In time we discovered that we could sell substantial quantities of meaningful, intellectual titles, including those that no one in the commercial world thought would ever find an audience. Your American History Textbook Got Wrong , written by James W. Loewen. Although some types of books are undeniably harder to publish with every passing year, the audiences are there, untapped, simply because no one has tried to reach them. It has taken a non-profit structure to discover those readers. Many editors who have been around long enough to remember the times before conglomerates keenly regret the decimation of thoughtful publishing.
People joining the ranks of publishing today have no such comparative vantage point.
To them, the present situation is normal, and that is in itself a worrying development. Schiffrin is realistic. Together, we don't even come close to constituting one per cent of the total sales in book publishing.