Mission-driven publishing, the example of Patagonia Books, with guest Karla Olson

Topics include:

• A brief history of Patagonia Books


• How does Patagonia decide what books to publish: developed in-house or via submissions?


• The mission is important, but the book has to stand up as a book, offering quality and value to its readers


• How books can work effectively to extend the message and fulfill the mission


• A new mission statement: “We are in business to save the home planet”


• For mission publishing, success is not measured in sales alone or in recouping time spent in creating the book; success may instead come from generating awareness that produces donations and engagement in other areas


• IBPA affiliates: what do they do and whom are they for?


• Affiliates are not writing groups but help turn writers into publishers; they are “incubators” where members can gain confidence and learn industry standards


• More and more indie booksellers are working with local authors and publishers; what are some ways indie retailers and publishers can work together?

Links

Patagonia Books

https://www.facebook.com/patagoniabooks/

https://www.patagonia.com/shop/books

Let My People Go Surfing by Yvon Chouinard

https://www.patagonia.com/product/let-my-people-go-surfing-revised-paperback-book/BK067.html

Yosemite In The Sixties by Glen Denny

https://www.patagonia.com/product/yosemite-in-the-sixties-hardcover-book/BK330.html

BookStudio

www.bookstudiobooks.com.

PublishersWriters.org (San Diego)

http://publisherswriters.org/

PublisherWritersOrangeCounty.org

http://publisherswritersorangecounty.org/

Read Local San Diego

http://readlocal.org/

List of IBPA Affiliates

https://www.ibpa-online.org/page/affiliates

Participants

Karla Olson is the Director of Patagonia Books, which publishes books as a mission outreach for Patagonia, the clothing company. She is the president of IBPA affiliates Publishers and Writers of San Diego and Publishers and Writers of Orange County, and founder of Read Local, a marketing coalition for authors. She has been in the publishing industry for over 30 years and is the owner of BookStudio, a publishing consultancy.

Peter Goodman (host) is publisher of Stone Bridge Press in Berkeley, California. He began his publishing career in Tokyo, Japan, in 1976. A longtime member of IBPA, he has served on the IBPA board and as IBPA board chair.