Publishing is no different. Steps are being seen to be taken to promote diversity, eg with many BAME competitions and scholarships being set up to seek out authors and illustrators that reflect a varied society.
Shiny new publishers Knights Of (as in of the round table where everyone is equal) launched just last week on a pledge to increase diversity behind the scenes. The news was met with a frenzy of anticipation of just how this new publisher was going to rise to the challenge of doing things differently.
Aimeé Felone and David Stevens have launched Knights Of with a stated aim to approach publishing in a new way and to ‘DO THINGS DIFFERENTLY - and in this way, to make books for every kid.
We at SOTB are delighted to share this interview with Knights Of founder David Stevens to share his vision of this new publishing company, how he plans to make a difference … and just what that difference will be.
The publishing industry is really focused on diversity at the moment, with lots of publishers trying to seek greater submissions from diverse authors/diverse intern applications etc. What are the main barriers currently to finding a job in publishing and what will ‘Knights Of’ do differently that might address them?
We’re inspired by what publishing and other children's media have been doing, every initiative and call for openness has strengthened our belief that now is the right time for an inclusive publisher. KNIGHTS OF is trying to address as many barriers as it can – making ourselves available via live chat to answer questions, if there’s a barrier we’ll work to address it.
We love the idea of a ‘fairer team’ – what sort of different opportunities are you going to offer?
We love the idea too! We’re offering paid, remote freelance positions on every aspect of publishing a title. We’re hoping to circumvent prohibitive costs of having to live in major cities, and where possible, we will aim to pair an experienced hand with an entry/mid-level candidate for added value.
You say that Knights Of is “creating a better pipeline: working with writers, illustrators, agents, retailers and other publishers to make books better” and it is really interesting that you are looking at so many aspects of how an author’s work gets to readers. Which of these changes of approach will make the biggest difference to the books you will publish?
It is the one small change that we’re hoping will have the most impact. If your editor, designer, marketer, production team, publicist and sales team are all from broadly different backgrounds the end result will be different.
We have noticed you are accepting direct submissions as well as through agents. What is the main reason for this? Is this a long-term plan or just a short-term ‘open window’?
We’ll keep Live Chat open as long as we can – it’s not going away any time soon. We’re working hard to make sure we’re as accessible as possible – being available as much as possible is part of that.
You mention the relationship with retailers. Do you have plans to reach readers differently other than through the usual channels of bookshops and school libraries or online?
One of the biggest pieces of work we want to undertake is working with retailers to bring non-traditional readers into bookstores. Partnering with as many communities, booksellers, librarians and readers as we can.
Talking of readers, has there been any research into whether there is lower interest in books by children with BAME backgrounds?
Not that we’ve seen. (Cheeky, but with so few books published that meet the criteria would any research be reliable?). Look at what Empathy Lab can do – proving that engagement with as many characters as possible has positive results.
Do you plan to publish in other languages to reach those children who have English as a second language? Will you take submissions in other languages?
We’re just getting started – our first focus is home-grown talent. We’ll look at submissions in translation but, for now, it’s unlikely we’ll be publishing into the UK and Irish markets in multiple languages.
It sounds like we are witnessing the start of a really exciting, forward-thinking publisher. How can we get involved?
Sign up to the #BooksMadeBetter newsletter [http://knightsof.media/#sign-up/] – come write for BooksMadeBetter.com – and tell everyone who might be interested about us. We’re a new start-up company so always willing to talk investment at varying levels.
So - they are being different and being very open, so what are you waiting for - sounds like a brilliant opportunity to get involved. SOTB will certainly be watching this space and wish Knights Of the very best for getting it dreams realised.
Lastly I must say a BIG SOTB THANK YOU to David for taking time out of the hectic start up week to be interviewed and to wish Knights Of the very best of luck. We look forward to reviewing some of their books in due course!
Find out more at Knights Of Website
You can also follow Knight on Twitter @_KnightsOf
We at SOTB are delighted to share this interview with Knights Of founder David Stevens to share his vision of this new publishing company, how he plans to make a difference … and just what that difference will be.
The publishing industry is really focused on diversity at the moment, with lots of publishers trying to seek greater submissions from diverse authors/diverse intern applications etc. What are the main barriers currently to finding a job in publishing and what will ‘Knights Of’ do differently that might address them?
We’re inspired by what publishing and other children's media have been doing, every initiative and call for openness has strengthened our belief that now is the right time for an inclusive publisher. KNIGHTS OF is trying to address as many barriers as it can – making ourselves available via live chat to answer questions, if there’s a barrier we’ll work to address it.
We love the idea of a ‘fairer team’ – what sort of different opportunities are you going to offer?
We love the idea too! We’re offering paid, remote freelance positions on every aspect of publishing a title. We’re hoping to circumvent prohibitive costs of having to live in major cities, and where possible, we will aim to pair an experienced hand with an entry/mid-level candidate for added value.
You say that Knights Of is “creating a better pipeline: working with writers, illustrators, agents, retailers and other publishers to make books better” and it is really interesting that you are looking at so many aspects of how an author’s work gets to readers. Which of these changes of approach will make the biggest difference to the books you will publish?
It is the one small change that we’re hoping will have the most impact. If your editor, designer, marketer, production team, publicist and sales team are all from broadly different backgrounds the end result will be different.
We have noticed you are accepting direct submissions as well as through agents. What is the main reason for this? Is this a long-term plan or just a short-term ‘open window’?
We’ll keep Live Chat open as long as we can – it’s not going away any time soon. We’re working hard to make sure we’re as accessible as possible – being available as much as possible is part of that.
You mention the relationship with retailers. Do you have plans to reach readers differently other than through the usual channels of bookshops and school libraries or online?
One of the biggest pieces of work we want to undertake is working with retailers to bring non-traditional readers into bookstores. Partnering with as many communities, booksellers, librarians and readers as we can.
Talking of readers, has there been any research into whether there is lower interest in books by children with BAME backgrounds?
Not that we’ve seen. (Cheeky, but with so few books published that meet the criteria would any research be reliable?). Look at what Empathy Lab can do – proving that engagement with as many characters as possible has positive results.
Do you plan to publish in other languages to reach those children who have English as a second language? Will you take submissions in other languages?
We’re just getting started – our first focus is home-grown talent. We’ll look at submissions in translation but, for now, it’s unlikely we’ll be publishing into the UK and Irish markets in multiple languages.
It sounds like we are witnessing the start of a really exciting, forward-thinking publisher. How can we get involved?
Sign up to the #BooksMadeBetter newsletter [http://knightsof.media/#sign-up/] – come write for BooksMadeBetter.com – and tell everyone who might be interested about us. We’re a new start-up company so always willing to talk investment at varying levels.
So - they are being different and being very open, so what are you waiting for - sounds like a brilliant opportunity to get involved. SOTB will certainly be watching this space and wish Knights Of the very best for getting it dreams realised.
Lastly I must say a BIG SOTB THANK YOU to David for taking time out of the hectic start up week to be interviewed and to wish Knights Of the very best of luck. We look forward to reviewing some of their books in due course!
Find out more at Knights Of Website
You can also follow Knight on Twitter @_KnightsOf
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