Get Wokeism Out of Publishing

Blog Post

Oct 6

Written By

Now that the government has created the Department of Government Efficiency (DOGE), I would like to reexamine other domains of public life that need some cutting too. While it may be my husband’s job to take on the American Library Association (ALA) and the United States military, I feel responsible for exposing the current publishing industry’s goals. I typed into the Manuscript Wishlist website “literary fiction” and the twenty-odd suggestions for literary agents to connect with made me awfully depressed with the descriptions of what they were seeking in an author to represent to the larger publishing companies. Here’s a warning: This list will wake up people outside of the book industry who always wonder why there are no great classics published any longer. So, indulge me for a while as I inundate you with prime examples of what literary agents are looking for in authors today:

1. “[…] values nonfiction that centers the voices of those who live in the margins of the social, political, and cultural mainstream, especially queer and trans folks.”
2. “Fiction:” “BIPOC Literature,” Caribbean Literature,” “East Asian Literature,” “LGBTQ,” “Neo-Western,” “South Asian Literature,” “South East Asian Literature,” “West African Literature,” “Women’s Fiction”
3. “Must have a Muslim protagonist” and “Muslim romance novels starting after marriage, arranged marriage love stories, and love life of essential workers (factory, janitorial, etc.).”
4. “I love stories that take place in parts of the world or time period not often explored, and I’m always looking for fresh new voices and underrepresented narratives.”
5. “Fiction:” “Eco-Fiction”
6. “Any Indigenous/First Nations works” or “Non-western horror” or “Sports romance (LGBTQ+ ideally but not necessary), especially something that subverts toxic masculinity. Magical realism that feels psychological and twisted, with an unreliable and/or unlikable narrator. Unrequited love in women’s fiction where it works out for the best.”
7. “[P]icture books that introduce different cultures and play with mixing the languages on the page” or “picture books with LGBTQIA+ content” or “books that teach social-emotional lessons” or “representation of all kinds on the page” or “creators from backgrounds that have been historically underrepresented in traditional publishing,” “characters who are BIPOC/Latinx” or “characters who are neurodivergent” or “characters that defy gender norms” or “unique family structures” or “coming-of-age/exploration of identity” or “intersectionality”
8. “Does your book make the world a better place? Is it entertaining, educational, uplifting, telling an important story or sharing an otherwise underrepresented perspective?”
9. “She is interested in vulnerable and humorous realistic stories that center underrepresented characters. She especially loves stories featuring” […] “girly and/or queer friend groups” or “immigrant or intergenerational families (especially BIPOC or Caribbean)” or “emotional support pets.”
10. “[…] I am particularly drawn to stories that highlight diverse—defined the same way as We Need Diverse Books—voices and offer fresh perspectives on identity, community, and belonging.” Also, “I’d love to see works that blend psychological fiction and underrepresented voices with elements of horror, exploring both personal fears and cultural lore.”
11. “Fiction: BIPOC Literature,” “#ownvoices,” “Africanfuturism,” “BIPOC Fantasy,” “BIPOC Horror,” “BIPOC Mystery,” “Dark Female Friendships,” “LGBTQ+ Fantasy,” “LGBTQ+ Sci-Fi,” “LGBTQIA,” “afrofuturism”
12. “She is committed to advocating for the work of authors and artists with marginalized identities, and she’s actively looking for stories that allow young readers to recognize themselves in the books they love.”
13. “[…] I’m most drawn to stories that feature a diverse cast of queer characters” and “More queer, BIPOC middle-grade stories,” “MG first-crush stories that feature queer, BIPOC, and/or disabled protagonists,” “MG with fat or chubby protagonists”
14. “A story that blows the lid off of some kind of corrupt entity (bonus points if it’s about the United States Supreme Court), or gives a deep dive into a secretive company)”
15. “In literary fiction, I’m looking for novels that explore themes of belonging, desire, insecurity, loneliness, female friendship, and sexuality, especially if they do so in a surreal way.”
16. “She loves compelling narrators and is drawn to writing that is voice-driven, highly transporting, and features unique perspectives and marginalized voices.”
17. “[…] a real plus is a new spin on an old trope.”
18. “She loves stories with […] strong female leads, LGBT+ and/or BIPOC Joy, and magic of all sorts.”
19. “I am still seeking Christian YA, Christian fiction, and adult nonfiction as well.”

