An Interview with Comma Press
- Taylor Sandford
- Jul 22
- 10 min read
Earlier this year, I reviewed Collision: Stories from the Science of CERN, an ambitious collection from Comma Press that brought together fiction and physics.
The Manchester-based press has built its reputation on publishing bold, boundary-crossing short stories. I spoke to George Forster, Publicity and Marketing Officer at Comma, about the press’s origins, its distinctive approach to publishing from the North, and why short fiction still matters in an industry so often dominated by the novel.
Make sure to check out Comma Press's website for short stories, writing resources and writing events (including a horror writers' day and short course in August and September) Events | Comma Press
Firstly, thank you for agreeing to speak with me, I'm looking forward to finding out more about Comma Press. Tell me a little bit about yourself: What are you reading at the moment? What made you want to get into publishing? How long have you worked at Comma Press?
George:
As usual I’m juggling a few books at the moment. I’ve just picked up Penguin’s Weird Fiction: An Anthology which is mostly stuff I’ve already read – Poe, Lovecraft etc. but also a fair bit that’s new to me. I’m a sucker for a good cover and the whole series they’ve released are immaculate. I’ve just finished a Vonnegut binge – Slapstick, Galapagos and Cat’s Cradle, and I’m about halfway through Belly Up by Rita Bullwinkel which I came across through Blackwell’s Weird Fiction book club, which is a terrific debut collection – I’ll be picking up her novel Headshot which came out last year.
I came into publishing through writing. I did my bachelors in screenwriting at UCLan and found that I enjoyed editing and workshopping stories about as much as writing them so I kind of broadened my literary career aspirations at that point. I graduated into the pandemic and bounced around at home in Norwich for a while doing all sorts – teaching, bricklaying, hospitality - before deciding to move back up north and enrol on MMU’s publishing MA which Comma Press is linked to.
I actually knew about Comma before enrolling as they published ‘The New Uncanny’ which featured a story by Matthew Holness called ‘Possum.’ Holness went on to develop the story into a feature film which is one of my favourite horror flicks, and I kind of found my way to the press through that.
On my MA I was able to volunteer at Comma’s National Creative Writing Industry Day, and through that I was offered an internship and was given a heads up when a role opened up later that year. I’ve been working at Comma as their publicity person since autumn 2023 which sounds like ages now I say it, but it’s absolutely flown by.
If you could recommend one title from your backlist to a new reader of Comma, which would it be, and is there any upcoming release you're particularly excited about?
George:
I have attachments to a few of our books, so I’m biased but The New Uncanny I really like, and Adam Marek’s The Universe Delivers the Enemy You Need has a special place in my heart as I planned the marketing campaign for it as part of my interview, but I absolutely love it on merit. We published He Used to do Dangerous Things last October, which is the debut fiction collection of Gaia Holmes, whose poetry we have published for a long time. Her fiction is a revelation, applying the magical thought that set her poetry apart to the stark realities of life in modern Britain. It always winds me up a bit when I see prose described as lyrical as it’s a bit overplayed but there’s really no other word for it in this case.
I’m cheating a little as it’s not technically upcoming anymore, but we’ve just published a collection of diaries from Gaza written by four female Palestinian writers we know who are still trapped in the strip. The diaries are called Voices of Resistance and we’re publishing it alongside several other publishers around the world, all raising money for the authors Ala’a Obaid, Batool Abu Akleen, Sondos Sabra and Nahil Mohana.
Later in the year we’ve got a horror anthology coming out called The Monster, Capital which is a collection of horror stories based on the works of Mark Fisher who had this analysis of capitalism as a kind of vampiric, parasitic monster. It features some well-established voices like Matthew Holness, plus some of our favourite up-and-coming authors like Bronte Schiltz who we also published in The Book of Manchester last year.
You’re probably most well-known for your ‘reading the city’ series - which explores different cities around the world. Could you tell me a little more about this series, perhaps how the idea came about and how the authors, translators and cities are chosen?
