Conduit Books is a new independent press which will focus initially on male authors who have been reportedly ‘overlooked’. Founded by Jude Cook, Conduit plans to publish literary fiction and memoir by male writers, and is actively searching for débuts from those under 35.
Cook explains that the publishing landscape has changed “dramatically” over the past 15 years as a reaction to the “prevailing toxic male-dominated literary scene of the 80s, 90s and noughties”. Now, “excitement and energy around new and adventurous fiction is around female authors – and this is only right as a timely corrective”.
“This new breed of young female authors, spearheaded by Sally Rooney et al, ushered in a renaissance for literary fiction by women, giving rise to a situation where stories by new male authors are often overlooked, with a perception that the male voice is problematic,” he said.
According to the Women’s Prize Trust (WPT), using data drawn from Nielsen BookData’s consumer research in 2023, however, men overwhelming ignore books written by women in favour of male authors while women buy books by men and women equally.
On average though, women read more books which perhaps goes some way to explain the rise in female authors being commissioned, and the dominance of women in the publishing industry as a whole. A recent YouGov poll found that 66% of women have read or listened to a book in the last year, compared to just over half (53%) of men who said the same.
Conduit Books therefore want to change this by publishing books by men for men, that focus on topics that will hopefully draw more readers.
The “overlooked narratives” that Jude Cook hopes to address with Conduit include: fatherhood, masculinity, working class male experiences, sex, relationships, and “negotiating the 21st century as a man”.
Cook explains that the “subject of what young men read has become critically important”, particularly when it comes to conversations of toxic masculinity that have already been opened up by the likes of Netflix’s Adolescence.
It “can’t be over-stressed” that Conduit Books “doesn’t seek an adversarial stance”, Cook said. “Nor is the press looking to exclude writers of colour, or queer, non-binary and neurodivergent authors.”
There has “never been an independent publisher that champions literary fiction by men,” said Cook. “Which is not to say we won’t publish fiction by women in the future – but the emphasis at first will be on male authors. We believe there is ambitious, funny, political and cerebral fiction by men that is being passed by.”
He adds that since announcing the new press, the response “has been overwhelmingly positive, especially from female authors and women who work in publishing”.
