Literary publisher Catapult, which includes Soft Skull Press and Counterpoint Press, will suspend its online magazine and writing classes to “focus all resources on its core business of book publishing and its three imprints.” Based on Twitter reactions, it appears employees, instructors, and contributors were not notified prior to the news spreading online.
Catapult was founded in 2015 by Elizabeth Koch, daughter of Charles Koch of Koch Industries. Its abrupt decision to close portions of the business isn’t dissimilar from the closure of another richly funded literary operation, Astra Magazine, an offshoot of Astra Publishing. We’re reminded of what a publishing friend said to us recently about the meaning of such closures. It’s not the end of literature; rather, it often boils down to “rich person says no.”
Anne Trubek has been reading and writing recently (subscription required) on how literary publishing and book publishing is often tied up with billionaires: “If Harper & Brothers, at the height of their influence and prestige, could not survive without the help of J.P. Morgan, is there something endemic to the publishing industry that makes it impossible to balance the books? Is ‘passion’ simply the cover we use to paper over the reality that this is an industry whose history, seen from the vantage point of accountants instead of gentlemen or trust fund kids, seems to be a litany of successive foundings, debts, and takeovers?”
Jane Friedman has spent her entire career working in the publishing industry, with a focus on business reporting and author education. Established in 2015, her newsletter The Bottom Line provides nuanced market intelligence to thousands of authors and industry professionals; in 2023, she was named Publishing Commentator of the Year by Digital Book World.
Jane’s expertise regularly features in major media outlets such as The New York Times, The Atlantic, NPR, The Today Show, Wired, The Guardian, Fox News, and BBC. Her book, The Business of Being a Writer, Second Edition (The University of Chicago Press), is used as a classroom text by many writing and publishing degree programs. She reaches thousands through speaking engagements and workshops at diverse venues worldwide, including NYU’s Advanced Publishing Institute, Frankfurt Book Fair, and numerous MFA programs.
