Hi friends,

✨ Happy September, Virgo Season, my birthday month, and Latine Heritage Month. ✨

I am an absolute ball of nervous energy here, leading up to the release of Orange Wine. It's that mix of desperately wanting the book to do well and find its audience, and excitement for you all to read it, and a sense of responsibility to Esperanza and her work, many, many years in the making. We recently recorded a podcast together (which I'll share when it comes out in a couple of weeks), and I joked that if this work is Esperanza's baby, then I often feel like the aunt.

Honestly, it's a very apt comparison.

I was also talking about the entire journey of bringing Orange Wine into the world, going back to when I was first talking to you all about it, and you were the ones who encouraged me to revisit it, who noticed how happy I got speaking about it, and who knew it was a work I couldn't stop thinking about. Now, here we are, and it truly wouldn't have been possible without you.

And I'm hoping you've got some extra time and energy to help just a bit more!

We want Orange Wine to find her home in bookstores, to have the chance to be discovered by readers wandering the aisles, to be stumbled upon by people who didn’t even know they were looking for it, to be accessible to readers of every demographic. That’s how books travel beyond their launch, beyond our own circles, and into the wider world.

But the reality is that it’s becoming harder for debut authors and small presses to break through, particularly in the national chains. I mean, it’s even becoming harder for best-selling authors like Silvia Moreno-Garcia to get copies on shelves, and this is the kind of experience we're hearing ripple through the industry.

Bindery has been lucky that all of our titles have been carried by Barnes & Noble so far, but a decentralized buying model means availability varies widely. I, for instance, don’t have a single copy of The Unmapping in a Barnes & Noble within 100 miles of me.

Which brings me back to the ask: We’re hoping that a push from our community can help signal to buyers that there’s genuine demand for Bindery titles, and specifically for Orange Wine.

This matters for all authors, but especially for writers from underrepresented communities. Orange Wine is written by Esperanza, a Colombian author whose work deserves a wide readership. And yet, Latiné authors remain deeply underrepresented in U.S. publishing, despite making up nearly 20% of the population. Every conversation, every pre-order, every store request helps chip away at that imbalance and open doors for more voices.

And if this is one of the tangible ways you can lend some support to a Latiné author and a Latiné publisher this Latiné Heritage Month, I’m really, truly asking you to consider helping us out.

So here’s how you can help Orange Wine reach shelves:

The Barnes & Noble Pre-Order Sale is happening September 3–5!

• Visit your local Barnes & Noble to pre-order Orange Wine. Bonus points for asking them to carry the title! We’ve even got a sell sheet you can share or drop off if you’d like. (Totally optional. This is just a resource in case it makes it easier.)

• If you don’t have a store nearby or can’t get to one, pre-ordering online counts too.

• Want to go the extra mile? Share your experience. I’d love to see people posting about pre-ordering Orange Wine and spreading the word with their local B&Ns.

• And of course, even just posting about Orange Wine on socials, including it in your Latiné Heritage Month coverage, and encouraging others to pre-order helps a lot.

As a thank-you, anyone who participates will be entered to win every Bindery book published so far, courtesy of Bindery. I’ll also be raffling a $50 Barnes & Noble gift card.

If being in the publishing industry has taught me anything so far, it’s that sometimes the systems in place can become extra obstacles, but I’m fighting, climbing, and following this passion and dream.

And I’m always beyond grateful to know that you are here with me.

Stay tuned for information about celebrating Orange Wine’s release on 9/30. I’d love to hear if any of you will be in New York on 10/14 for BinderyCon, and let me know in the comments if you’ve got anything else in your carts for the pre-order sale! Throw Our Sister’s Keeper in there while you’re at it 😉

♥️
Mari