Indie Press Month: A Brooklyn Indie Story with Tim McLoughlin and Johnny Temple
In collaboration with the Indie Publishers Caucus and EveryLibrary, BPL is celebrating Indie Press Month with a special series spotlighting our vibrant local indie publishing culture and exploring the perspectives of authors, editors, and publishers.
Red Hook Library is pleased to welcome author Tim McLoughlin, publisher and editor-in-chief of Akashic Books Johnny Temple, and Executive Director of EveryLibrary John Chrastka to discuss the making of Brooklyn Noir, the power of indie publishing, writing Brooklyn, and the editorial process.
New York’s punchiest borough asserts its criminal legacy with all new stories from a magnificent set of today’s best writers. Brooklyn Noir moves from Coney Island to Bedford-Stuyvesant to Bay Ridge to Red Hook to Bushwick to Sheepshead Bay to Park Slope and far deeper, into the heart of Brooklyn’s historical and criminal largesse, with all of its dark splendor. Each contributor presents a brand new story set in a distinct neighborhood. Brooklyn Noir mixes masters of genre with the best of New York’s literary fiction community—and, of course, leaving room for new blood. These brilliant and chilling stories see crime striking in communities of Russians, Jamaicans, Puerto Ricans, Italians, Irish, and many other ethnicities—in the most diverse urban location on the planet.
Please RSVP in advance as space is limited. After the discussion, there will be opportunity for Q&A with the audience.
PARTICIPANTS
Johnny Temple is publisher and editor in chief of Akashic Books, an award-winning Brooklyn-based independent company. He is the editor of the anthology USA Noir, which was selected as a New York Times Editors’ Choice. Temple has taught courses on the publishing business at Wilkes University, Wesleyan University, and Pratt Institute; and is the cochair of the Brooklyn Book Festival Literary Council, which organizes the annual Brooklyn Book Festival. He also plays bass in the bands Girls Against Boys, Soulside, and Fake Names, which have toured extensively across the globe and released numerous albums on independent and major record companies.
Tim McLoughlin is the editor of the multiple award–winning anthologies Brooklyn Noir and Brooklyn Noir 2, and coeditor of Brooklyn Noir 3. His debut novel, Heart of the Old Country, was a selection of the Barnes & Noble Discover Great New Writers program, won Italy’s Premio Penne award, and was the basis for the motion picture The Narrows. His books have been published in seven languages. McLoughlin retired after working for thirty years as a peace officer in the New York City criminal justice system, and divides his time between Brooklyn and Eastern Pennsylvania. Alcohol, Tobacco, and Firearms: Stories and Essays is his latest work.
John Chrastka is a founder and executive director of EveryLibrary, the national political action committee for libraries, and the EveryLibrary Institute, a public policy and tax policy think tank for libraries. Since 2012, EveryLibrary has provided pro-bono support to 155 library communities with ballot measures and tax referendums, helping win more than $2.8 billion in stable tax funding. He is a former Board President of the Berwyn (IL) Public Library and RAILS, the Reaching Across Illinois Libraries System. Prior to EveryLibrary, he was a partner at AssociaDirect, an association consultancy, was Director for Membership Development at ALA, and a co-founder of the EdTech startup Classmap. He was recognized by Library Journal in 2014 as a Mover & Shaker, the Chicago Tribune in 2022 as a Chicagoan of the Year for his work opposing book bans, and a Publishers Weekly Notable Person for 2024.
