David and Mick discuss the fact that “Christian publishing” mostly means evangelical publishing, so it can be frustrating when so much of what passes for the fuller picture of religious publishing in America is actually just the dominance of the biggest houses' biggest books.

We dig into some recent PW reporting and stats about the relative size of the industry, and try to correct some common misconceptions about who big Evangelical publishing represents and caters to.

Publishing Disrupted is at PublishingDisrupted.substack.com

Mick Silva is at MickSilvaEditing.substack.com

David Morris is at dvdmorris.substack.com, LakeDriveBooks.com, and Hyponymous.com.

Religious ethicist Liz Bucar, author of Beyond Wellness, joins us to talk about what writers can learn from her sabbatical-year experiment in becoming an online content creator. We discuss writing for religious and post-religious audiences, why curiosity about religion still matters, and how a Substack post about faith, politics, and the future unexpectedly went viral—and eventually led to a Time magazine piece.

Liz also shares practical lessons from building a platform: choosing content “buckets,” starting with the medium that feels natural, turning slow-form writing into social content, growing an email list, and confronting the enormous amount of work it can take. Her experience offers a useful alternative to generic advice about “building a platform”: find an approach you can actually sustain.

https://www.lizbucar.com/books

https://www.penguinrandomhouse.com/books/774524/beyond-wellness-by-liz-bucar/

https://lizbucar.substack.com/

Also mentioned:

https://www.leighstein.com/

https://www.sophiasmithgaler.com/

Publishing Disrupted is at PublishingDisrupted.substack.com

Mick Silva is at MickSilvaEditing.substack.com

David Morris is at dvdmorris.substack.com, LakeDriveBooks.com, and Hyponymous.com.

When David asked if my oldest daughter Ellie would like to come on and share her impressions of working to edit with me as her senior college internship this summer, I knew immediately this episode would be one of my favorites so far.

We covered the gamut from the different stages of the editing process, to why rejecting queries can be such a challenge. I wish we'd filmed this one so you could see me smiling like a goob the whole time. But if you're curious what a Zoomer thinks about book editing and publishing in today's cultural climate--especially as she's gone no-contact with church as well--please tune in!

Releasing Aug 4, 2026: The Future of an Illusion: Introduction and Annotations on Freud’s Enduring Critique of Religion by David R. Morris, PhD

Publishing Disrupted is at PublishingDisrupted.substack.com

Mick Silva is at MickSilvaEditing.substack.com

David Morris is at dvdmorris.substack.com, LakeDriveBooks.com, and Hyponymous.com.