In our world, all companies need to state their position on racism clearly. Over the last few days, the publishing industry in particular has been called out for systemic racial bias.
Heart Ally's approach to paying our authors is different than the mainstream. As such, all of our authors are paid the same regardless of race, religion, or gender. Income is directly tied to sales.
At Heart Ally, our goal is to empower authors.
We are not a book mill, and as such can only take on a few projects each year.
If you want to understand Heart Ally's approach to fighting racism, you have only to read the books we have published.
When we met Alicia McCalla, she spoke of students would come to her asking for help finding books that featured characters who looked like them.
Gawenase Johnson shared a piece of American history that has been forgotten: a brief time when people of radically different backgrounds lived together in peace.
Terry C. Pierce brought a story of the Battle of Gettysburg, told from the Union point of view. He shared his concern that people focused on the stories of the romanticized Confederacy. After a year of hard work, this story of quiet leadership in the midst of crisis is ready to be told.
Each of our authors has a story, a purpose, a message, a passion that they bring to the pages of their work.
And there are more stories coming. Stories focusing not just on racism, but also mental illness, diversity, and other issues that for whatever reason have not connected with the main stream publishers.
Heart Ally Books will continue to empower authors, both in the stories that we publish directly and with the many authors that we mentor silently.
If you are a black independent author who feels unheard in the publishing world, feel free to reach out. Even if we are unable to take on your project, we will do everything in our power to help you succeed.
© 2023 Heart Ally Books, LLC