George:
Reading the City is as old as Comma itself, really. The first thing Comma published, even before it was formally incorporated in 2007, was The Book of Leeds. Publishing is a very metropolitan industry – the voices that emerge are often those that succeed in the big publishing capitals: London, New York, Beirut and Cairo in the Arab world. We wanted to showcase the literary scenes of other cultural hotspots that don’t get the same kind of recognition; hence we’ve done anthologies from Havana, Riga, Tbilisi etc.
In terms of how the anthologies come about there’s the real-politique aspect of securing funding from some kind of body as our ACE funding doesn’t extend to non-English stuff. From there we approach potential editors who are connected to the literary scene of a city and who will be able to help source authors and navigate intricacies of the place that we may not be familiar with. We put out a public call for stories but also invite specific writers who the editors think would be key figures to feature.
We try to include voices from different communities and neighbourhoods from within a city as well, and the anthologies are a mix of genres and styles reflecting the city’s literary scene as a whole. We don’t really give guidelines from authors but we find that these anthologies tend to have narrative throughlines that develop naturally based on what’s occupying the authors’ minds. For example much of The Book of Manchester is centred around class divides and gentrification, whereas The Book of Bradford (publishing this October) has a lot of stories about reconnecting with the city via
reconnecting with people – with family, the community etc. It’s the 2025 UK city of culture so I think a lot of Bradfordians (?) are recontextualising their relationship to the city and that’s showing in their fiction.
I’ve recently talked about Collision - Stories from the Science of CERN. Could you talk a little about the process behind these collaborations between authors and science?
George:
These interdisciplinary anthologies or ‘Science into Fiction’ titles are a huge favourite of mine. We’re fortunate to be able to send a delegation of authors to meet with scientists, to tour facilities and discuss boundary-pushing ideas. Each author-scientist pairing works together to explore the theory behind something, before the writer runs away with it, turning in something exciting, new and firmly-rooted in real science.
These stories are a great way of engaging with cutting-edge science, and the afterwords from the scientists are a great resource for anyone wanting to learn more.
Comma has a strong focus on the short story form. What draws you to it, and why do you think it’s important to champion this style of writing?
George:
We champion the short story for a few reasons. One is that we pride ourselves on publishing a lot of in translation, and short stories are more ‘portable’. By that I mean the short story format, the way they are constructed, the way they narrowly focus on character, are more easily transported across cultures than, say, a novel.
The other reason is that there’s a dearth of short story publishing in the UK. The short story as an art form is such a rich seam, but publishers often overlook it and authors sometimes look down on it as a lesser format or some kind of stepping stone to the novel, when in fact it’s a completely different undertaking that requires every bit as much skill to master.
What does being based in the North mean to Comma Press, not just geographically, but culturally and politically?
George:
I think being based in the North informs our identity as an outsider to the bulk of the publishing industry. I think in the last Publishers Association industry report came back saying over 60% of publishers are based in London and the South East, so as much as the industry is slowly becoming less centralised, there’s a long way to go.
I can’t speak to what it’s like in London as my only experience has been of Northern publishing, but the community here is very tightly-knit. There’s a lot of cross-promotion and boosting of each others’ work, so there’s an environment of cooperation rather than competition when it comes to Northern publishing – a rising tide lifts all boats, as they say.
Do you think the Northern publishing scene is more open to experimentation or innovation than the London-centric industry?
George:
I think it’s more of a Big 5 vs Indie question rather than just a north/south thing. London is home to the major commercial publishers who are very risk-averse as they have lots of money riding on the success of their titles, whereas indies who are often funded externally – whether via Arts Council England or patronage – are able to take risks and innovate.
I think it’s fair to say Northern publishing, with a higher proportion of indie publishing houses – is more open to experimentation than the London publishers but I wouldn’t want to imply there isn’t exciting, brave publishing happening in the capital.
Cipher Press comes to mind as an incredible London-based publisher of queer fiction – they published Tell Me I’m Worthless by Alison Rumfitt who is a phenomenal trans horror writer who I’ve since had the pleasure of working with. Verso Books also do incredible work.
I do think Northern publishing industry is emerging as an incredible force as of late. We’ve seen Bluemoose Books (Hebden Bridge) sell tonnes of copies of Lenoard and Hungry Paul and loads of TV/Film rights, And Other Stories (Sheffield) just won the Booker Prize, Dead Ink Books (Liverpool) won best fiction at last year’s NERO awards. I think Northern publishing has firmly established itself, and with the bigger publishers opening more offices up here I think it’s only going to grow larger.
