We tried to distill some recent news and articles to see what's useful and what's not:

Some tips for podcasts from Jane Friedman’s post about a publicists’ panel at the U.S. Book Show. A widely shared article in PW about an Authors Guild study on "average author incomes." And another hand-wringing article in The Atlantic about "The End of Reading."

As usual, takeaways are summarized in our Substack, Publishing Disrupted: https://publishingdisrupted.substack.com/p/facing-the-disruption-with-honesty

And links to articles mentioned below:

Jane Friedman, “Podcast Publicity for Authors and Publishers: What’s Working”: https://janefriedman.com/whats-working-in-podcast-publicity-for-authors-and-publishers/

Publishers Weekly, “Authors Guild Looks at Why Author Incomes Are in Decline”: https://www.publishersweekly.com/pw/by-topic/industry-news/publisher-news/article/100605-authors-guild-survey-looks-at-why-author-incomes-are-in-decline.html

The Atlantic, “The End of Reading Is Here”: https://www.theatlantic.com/magazine/2026/08/reading-crisis-postliterate-age/687618/

Publishing Disrupted is at PublishingDisrupted.substack.com

Mick Silva is at MickSilvaEditing.substack.com

David Morris is at dvdmorris.substack.com, LakeDriveBooks.com, and Hyponymous.com.

How a multi-published, celebrated author, instructor, and literary agent finds her focus.

Follow what genuinely surprises you.

This is one big takeaway for writing (and maybe for life) in this episode of Publishing Disrupted with Audrey Clare Farley.

We also discussed what makes nonfiction stand out today: a strong hook paired with real substance, the rise of “memoir plus,” how the publishing world seems to reward exposes and could do a better job bringing in nuance and deeper discussion.

A thoughtful conversation about curiosity, craft, and writing the book only you can write.

Beyond her role as a Hyponymous Literary agent, Audrey is a celebrated author, editor, and literary scholar with a PhD in English literature. Her two nonfiction books, The Unfit Heiress, and Girls and Their Monsters, are both standout stories of suffering, injustice, and betrayal, the latter of which became a New York Times Editors’ Pick. As an instructor for Mount St. Mary’s University and Narratively Academy, her niche is narrative nonfiction, especially memoir, biography, history, and cultural criticism.

https://audreyclarefarley.substack.com/

https://www.hyponymous.com/team-1

https://www.hachettebookgroup.com/titles/audrey-clare-farley/the-unfit-heiress/9781538753361/

https://www.hachettebookgroup.com/titles/audrey-clare-farley/girls-and-their-monsters/9781538724484/

Publishing Disrupted is at PublishingDisrupted.substack.com

Mick Silva is at MickSilvaEditing.substack.com

David Morris is at dvdmorris.substack.com, LakeDriveBooks.com, and Hyponymous.com.

Following some professional and personal updates, we embrace the energy of the coming summer by digging into a recent Publisher's Weekly Religion article highlighting how "anxious readers" are apparently buying up Bibles. It felt like a suspiciously familiar trope, so we tried to unpack that assumption a bit.

No mention of the widely publicized decreases in church attendance, or religious disaffiliation as a whole, but we an earlier article claimed some publishers, very different ones, are "saying Amen to resistance" with books from the progressive left (and the conservative right too, of course) responding to our overheated political climate.

But even that framing feels shoehorned. We wonder where are the truly fresh takes? Where's the deeper dives beyond the stereotypes? (Again, is "mainstream audience" even a useful term anymore?) If you're tired of the tired tropes and assumptions, we hope you'll tag along for some rousing discussion.

Specific articles mentioned can be found at publishersweekly.com, News > Religion section: "Religion Publishers Say Amen to Resistance," and "Anxious Readers Turn to God."

Publishing Disrupted is at PublishingDisrupted.substack.com

Mick Silva is at MickSilvaEditing.substack.com

David Morris is at dvdmorris.substack.com, LakeDriveBooks.com, and Hyponymous.com.