without really "networking."
As sent to Elizabeth Agyemang
It’s no secret that trying to break into publishing is wrought with constant challenges. It’s part of the entertainment industry, already a hard nut to crack, plus it’s competitive and mysterious. But I fully believe that being a POC in publishing presents its own set of trials.
I started my publishing journey in 2005. The online community wasn’t big back then, you sent your query letters by U.S. Mail, and the market was just breaking open. My first novel, written about a white teen girl, got me my first agent, but it didn’t sell. I stepped away to focus on “real life.” Except when you have the soul of a writer, and you want to share your stories, you just can’t stop. In 2015, I decided to try publishing again. Things had changed. You could email queries. We Need Diverse Books and POC in Pub were a thing! I could write about marginalized characters, claim my own marginalization, get a fair shake. Right?
Except, a lot of it stayed the same. Loads of rejections. Lots and books by and about white people and about so many different things. Pain stories for the rest of us. It really did my head in. Because it was way harder this time around.
Being a POC in publishing means when someone can’t connect with your work, wondering if it’s because the character is marginalized in a way they’re not?
Being a POC in publishing means wondering if you got rejected, or a bad review, or panned for lists and awards because you and your character are [insert marginalization]…or if it’s because you really do suck.
Being a POC in publishing means hearing publishing houses say “We already have our [insert marginalization] book for the year”.
But I made it. Somehow, I broke in, and my debut novel was published in November 2019. And as I look around at the new stories being told by new types of people in our community, I feel excited that I get to be a part of this movement that will allow more people to see themselves in all kinds of adventures.
Being a POC in publishing means being a part of something special, and I am so happy to be here.
Ronni Davis grew up in Cleveland, Ohio, where she tried her best to fit in—and failed miserably. After graduating from The Ohio State University with a BA in Psychology, she worked in insurance, taught yoga, and became a cat mom. Now she lives in Chicago with her husband Adam and her son Aidan. By day she copy edits everything from TV commercials to billboards, and by night she writes contemporary teen novels about brown girls falling in love. When she’s not writing, you can catch her playing the Sims, eating too much candy, or planning her next trip to Disney World. Her debut novel, WHEN THE STARS LEAD TO YOU, was released by Little Brown Books for Young Readers in November 2019, and the anthology YOU TOO?, in which she is a contributor, is available now from Inkyard Press. You can follow her on Twitter, Tumblr, Goodreads, and Instagram.
As sent to Sydney Tillman
Why I love this bookstore/the pop-up shop concept?
Duende District is a collaborative pop-up bookstore by and for people of color -- where all are welcome. I originally founded the store as a pop-up for two reasons: first, like many of my peers, I carry a large amount of student loan debt and being a career bookseller is not a very sustainable way to make a living, let alone save money. So I needed a model that kept my overhead way down while also being very accessible to the community: being mobile and partnering with different PoC-owned businesses who support our mission. Second, I wanted the flexibility to play with a business model that can evolve so I could mentor or offer the model to any other aspiring people of color who want to start a bookstore or literary space. Third, I love being able to exist in many places at once and build partnerships with different communities by creating beautiful, accessible literary spaces practically anywhere.
Is there an upcoming event you’d like to highlight or a book you currently love by an author of color?
This is always the hardest question! I'm so lucky in that 99% of what I get to read is by authors of color, so it's even more brutal to narrow it down to one. I'm currently reading The Stubborn Archivist, by Yara Rodrigues Fowler, and loving the gorgeous prose. It's about a Brazilian British young woman who intertwines her own story with the narrative of her mother immigrating to England from Brazil. The book flows like water and is such a treat to read.
Duende District is a collaborative pop-up bookstore by and for people of color—where all are welcome. They specialize in carrying the best new adult & children's titles by authors of color in English and Spanish. Each Duende District pop-up location offers a uniquely curated and inviting literary space focused on engaging communities of color, while also inviting all people to participate in the experience.