Joe Biel is an independent publisher who draws origins, inspiration, and methods from punk rock to sell millions of books. He is the founder and CEO of Microcosm Publishing, a Publishers Weekly's fastest-growing publisher from 2022-2024.

Biel has been featured in Time, Esquire, Forbes, Bulletproof Radio, Spectator (Japan), G33K (Korea), as well as NPR and PBS. He is the author of A People's Guide to Publishing (and cohost of the podcast by the same name), Autism Relationships Handbook, Unfuck Your Business, Enduring Legacy of Portland's Black Panthers, (and dozens more), and the director of five feature films, including Aftermass: Bicycling in a Post-Critical Mass Portland, $100 & a T-Shirt, and hundreds of short films.

Joe joined us from the floor of the London Book Fair to discuss Microcosm's 30-year anniversary and what makes them stand out from other publishers. He also discusses their move from traditional publishing distribution to independent self-distribution, touching on how it has positively impacted their book sales and improved the company as a whole.

To learn more about Microcosm Publishing, visit their website. Also, check out their People's Guide to Publishing podcast on any of your favorite podcast apps. You can find Joe on substack and LinkedIn.