Publishing is a mysterious process for many writers. Even seasoned authors often have questions about how it all works. To demystify the process, we’re interviewing publishing professionals from various roles to explain what they do and how it impacts you as an author.
In this interview, I was joined by Bradley Isbell, the director of operations for Iron Stream Media. When he’s not on a mission trip to Zambia or the Dominican Republic, you can catch him doing CrossFit or heading to Walt Disney World. Bradley, welcome to the Christian Publishing Show!
What do you do as director of operations?
Bradley: A lot of people around the office call me Yoda. That’s become my nickname over the years at several publishing companies. I’m a jack of all trades. If I don’t know the answer, I’m searching for it. My role is about fixing problems. You never know what a day will bring. I may be helping a customer, assisting our owner, or supporting one of our publishers. I’m constantly problem-solving as the director of operations.
How does your role fit within Iron Stream Media?
Thomas: At Iron Stream Media, you have an owner-CEO above you, and you handle the day-to-day operations. Is that how it works?
Bradley: Exactly. I’ve been working with John, our CEO, for about ten years now. We started at Student Life, where our first brand originated. We created Bible study curriculum for summer camps. Through several owners and iterations of the company, John and I have developed a strong partnership. We work together to figure things out, but I serve alongside him to keep operations running smoothly.
Who reports to you in this structure?
Bradley: I’m overseeing the editorial team, marketing team, and all other departments. The customer service and sales teams also funnel through me. I work with John to ensure we’re crossing all the T’s and dotting all the I’s.
What does the sales team do, and why is it important?
Thomas: A sales team is a key differentiator between traditional publishers and indie authors. Many don’t realize what publishers sell or who they sell to. Can you explain what a sales team does?
Bradley: At Iron Stream, our history gives us a unique advantage. We’ve always maintained strong connections with consumers and churches, especially through our Bible study curriculum. We have a database of direct customers we reach out to, and our in-house sales team manages those relationships.
We also work with our distributor, Baker & Taylor, whose sales team represents us to retail stores like CBD, Amazon, and Barnes & Noble. We manage sales directly to consumers and churches and through retail bookstores. Both require long-term relationship-building to get resources in front of buyers early. It’s critical for a book’s success.
Thomas: If a church orders 500 copies of your curriculum or book, that’s worth a phone call and some outreach, especially if they’ll order another 500 next year. Building relationships requires a lot of human labor.
Bradley: A sales call with a church can last 20 to 30 minutes because we’re building a relationship and identifying the right resource, whether it’s a book on sexual purity for students or a basic Old Testament study.
On the retail side, it’s about showing bookstores that an author has a solid marketing plan and connections to move books. Both approaches are different but equally important.
What does a typical day look like for you?
Bradley: Some days, I feel like I’m fighting fires, for sure. Right now, I’m spending a lot of time on our 2019 catalog, which goes out to direct customers and retail stores. It showcases what we’re releasing over the next year. I work closely with our marketing team to ensure it has all the necessary information.
As a jack of all trades, I’ve taught myself InDesign and Photoshop, so I can help with basic design tasks like text adjustments, although I’m not a designer. Over the past few days specifically, I’ve been working on our royalty system to prepare for the new year. We pay royalties twice a year. This time of year also involves working on taxes.
Why is the catalog such a big deal?
Thomas: The physical catalog is unique to traditional publishers. It’s used to sell to bookstores. I bought a lot of books at my church bookstore when I was in college because they were vetted by my pastor.
Bradley: Church bookstores are a key focus, and through Baker & Taylor and Noble Sales Group, we reach local Christian bookstores and church bookstores. Our catalog sets us apart. Not every publisher creates one; some rely on distributor catalogs or sell sheets. But leaving an Iron Stream Media catalog behind at a bookstore highlights why a book matters and connects it to our broader resources. It shows bookstore owners why they should stock our books for their customers.
Thomas: Brick-and-mortar bookstores, except for Amazon’s stores, still rely heavily on paper catalogs. It makes sense since they’re selling paper books.
Bradley: Yes, and it’s not a quick process. Bookstore owners aren’t deciding today for tomorrow; they’re planning nine months ahead.
My job also involves scheduling to ensure books are ready, printed, and delivered on time, with marketing collateral and author support in place to help bookstores promote them. It’s a long-term plan for each book’s success.
How do you decide which vendors to work with?
Thomas: You make a lot of decisions about what to do in-house versus what to outsource. What criteria do you use to decide, for example, to work with a distribution company like Baker & Taylor instead of handling distribution yourselves?
