Julie Enszer and the cover of issue 55 of Sinister Wisdom

Julie Enszer: “We Couldn’t Get Them Printed,” So We Learned to Print Them Ourselves

The editor of the lesbian feminist magazine Sinister Wisdom talked to us about lesbian print culture, feminist collectives, and revolution.
Collage of underground publications

“There Was Grit and Talent Galore”

Lindsy Van Gelder—author of that famous New York Post article about bra-burning feminists—reflects on the alternative LGBTQ+ press of the 1970s.
A series of torn up academic papers against a blue background

Preprints, Science, and the News Cycle

Preprints are academic papers that haven't been peer-reviewed yet. When preprints make news, that's often overlooked.
Lysol advertisement from the March 1918 issue of Good Housekeeping via via Flickr 1918 Good Housekeeping Ad recommended Lysol to fight the typhoid epidemic.

Good Housekeeping Treated Advertisers as Health Experts

Good Housekeeping set itself up as a source of authoritative advice, but included ads for “health” products known to be harmful.
A collection of romance novels

The Business of the Romance Novel

How romance novels—despite their decided lack of cultural clout—became big business for the publishing industry.
Zines

Before Blogs, There Were Zines

Zines haven't completely disappeared in the internet age, but the photocopier-powered DIY publishing phenomenon has certainly entered history by now.
1984 cover

America’s Unlikely Cold War Weapon

During the Cold War years, the distribution and selection of American books had to change with changing objectives overseas.
Nineteenth century British periodicals

Nineteenth-Century Clickbait

Online publications that offer clickbait and easy entertainment mirror some of the most popular nineteenth century British magazines.
Hogarth Press Vanessa Bell

In Praise of Small Presses

Writers have long run their own small presses in order to publish voices that might otherwise stay silent. 
An office secretary - 1970s

A Woman’s Life in Publishing

Anita D. McClellan entered the publishing industry as a secretary, one of the few opportunities available to women at the time. We tell her story.