On this episode of the Self-Publishing with ALLi podcast, Dan Holloway reflects on the death of Porter Anderson, longtime editor in chief of Publishing Perspectives and a respected, sharp-witted voice in the book world whose influence reached far into both traditional and indie publishing. Dan shares tributes from colleagues and friends before turning to Spotify’s year-end audiobook trends, where romantic and “spicy” fantasy continue to dominate and darker genres like dystopia and horror are showing new momentum.
Listen to the Podcast: Remembering Porter Anderson
Sponsor
Self-Publishing News is proudly sponsored by PublishMe—helping indie authors succeed globally with expert translation, tailored marketing, and publishing support. From first draft to international launch, PublishMe ensures your book reaches readers everywhere. Visit publishme.me.
Thoughts or further questions on this post or any self-publishing issue?
If you’re an ALLi member, head over to the SelfPubConnect forum for support from our experienced community of indie authors, advisors, and our own ALLi team. Simply create an account (if you haven’t already) to request to join the forum and get going.
Non-members looking for more information can search our extensive archive of blog posts and podcast episodes packed with tips and advice at ALLi's Self-Publishing Advice Center.
About the Host
Dan Holloway is a novelist, poet, and spoken word artist. He is the MC of the performance arts show The New Libertines, He competed at the National Poetry Slam final at the Royal Albert Hall. His latest collection, The Transparency of Sutures, is available on Kindle.
Read the Transcript
Dan Holloway: Hello and welcome to a very scratchy-sounding and probably fairly short Self-Publishing News podcast. I have spent the last week coming down with and in the throes of a particularly nasty flu bug. Apologies for the sound of my voice — I would always apologize for the sound of my voice, but particularly so right now. I'll keep things brief.
This week's news is dominated by very sad news: the death of Porter Anderson. Porter was the editor in chief of Publishing Perspectives — someone that all of us in the indie world will have read many, many times. Many of us will have met him. I met him on a number of occasions over very many years. He's someone whose opinion I always sought out, whose views I always respected, someone with whom I sparred at times, but for whom I always felt the greatest affection and respect. And I think that's how most of us thought of Porter.
I want to read a few things that people have said to me about their memories of Porter, all of them with permission. I want to start with our own Orna Ross, who said: ‘The news of Porter's death has shaken the indie author community, particularly those of us who were around for the beginning of the digital publishing revolution. Porter brought an unusual combination of smart intelligence, editorial rigor, and big-picture opinion to everything he wrote. Not to mention a formidable work ethic, a scathing sense of humor, and a deep kindness under the jokes and joshing.' For me it was that mix — that scathing sense of humor and deep kindness — that I will remember most.
My dear friend Rónán Hession, a fellow ALLi member, reflects: ‘I first met Porter in New York at Tools of Change in 2013 in a midtown hotel conference room. I happened to sit at the next table to his at the front of the audience, just when he was putting the final touches to a kind of nest he'd built around him. It was a NASA-style array made of laptops, mounted tablets and cell phones, coiling cables, and well-filled coffee — all emanating an impressive aura, serious business and twinkly vanity combined. The classic Porter cocktail.' Yes, Porter was many, many things. The one thing he was not was one-dimensional.
And from Joanna Penn, obviously a huge figure in the book world: ‘Porter was one of the first people in traditional publishing to open up to indie authors. He was always curious about what we were doing and always respectful about our choices, and always had a wicked sense of humor when I met him in person at conferences.' His barbs were Capote-esque at times. He never shied away from saying what he thought. Alongside Publishing Perspectives, he will probably be known best as the person who co-founded The Hot Sheet with Jane Friedman, which is one of the most crucial sources of information for everyone in the publishing world.
Rest in peace, Porter. Rest with your nest of contradictions and delicious depths. Thank you for everything you have done for all of us on a personal and professional level.
Spotify Wrapped: Audio Book Trends for the Year
How do you follow that? Briefly, with a fascinating look at Spotify's end-of-year roundup. Spotify Wrapped has just come out, and when looking through what they had to say about audiobooks, I came across their thoughts on the year in audiobooks and the trends they're seeing.
It will surprise no one that dominating the year in audiobooks has been romantasy, along with spicy romance. The two series absolutely dominating the charts at Spotify are Rebecca Yarros's Fourth Wing and Sarah J. Maas's A Court of Thorns and Roses. Interestingly, music memoir has also come up, as well as what they're calling ‘dystopian anxiety' — things like 1984 and Brave New World. And they are highlighting the importance of horror for the coming year.
That's something we haven't seen for quite some time. I've been used to things being dominated for many years by cozies. When COVID hit, people really didn't want to know about dystopia or anything particularly scary from their fiction. Instead they wanted cozies, and the cozy mystery in particular has been going through a massive sustained spell, led by authors like Richard Osman and many of our own ALLi members. That may be beginning to change, and there appears to be more of a desire among readers to take a darker turn.
As a writer and as a reader, I find that particularly encouraging. I was writing my column while watching the final season of Stranger Things — very much not cozy — and this afternoon from my bed I have been watching YouTube videos of Mark Fisher talking about the importance of theory. It feels like these sorts of things have been missing from very popular culture for a few years and maybe they're coming back. That's a trend for writers to pick up on for the year to come.
I'll leave it at that. I'll see if I have any voice left and hope to speak to you at greater length next week, and obviously with happier news as the year draws to an end. Thank you very much for listening. And tribute again to our late and greatly lamented friend, Porter Anderson. Thank you.
