One thing that sets us apart from other publishers is our status as a non-profit organisation. We’ve been this way from the very beginning, because we’ve always believed that giving back to the world around us is more important than our ability to make personal profit. That’s not to say don’t care about money, or wish to be unsuccessful – far from it. But the overarching idea is that the more books we sell, the more we can give back to those around us, and help create more great stories. It’s a positive feedback loop! We want our authors to be paid well for the blood sweat and tears that go into creating a novel, and we want to grow our sphere of influence and be an industry role-model for sustainable and ethical practices.
We’ve established a number of projects since opening our doors. We’ve had a mentor program, both for creative writers and for students who want to break into the world of publishing-as-a-career-path. There have also been free workshops and telesummits, a charity program which pledges certain percentage amounts from certain titles, and talk of a ‘Suspended Books’ scheme that we still have waiting in the wings.
Publishing can be an incredibly selfish business. Each and every one of us at IQ has been told ‘be careful’, and ‘it’s not about what you know, but who you know’, which makes for an unfriendly and seemingly-impenetrable industry. Teaching someone the ins and outs of working with a publisher is incredibly important to us. Nobody should feel like their ambitions are being blocked.
We’ve also been developing writing workshops to bring to deprived areas, in order to teach people essential life skills and encourage communication and creativity. What better can a publisher do than want to encourage others to both read and write? It’s win-win-win for us, after all! If you aren’t willing to give people the tools to enjoy your work and encourage them to create their own, you might as well not have an audience.
Additionally, our authors work hard to help others as well, whether it’s running marathons or leading literary activities: Tracey Scott-Townsend gave a writing workshop as part of the inaugural ‘Lincoln Inspired’ literary event in 2014, of which Inspired Quill was a sponsor, and Matthew Munson regularly attends community workshops and talks about his life as an author (and walks marathons! In winter! In the dark!)
Not to mention the profit percentage gift to partnered charities for the books Write for the Future and Sugar and Snails. It might not amount to hundreds of pounds each quarter, but it shows our commitment to really trying to push these methods of ‘giving back’.
Remember, every single time you purchase one of our titles, it helps us to give back that little bit more to the community – enhance a service we’re already providing, work a bit more on our newest project, or make a direct donation to a partnered charity.
We were just born to give, it seems.
(For more information about what we’re doing to give back, head on our to our ‘Give Back Pledge’ page and learn more, or contact us to ask any questions you might have.)
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