Bradley: Some of our previous owners handled distribution themselves for the retail side, but that didn’t always include a dedicated sales team. One thing we love about Baker & Taylor is their partnership. They represent us to major chains like Barnes & Noble, Mardel, and Hobby Lobby every few months. Choosing them wasn’t a quick decision. We met with multiple distributors to find the right fit. It’s partly about cash flow and revenue, ensuring it’s a good deal for us and the author. If a distributor takes a 40% cut on top of what we’ve already sold to a retail outlet, that impacts the author’s earnings. We want to ensure authors are fairly compensated when their books sell in stores.
Another major vendor I deal with is our print partners.
The decision about which printer to use depends on how many copies we think a book will sell. For larger print runs, we might print overseas for a better price. For smaller runs, we use vendors across the U.S.
It also depends on the book type. Some vendors specialize in perfect-bound books, others in hardbacks. We consider timelines, cost, and quality. Over the past year, we’ve stopped working with some printers because, despite good relationships, their quality wasn’t up to par. We want readers to enjoy the content without the book falling apart, so quality is critical when choosing vendors.
When does it make sense to outsource versus doing things in-house?
Thomas: Building it yourself is often more expensive than you expect because learning how to do something new is costly.
Bradley: Exactly. We’re lucky to have a strong in-house editorial and design team. We can handle book covers, full mechanicals for back covers and spines, and marketing copy editing right here in the office. But as we grow, we’re evaluating what makes sense to outsource. It’s about balancing staff capacity and cost-effectiveness. If a vendor can do something efficiently and well, it may not be worth our time to learn it in-house. We want to maximize our resources to get as many books out as possible while taking care of our staff.
Thomas: That’s a great point. Not every publisher should do everything in-house. You don’t grow your own wheat or make your own clothes, even though that’s the essence of modern civilization. People specialize in what they do best. Trying to do everything yourself, like growing potatoes in your backyard, might not give you the best return on your time.
What is a pub board, and what are pub board meetings like?
Bradley: At Iron Stream, the pub board is a process, not a single meeting. It starts with Ramona Richards, our associate publisher, who reviews all submissions to ensure they align with our brand identity across our imprints. When she finds a promising submission, it goes to Raegan, our copy editor and first reader, who evaluates whether it’s worth discussing.
About once a month, we gather a small team, including myself, to review three or four submissions with potential. I often read these at home since there’s no time during the day. We discuss the book’s content first and determine whether it fits our mission. Then, we look at the author’s platform and willingness to engage in marketing. We also consider whether the book could have ancillary resources, like Bible study content, to grow the author’s reach. If we agree it’s a good fit, we reach out to the author or their agent to pursue a contract. Not every book fits, but that doesn’t mean it’s bad. It might be picked up by another publisher. We’re just looking for what aligns with our goals.
Why does your role matter in pub board decisions?
Thomas: You’re one of the people who has to say yes to a book. As director of operations, you’re not just an editor or agent; you’re part of the leadership. You have significant influence, working with the owner on decisions like hiring and firing. If you say no to a book, it likely won’t be published.
Bradley: From a leadership standpoint, the marketing and sales teams are probably the most critical decision-makers on the pub board.
If a book doesn’t have potential or the author isn’t willing to partner with us by engaging on social media, events, or with readers and launch teams, it’s almost an immediate “no.” We need authors who are passionate advocates for their work. You don’t have to be a constant speaker or extrovert, but you must be willing to share your message. I often remind authors, “You are your book’s biggest advocate.” We’ll help with marketing plans and sales, but if you don’t love your work and promote it, we’ll face challenges.
How important is an author’s platform for publishing success?
Thomas: No phrase kills a book proposal faster than a marketing or salesperson saying, “I don’t know how to sell this” or “I don’t think this will sell.” There’s no rebuttal to that, even if the editor loves the book.
For authors looking to learn more about selling books, my other podcast, the Novel Marketing Podcast, is the longest-running book marketing podcast in the world, and we know what does and doesn’t work in book promotion. Your platform really matters, even in traditional publishing.
What kind of authors and books is Iron Stream Media looking for?
Thomas: Tell us about Iron Stream Media. What kind of authors are you looking for, what kind of books do you publish, and what are your imprints?
Bradley: Iron Stream has a long history through several owners. John Herring, our current owner, and I have worked together for nearly ten years across different companies. I
on Stream started out of Student Life camps in Birmingham, Alabama, which has been running summer camps since the 1990s. In 2004, we began creating Bible study curriculum because youth pastors loved the camp experience and wanted ways to engage with students year-round. That led to Student Life Bible Study, followed by Life Bible Study for adults. This helped us master the content creation and publishing process.
