Launch of BAME in Publishing network

A network has been launched for people who are from black, Asian and minority ethnic (BAME) backgrounds and who work in the UK publishing industry, to come together and connect.

Sarah Shaffi, online editor and producer at The Bookseller, and Wei Ming Kam, sales and marketing assistant at Oberon Books, have set up BAME in Publishing “in response to the endless diversity debates and panels that have come and gone in the last few years”.

A post on the group’s website said: “In an ideal world, we wouldn’t need this group, but we all know there’s a lack of ethnic diversity in the UK publishing industry. When people from BAME backgrounds do make it into the industry, they can often feel isolated because they’re one of the few BAME people around. So we want a group where BAME publishing folk can meet each other.”

The new network will host monthly sessions to give BAME people in publishing a space to meet, make connections, find mentors, and share tips and job advice. The group is open to people from all departments related to publishing, and includes, but is not limited to, those working in publishing houses, agencies, retailers and libraries.

The organisers want people of “all levels” to come along to meetings so that “those starting out in publishing can talk to those in more senior roles and become inspired, and so that those in more senior roles can share their knowledge with those starting out.”

The group also intends to open the sessions up every three months to people from BAME backgrounds wanting to break into the publishing industry, with aspiring people able to come along and meet people, make connections and get advice.

More information can be found here.