A New Startup is Suggesting Publishing that is Influenced by Social Media Influencers

Bindery, a new startup launching in August, turns influencers into publishers, producing unique books under social media tastemakers' micro-imprints.

on Jul 31, 2023

A New Startup is Suggesting Publishing that is Influenced by Social Media Influencers | Frontlist

A new startup called Bindery, set to launch in August, aims to utilize the reach of social media by transforming influencers into publishers. Co-founded by Matt Kaye and Meg Harvey, Bindery will produce unique books under various "tastemaker-led micro-imprints." Each imprint will be led by a social media influencer, who will curate titles for publication. Bindery is set to debut with nine initial imprints, with a plan to publish one book per year per imprint. However, Kaye noted that this number could potentially increase in specific instances.

After acquiring a title, the publishing services company Girl Friday Productions takes care of the editorial and design tasks under the Bindery process. Bindery publishes its titles in both print and digital formats, and they are distributed to all trade channels by Ingram's Two Rivers Distribution. Harvey, the company's former chief strategy officer, has been involved in this process.

Bindery has a unique approach to finding new titles to publish. They work directly with literary agencies and use their catalog to find manuscripts that would interest individual tastemakers. Once they have found a suitable manuscript, they submit it to tastemakers for consideration. If the tastemakers want to proceed, Bindery offers a contract to the author and manages the author relationship directly. They also offer a standard $10,000 advance.

Bindery also has a web-hosted "membership platform" that complements and helps fund the publishing process. Tastemakers can establish "curation communities" and users can pay a monthly subscription fee for access to various benefits, including author livestreams, branded merch, early copies of books and appearing in a book's acknowledgements section. Tastemakers who work with Bindery take home 50% of their monthly subscription revenue, and the other 50% goes to Bindery, which uses the revenue to underwrite book production. When books hit the market, authors earn 50% of the net earnings, tastemakers take home 25%, and Bindery takes the other 25%.

Bindery's model is a way to address the power imbalance that social media influencers have over which books become popular. Influencer recommendations, particularly on BookTok, have a significant impact on book sales. Bindery's model offers a fairer approach as they take 25% of the net earnings. They are committed to making sure that books sell well for the benefit of all parties involved.