Benjamin Woodward

Books Can Change the World!: Publishing for Social Justice 101

As we’ve witnessed with The New Jim Crow, books can play a major role in changing the national discussion about urgent social issues. A well-written book that makes a well-researched argument or uses a unique narrative thread to illustrate the need for reform can be an essential tool to inject transformative ideas into the popular discourse. At The New Press, we’ve found that movement leaders can be best positioned to share a unique vision for change. Workshop leaders will illustrate how a book can help leverage change. Participants will gain practical knowledge about how to move through the stages of book publishing, including: developing a book concept; preparing a cogent, well-informed proposal; strategies for researching; drafting a manuscript (e.g. structuring an argument; writing in a clear and compelling way that integrates storytelling); publicizing the book; and collaborating with organizations to amplify the book’s impact. We will share relevant resources, key examples, and case studies. The New Press is uniquely positioned as a non-profit publisher in the public interest to seek out authors committed to social change, and to develop works of non-fiction that set forth new, paradigm-shifting ideas. Our catalog includes works from Studs Terkel and Noam Chomsky, and more recent contributions to conversations in criminal and economic justice, and education reform, including Michelle Alexander’s The New Jim Crow; Lisa Delpit’s Other People’s Children; and Ai-jen Poo’s The Age of Dignity.

Speakers: zakia henderson-brown, Benjamin Woodward