The publishing industry isn’t just changing—it’s completely fragmenting. In our latest episode, we talked about why two former Christian publishing professionals (Mick Silva and David Morris), have shifted so strongly toward a new model of authors aiming not for everyone, but for the readers that specifically fit them. Based on Kevin Kelly’s “1,000 True Fans“ concept, this episode, as usual, gave us plenty to discuss.

• Why a massive reach isn't necessary anymore to succeed as an author
• Why you need to be able to define your specific audience in a sentence
• How to start finding those "1000 true fans"

Publisher and Literary Agent David Morris is at DavidRMorris.me

Editor Mick Silva is at MickSilva.com

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In this episode of Publishing Disrupted, co-hosts Mick Silva and David Morris sit down with their first-ever guest, author Cara Meredith, for an honest and layered conversation about life as a working writer navigating faith, publishing, and purpose.

Cara is the author of the new book Church Camp: Bad Skits, Cry Night, and How White Evangelicalism Betrayed a Generation, a memoir-meets-cultural-critique that examines how white evangelical institutions shaped—and in many cases harmed—a generation.

Together, we unpack what it really means to pursue writing as vocation, the spiritual and professional toll of publishing in evangelical spaces, and what happens when a flagship evangelical outlet publishes a highly critical review. Cara also shares the practical realities of marketing your own book, building authentic author relationships, and sustaining creativity in the midst of competing demands.

This is a rich, reflective, and inspiring conversation for writers, creatives, and anyone trying to live with integrity in the shifting landscape of faith and publishing.

🧵 What We Talk About in This Episode:

• Cara’s new book: Church Camp: Bad Skits, Cry Night, and How White Evangelicalism Betrayed a Generation
• Her “three-legged stool” approach to life and vocation as a writer
• Navigating the shift from evangelical to progressive publishing
• How to build author relationships and leverage your network
• Dealing with criticism and reviews that misrepresent your work
• Setting boundaries, taking breaks, and staying grounded
• Disrupting the norms of religious publishing—for good

🔗 Episode Links

• Cara Meredith’s website: https://www.carameredith.com
• Buy Cara’s book, Church Camp: Broadleaf Books – Church Camp
• Mick Silva's editing & coaching: https://www.micksilva.com
• David Morris' publishing and agenting: https://davidrmorris.me

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We explore how publishing is changing—and how writers can stay grounded and grow through the disruption.

In this fifth episode, we get into another fundamental shift in the publishing world: book development. The old playbook of “authority from on high” is dead. Long live the authentic voice!

There's the three elements of book proposals: platform (your ability to reach readers), concept (a current, but time-honored topic), and craft (your “method” and ability to deliver the goods). But the craft must now derive primarily from an authentic voice emerging from your personal process, rather than from presumed or external authority.

Which helps explain why “for the Bible tells me so” doesn’t work so well anymore. Because basically this anti-traditional, anti-establishment culture wants a different kind of authority.

So we then discussed how the three-act story structure can serve even nonfiction authors working to incorporate a more humble, vulnerable approach, and how the ending shouldn’t be neat and tidily resolved, but somewhat ambiguous and inclusive of complexity (i.e. authentic).

Bottom line: readers want to see real life-change in their books these days. So come along and let's get into it!