We’re starting a press.
Not a big one, not yet — but we’re building something new… Urban Librarians Unite Press. And we want to tell you why, because you’re the reason it exists.
The gap we keep running into
If you want to write or talk about library work right now, your options are basically: hope you get accepted into ALA, write an academic article, or write a whole book. Both take TIME. Both usually expect you to sound like a scholar, cite the right people, and go through channels that were never built with library workers in mind. And with the decline of blogs (although there are still some amazing ones out there), even the informal, “let me just tell you what happened at my branch” kind of writing doesn’t have much of a home anymore.
Meanwhile, most of what gets published about librarianship still comes from academic researchers or big national organizations. Those groups have their own constraints on what they can say, how fast, and how bluntly. That leaves a real gap between what library workers actually live through and what ends up in print as “the literature” of our field.
We hear about this gap constantly. In our first-year LWSN survey, workers weren’t shy about it. One person wrote:
“THAT is why I would recommend LWSN, because it is PEER-BASED and only we really know the strange mix of joyful moments and traumatic lows of library work. LWSN is a unicorn — our unicorn.”
Over 190 people signed up for LWSN in that first year, from more than 35 states, and in our 3rd year we are almost at 300 members! The thing people kept naming as valuable was being somewhere with people who just get it. We think ULU publishing can offer the same by building a place where the writing comes from people who’ve actually done the work, not people studying it from outside.
Why ULU, and why now
Because we’re independent, we can publish things others might not touch, on our own timeline, without asking permission first. That’s what we mean by ”for library workers, by library workers: real stories, real tools, real life.” We want work that’s honest and useful, not filtered down to something safe.
Honestly, this isn’t a huge leap for us. We’re already putting out reports like the trauma study, drag story hour guides, hosting an awesome conference, and more. ULU Press just gives that work a home and allows us to open our doors to others to join us!
Not everyone has the time to sit down and write a 20-page research paper so we are creating a place to publish that can go on a résumé, build your confidence as a writer, and get your name and ideas in front of people who need them, written in whatever precious moments you can find at the desk.
First up: an annual compendium
We’re starting small and concrete: a yearly compendium open to submissions from library workers everywhere, any level, any size or type of library. Case studies, art, personal reflections, op-eds, whatever form your experience takes, we want to read it.
This isn’t meant to feel like writing a term paper. You don’t need to sound like a “scholar”, cite a bunch of sources, or clear academic gatekeeping to be heard here. If you’ve got something to say about the work, that’s enough of a reason to submit. We want to hear your authentic voice.
What’s next
Start thinking about what you’d write if someone finally asked…because we’re asking.
Our call for submissions is now open through December2026/Early January 2027. You can find requirements and submit your work here.