Well, there you have it, readers and authors. These are your gatekeepers. These are the people who will get your foot in the proverbial door to even see an employee of the “big five” publishing companies because they don’t take unagented or unsolicited manuscripts. Unless you write popular genre fiction with the correct “bent,” then there is no more space for a true story—a unique, individualistic story that doesn’t follow a blank-meets-blank format.

I understand that those types of books, namely literary fiction, are harder to sell, but agents don’t even want those stories anymore. Blame the universities, as Trump and his staff rightly do. The universities have been disseminating left-wing propaganda now for decades, at least since the 1960s. If you wanted good grades, you became a good little Marxist. Cultural Marxism has leaked into every aspect of getting a liberal arts education. I cannot speak for the math and science crowd, though I’ve heard theories that are just as divorced from reality as Berkeley’s fallen tree question. (It also says a lot that the University of California, Berkeley, is named after him.) But getting back to the point, agents who bring publishers new authors are not looking for literary fiction but literary activists. They want to disseminate leftist propaganda just as much as Disney is doing with their box office flops they keep putting out regardless of the money they lose. Leftists want to shove their politics down everyone’s throats without the world noticing. Then, if you point it out, you are immediately labeled as a “far right, conspiracy theorist” or the like, gaslighting you out of existence. They will try to deny that cultural Marxism is even real, and that “reality” is just what is trending. Don’t be fooled.

This is why freer companies, like X, and the entire self-publishing space, like YouTube and Apple Podcasts and IngramSpark and Amazon KDP, are all ways to bypass those “literary” agent gatekeepers. I, myself, have chosen to retain more of my royalties by writing, publishing, and marketing all my work alone. Of course, I don’t have access to the same avenues as those with traditional publishing deals, but I refuse to have the woke virus touch my art. I suggest other authors start or continue doing the same. Do not just be activists. Your work will not be evergreen if you allow Luna over here to hang her university-required talking points on everything, like a slumping Christmas tree. She is not the artist here, you are. She graduated and went into marketing for a publishing company because she was more in love with the idea of looking like an author than actually being one. Luna does not care about you or real art but about how her colleagues see her as she romps around with “the next big name” in publishing. Ayn Rand would call her type a second-hander, and I would call her the sorority girl activist.

The final quote on the list is a single literary agent asking for Christian fiction. This is the only throwaway alternative to the mainstream. Agents throw a bone to the religious audience because of how many people will buy such books—there’s still an automatic, paying readership there. So, those are your alternatives: lesbian erotica or Christian young adult books. Where would a character like Faust fit into that? Who would be able to read the next Louisa May Alcott? There is no room for them in traditional publishing anymore.

My final piece of advice to the authors is to write because you have this incessant urge to empty that well of feelings and experiences out onto the page. Write until you empty that bucket, only to pause your writing and fill it back up with more. This is my process, one that gives me purpose in life.

My final piece of advice to the readers of literary fiction and those old souls who love the classics is that there are new authors out there waiting to reach you, but they must be found in the veiled corners of this world. Maybe someday the publishing industry will be controlled by people who don’t want more justice warriors or activists, but until then, keep searching the Wild West of the internet. I do not believe that good art is truly dead yet. And with each new generation, more sensitive people are created, people who put the work into making themselves strong, passionate writers, whose words do not fade with time. An author's readers are the ones who keep them alive. I will always believe that reading the classics is the best way to live a thousand lives and learn to be an empathetic individual, an overall better person, and a fighter for the good. Literary fiction will rise again when the darkness lifts.

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Views Expressed Disclaimer: Please know that while I consider myself an Objectivist and my work is inspired by Objectivism, it is not nor should it be considered Objectivist since I am not the creator of the philosophy. For more information about Ayn Rand's philosophy visit: aynrand.org.

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