They might be disappointed when they find out all they’ll get are short stories, but it’s a risk we’re willing to take.
The idea behind the Houston-based Pubs for Plebs is to put out short stories by writers we like in the same way a local record label puts out singles or an EP. We want to serve as a gathering place for writers to develop a larger audience.
Thanks to the Internet and mobile technology, it has never been easier to get your stories to the people who want to read them. Pubs for Plebs scours stories submitted to us for ones we like, and then publishes them in digital format on our website. Readers can read the story directly on the site—thanks to Issuu.com—or they can download the stories in E-Pub format (for iPad, Sony e-Reader, Nook, etc.) or PDF. If a story is under 3,000 words, it is made available on the front page (and eventually archived) for free reading/downloading. If it is over 3,000 words, we publish it as a ¢99 Featured Story. We put a sample of a few pages on the front page (and archive it) and provide links to download the EPUB or PDF files, paying with PayPal. In other words, we make longer stories available for download at the same price it would cost to buy a single song on iTunes.
Seem reasonable? Of course it does. You’re reading this on the Internet, right? Don’t question anything written on the Internet.
How it began:
Pubs for Plebs was founded by writer/editor/whatever Nathan Nix in 2010. A journalist by trade, Nathan had published a few articles here and there around Houston (mostly in free publications, for no specific reason) after graduating from the University of Houston in 2004. He soon realized he enjoyed making up stories from scratch instead of pounding the pavement in pursuit of leads. Knowing the people who employ journalists don’t want their writers making up stories, Nathan decided to write fiction to avoid the possibility of jail.
Just as Nathan began sending book manuscripts to literary agents, the economy tanked. If it was tough for new writers beforehand, it was near impossible after, especially if you didn’t live in New York or go to a prestigious university writing program.
Nathan formed Pubs for Plebs having been inspired by the DIY methods of influential record labels such as Dischord, Saddle Creek, Merge, etc. The publishing industry as you probably know it was (is) slowly dying, yet it stuck to a model that prohibited new writers from being given a chance to develop an audience for their work. There has always been a stigma associated with self-published writing, yet bands have been putting out their own work for decades to much critical acclaim and commercial success. For Nathan, it was time to apply what he’d learned from the music world to the evolving world of publishing.