In 2010, that part of the company was purchased by NavPress and The Navigators, now part of Tyndale. In 2013, John, who had worked with Student Life and NavPress, bought back Student Life and Life Bible Study, forming Iron Stream Media to create new content for churches. Our first trade publishing project was a Bible with tabs created with Time to Revive, a ministry that hosts revival events nationwide. That project taught us the publishing process. We were largely self-taught but brought experts alongside us.
In 2017, we acquired New Hope Publishers, which propelled us into the trade business and retail stores.
What does “trade business” mean in publishing?
Bradley: The trade business refers to traditional bookstores like Amazon and Barnes & Noble, as opposed to selling directly to churches or consumers. We could sell a book through New Hope Publishers or Iron Stream Media directly, but the trade business means placing books in the general marketplace, potentially even Walmart or Sam’s Club. It’s about making books available in retail bookstores for a broader audience.
Thomas: That’s different from selling curriculum or more specialized works.
Bradley: Exactly. We still love creating curriculum. Our writing team is working on Life Bible Study projects that won’t hit bookstore shelves but will be available through other venues. Since 2004, thousands of churches have used our curriculum, which remains a key part of our business, even if it’s not typically sold in bookstores.
What other imprints does Iron Stream Media have?
Thomas: Bookstores only have room for so much curriculum, and successful curriculum is often tailored to specific denominations or organizations like Young Life. If they rolled out a curriculum to all their students, that’s a lot of purchases. Do you have other imprints?
Bradley: This year, we’re launching several new imprints. New Hope Publishers and Life Bible Study are our legacy brands. As we receive more submissions, we’re finding books we love that don’t fit the traditional New Hope brand, which has been around for decades as part of the Women’s Missionary Union, connected to the Southern Baptist Convention. New Hope has a distinct look and feel and has many resources for women.
To publish more diverse titles, we’re launching Orange Stream Books, targeting a broader audience, including millennials, with topics like leadership and spiritual growth for a 21st-century audience.
Imprints allow us to publish different types of books while maintaining our identity, rooted in Proverbs 27:17 (iron sharpening iron), focused on discipleship and resources for all readers. A book doesn’t have to be a Bible study or a romantic novel; it can be anything that ties back to our mission.
How do you target millennials with your publishing?
Thomas: Those mysterious millennials! As a millennial myself, I used to have a recurring segment on a local Christian radio station defending my generation. The host would challenge me, and I’d have to defend millennials. It was quite the experience, but it got me my start in radio.
Bradley: Millennials are an important group. I’m a millennial, too. It’s a constant learning process to understand what millennials want. We spend a lot of time studying research, like last year’s Barna research on millennials, to figure out what resonates. We evaluate submissions and determine which imprint it fits.
What is an imprint, and why does it matter?
Bradley: An imprint is a distinct brand or identity under our parent company, Iron Stream Media. It uses the same internal team, marketing, and sales processes but allows us to position a book for a different audience. For example, someone might hesitate to pick up a New Hope book, which has historically been female-focused with a traditional feel, even though it includes men’s books. A new imprint like Ascender, which we’re launching this year, targets the spirit-led community with resources on spiritual warfare and scripture study, topics that wouldn’t fit under New Hope or our other imprints. Imprints let us reach different markets with tailored positioning.
Thomas: It’s like a different product line or brand from the same company, like how McDonald’s owned Chipotle for a while. A health-conscious customer who’d never go to McDonald’s would happily visit Chipotle for locally grown produce.
Bradley: Exactly. Even if the brands learn from each other, they serve different customers. A McDonald’s customer wants consistency, while a Chipotle customer embraces variety in fresh produce. Imprints let us use the same skilled team to reach different communities and learn to speak their languages.
Thomas: It’s about building trust. Customers see that imprints like Ascender or New Hope come from Iron Stream Media, even if the books look different.
Bradley: We want readers to know all our imprints come from a dedicated team committed to creating intentional, high-quality resources. Whether it’s an Ascender or New Hope book, it’s from Iron Stream, and that means quality.
What is the Iron Stream Podcast, and how does it connect authors with readers?
Bradley: We just launched the Iron Stream Podcast to connect listeners with our authors in a unique way. Each season, as we release books, we’ll feature episodes where authors discuss their new books, their passions, and their ministries. Our first episode is with Randy Hemphill, author of The Restored Man, which explores the restorative process for men in their relationship with God. Randy is passionate about men’s ministry but also has fun stories like hiking Mount Kilimanjaro and restoring cars.
The podcast is a new way for readers to engage with authors and, hopefully, discover new books.
Links
- Iron Stream Website
- Iron Stream Podcast
- Bradley on Twitter: @blisbell
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