What are some of the biggest challenges facing independent publishers today, especially those outside of London? And has Comma changed the way it approaches things in response to these challenges?
George:
Rising production costs are probably the big concern at the moment. We’ve had printers go out of business, supply chain problems and that kind of thing. There’s not a whole lot you can do in these circumstances except try to reduce overhead and bump your books’ RRP up to keep up with inflation. We’re fortunate to have ACE (Arts Council England) funding so we don’t have to worry as much, but it does make things more difficult.
The other big one is AI. Tech companies are using published works to train their LLMs with zero transparency or consent. I have personal concerns about the rising use of AI in generating content – we’ve seen AI book covers, AI audiobooks, and I imagine AI-written works aren’t far away if they’re not here already. Maybe that’s a bit doomer – I hope it is – but I think commercial operations will want to cut costs wherever possible.
How do people typically come to work with you, is it through internships, volunteering, freelance projects, or just normal job application routes?
George:
We operate several events through the year and always need a few extra hands in running those, and we like to offer volunteers a placement in the office to work with us and learn about publishing in a hands-on capacity. This was my route in – I applied to a normal job listing but it’s always good if a publisher can put a face to a name – so the volunteer-intern-applicant route worked for me! As with most small presses, we’re a small team, so job listings are less common than for larger presses.
What advice would you give to someone looking to get started in the publishing industry outside of London?
George:
Engage with your local publishing and literary scene – bookshops, festivals, publishing houses, book launches etc. As I say, it’s good for publishers (or whoever else) to be familiar with you. It’s no guarantee of employment of course, but I see the same people at our events all the time and it’s always nice to have a chat with them.
The other thing I’d recommend is to be proactive in the broad areas you want to apply for. For example, during my BA I wrote and researched for an online magazine and a YouTube channel. These were great items on my CV when applying for my role in publicity and marketing because they showed that I was experienced in writing copy, doing web design, research etc. Social media skills are invaluable, so if you’re a creator on Instagram or TikTok that goes a long way.
I’d encourage people to broaden their skillset and keep an open mind in terms of the roles you apply to. The way small presses work is that everyone does a bit of everything, and you can move across roles more easily than in a larger, more structured press. Small presses are looking for creative, open-minded and adaptable people.
Shameless plug but look out for our Publishing Insights Days at MMU! The next one will be Summer 2026, but these are great opportunities to learn about publishing, meet publishers and take part in hands-on workshops.
What advice would you give to someone looking to start their own publishing house (again outside of London)?
George:
Connect with people who have already taken that step – Fly on the Wall Press, Bluemoose Books etc. – as they will have vital technical advice that goes well beyond what I could tell you, but you need a very solid grasp of the economics of publishing, the distribution process, contracts etc.
Make sure you have your legal and financial matters handled by someone qualified to do so!
Start small and build slowly. Take time to develop a brand identity and a strong publishing ethos, and be careful not to bite off too much at once. That could be starting by publishing zines or chapbooks and working up to paperbacks once you’ve developed an audience.
Are there any networks, organisations, or events you'd recommend for aspiring northern publishers or editors to get involved with?
George:
Follow the Northern Fiction Alliance which is a collective of Northern publishers set up to champion northern publishing. They boost Northern publishers, book fairs, launches etc. Come to our industry days, volunteer at literature festivals etc.
Manchester is a UNESCO city of literature so if you’re local you can follow their work which is vital for the city’s cultural heritage.
You can join the Society of Young Publishers even if you’re not in the industry yet. They have local chapters and provide resources/events etc.
Also, if you’re an aspiring publisher based in the North but you do want to relocate to London then I’d look into the Spare Room Project which was set up to enable aspiring publishers from outside London to attend work experience placements and internships by setting up accommodation in the city with people already working in the industry.
--
Thank you again for speaking with me today, it's been really interesting and enlightening to see how Comma and the Northern publishing industry as a whole operates. Pick up the books mentioned in the interview at Comma Press!
Comments