Meet an Indie Publisher: Belt

Third in a series

Progressive, uncompromising, and firmly grounded in place, Belt Publishing has been an inspiration to independent publishers everywhere—but especially in the postindustrial Rust Belt, which remains underserved by big houses in New York. Seek out Belt’s great books, subscribe to founder Anne Trubek’s Substack, and read So You Want to Publish a Book?, her excellent guide.

I’m glad that Anne was willing to participate in the series “Meet an Indie Publisher,” which previously featured Hub City Press and Blair.

Name/Location: Belt Publishing, Cleveland, Ohio

Year Founded: 2013

Number of Books Published Per Year: Averages 12, fluctuating between 8 and 14

First Book Published: Rust Belt Chic: The Cleveland Anthology. It was intended to be a one-off book, published in 2012 under the name Rust Belt Chic Press. In 2013, we founded Belt Magazine, and decided to keep publishing city anthologies (Detroit, Pittsburgh, Cincinnati). In 2015, we renamed the press Belt Publishing and began publishing a wide array of titles. (So this is actually a difficult question to answer!)

Most Recent Book Published: Team Building: A Memoir about Family and the Fight for Workers’ Rights, by Ben Gwin

Biggest Seller: What You Are Getting Wrong About Appalachia, by Elizabeth Catte

Book You Published You Wish More People Knew About: Runaway: Notes on the Myths That Made Me, by Erin Keane

“Memoirs this smart and absorbing don’t come around all the time.”—Michael Schaub, NPR

If people pick up a Belt book, what are they in for?

Sophisticated prose, gorgeous design, progressive politics, sharp analysis, wry humor, and the clear voice of writers we don’t hear from enough.

What’s most challenging about being an independent publisher?

I could use 5,000 words to answer this, or I could use one: money. Publishing, like so many American industries, is set up to favor large corporations. The costs of doing business (to print, to distribute, to market, to sell) are proportionately higher for independents than they are for larger publishers. It’s simply not a level playing field.

What’s most exciting about being an independent publisher?

The freedom. The opportunity to decide which topics and authors we think are important to publish, and the flexibility to decide how we will edit, design, and bring those people and books to readers. We can determine the difference we want to make in the literary landscape and then go off and attempt to do so. And we can build a community of authors by so doing, all without endless meetings or paperwork!

Insert a question of your own you wish people asked about independent publishing, and answer it.

Why should readers work to find and buy independently published books?

Independent booksellers have done a fabulous job raising awareness of the importance of supporting their small businesses. A certain population of Americans now intentionally decides to purchase books from indies instead of Amazon or other large sellers. But more often than not, what they purchase at an independent bookstore is a book from a corporate press. Deciding to purchase an independent press book is just as important. And what many will be surprised to learn is the books are often better, if not as hyped, as the bestselling, buzzy books about which they may know more. Think of indie press books like craft beers: sometimes harder to find, but usually more delicious.

Thanks to Anne, and if you have an independent press you’d like to see profiled, please leave their name in the comments.