NEWS RELEASE
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
October 19th, 2020
Not a Pipe Publishing Announces the Promotion of a New Co-Publisher and Co-Owner, Viveca Shearin
Viveca Shearin
Benjamin Gorman
Independence, Oregon. Not a Pipe Publishing company, a fast-growing business established in 2013 which now publishes the works of 44 authors and poets, is undergoing an exciting change in leadership. Editor Viveca Shearin is being promoted to the position of co-publisher and is accepting joint ownership of the entire company.
Shearin brings a wealth of expertise, having previously worked in the industry as a freelance copy editor for Black Bride Magazine and managing editor for Psych2go, a psychology-based website. She’s also worked for Not a Pipe Publishing as a freelance editor, then a developmental editor and project manager, shepherding the bestselling novels Wizard Girl by Karen Eisenbrey, Don’t Read This Book by Benjamin Gorman, and the forthcoming Tooth and Claw by Michaela Thorn. Because she makes her home in Brooklyn, New York, Not a Pipe will also be able to connect more directly with other companies in the publishing industry and in other parts of the entertainment and media industries located there.
Shearin’s promotion came about because of Not a Pipe’s commitment to inclusion and representation in the publishing industry. In the wake of George Floyd’s murder, one of Not a Pipe’s authors and a freelance editor, Fable Tethras (nee Taliyah St. James), offered free editing services to BIPOC writers. Another of Not a Pipe’s authors, M.K. Martin, who also works as a freelance editor, liked this idea and reached out to encourage other editors to make the same offer. Not a Pipe Publishing’s founder and publisher Benjamin Gorman, was immediately excited about the idea, then had second thoughts. “I worried that, while this was a gift to BIPOC writers, it might undercut BIPOC editors.” Gorman reached out to Shearin, a Black editor, to see if his concerns were justified. She referred him to one of her mentors, Christa Desir of Tessera Editorial and Sourcebooks Publishing. Desir assured Gorman the offer of free editing would not harm BIPOC editors, but she went further. “I don’t think any change will come until we change the face of publishing. As long as we have white leadership and white sales guys and white editors and white publishers, we’re never going to be able to do the work necessary for our Black authors and their books.” Gorman considered this carefully. “I realized I was in a somewhat unique position to do something about this. I wouldn’t give away shared ownership of this company I love to just anyone, but after working with Viveca for years, I know she’s imminently qualified and will make this company an even stronger family for our authors, and that’s always been my top priority. I found I could do my part to change the face of publishing while also making Not a Pipe Publishing a better company. So I asked her if she wanted to take on this new role.”
When offered the new position, Shearin thought about a goal she’s had for several years. “I thought about all of the authors and writers of color who never got a chance to get their stories heard. Because of the publishing industry’s arcane viewpoints about who belongs in publishing and who doesn’t, I wanted to become an editor and publish more BIPOC stories. I want their voices heard and their stories told. Publishing needs more diversity at every level of the industry. I just hope I inspire more BIPOC out there to take the plunge and carve out their own paths as well.”
Not a Pipe Publishing has a history of social and political activism. In 2015, when Gorman heard about author Kamila Shamsie’s challenge to make 2018 “The Year of Publishing Women,” Not a Pipe accepted and became the only company in the US and one of only two in the world to commit to only publish women authors that year. It published eight novels and an anthology in 2018, and has stuck by those authors, publishing six more by those authors since. In January of this year, Not a Pipe Publishing released Shout: An Anthology of Resistance Poetry and Short Fiction, an overt response to rising fascism in the United States and around the world. Shearin and Gorman share this commitment to activism through art. “By publishing more books about activism,” Shearin says, “we can encourage future generations to use their voice to stand up for what’s right, fight for much-needed change, and create a better tomorrow.” Gorman agrees. “We publish fiction and poetry, but through art, we are committed to telling the truth. Our novels range from fantasy to science fiction to paranormal to thrillers, but the themes they all share are that true heroism comes from standing up for justice, that justice is rooted in love, and that authentic voices have dignity and deserve to be heard. I know Viveca helps authors express those truths, and I can’t wait to see what other voices she’ll find to bring into the Not a Pipe family.”
For more information or to arrange an interview, contact co-publishers Viveca Shearin and Benjamin Gorman at:
Vivevca Shearin and Benjamin Gorman
notapipepublishing@gmail.com
P.O. Box 184
Independence, Oregon 97351