Is there a better time than now to celebrate 15 years as an independent media company by talking to the actual humans behind it? I think not. Book Riot’s staff has seen it all over the course of 15 years in books and publishing: the biggest literary controversies, the lasting and fleeting book trends, and the wild and wonderful places and things created by readers on the internet. It’s been fun and enlightening and scary and, above all, unpredictable.
The literary media landscape changes swiftly but still we remain, and that’s due in great part to readers who arrived at our doorstep and never left, who listen to our podcasts, read our newsletters, follow us on social, and support us in so many ways.
If you’re looking to stay ahead of the book trends while supporting one of very few independent media companies creating human-made bookish content, consider joining our membership program, All Access. In celebration of our anniversary, enjoy a 15% discount on annual memberships for a limited time!
Now get in the time machine, reader, we’re going down memory lane. Wander through some of our staff’s memories as we look back at unforgettable moments in Book Riot history.
The Food Riot Vertical
Pour one out for Food Riot. This was the culinary vertical of Book Riot where we talked about all things food and it’s where my journey with this team began way back in 2014. This was when Anthony Bourdain was emerging as a celebrity, everyone was posting foodie flat lays, and food blogs and media were really taking off, which is why Food Riot ultimately didn’t work out. The field was too flooded, but I had the best time swimming in it. What I learned while writing for the vertical was that I could wax about everything and anything food-related, from the serious to the truly chaotic, as long as it was written in good spirit and quality, and that I had found some of the best people on the internet. – S. Zainab Williams, Executive Director of Content
Book Riot News
I’m one of the rare few folks who remembers when Book Riot had a news message board called “Book Riot News.” It was kind of like Reddit in that anyone with an account could post book-related news stories and comment on them. I was the one who moderated it, and it was a great spot for talking about book news in a casual way–as well as inspiring ideas for what we might like to write about in longer form. I believe it was around in 2013 to maybe around 2015, so it’s one the OGs reading this may reminisce about, too. – Kelly Jensen, Senior Editor
The Second and Final Book Riot Live
Book Riot Live 2016. I had just been hired by Riot a few months prior, and since most of us work remotely it was my first chance to meet most of the team and our contributors in person. The US election had just wrapped, and it was cathartic to be surrounded by so much fun and positivity. It will always blow my mind that we had readers from Sweden, the UK, Canada, and farther afield make the trek [to New York City] to celebrate books with us. It really affirmed for me that I had signed up for something great. – Devin Service, Director of Business Operations
Revising the Greatest American Writers
Before I worked full-time for Book Riot, I was a contributor. (And before that, I was an avid Book Riot reader!) Back then, we had a contributor Slack that was constantly active with literary news, book recommendations, article brainstorming, and reader rants. (We still have a contributor Slack, but it’s a lot more chill these days.) For me, it was worth writing for Book Riot just to be a part of it. One thing that came out of that Slack was our lists of the greatest American authors.
Harold Bloom had just published a book with his 12 picks, who were all white, almost all men, and all from the United States. Out of our annoyance, a bunch of our writers and staff made our own lists, which encompassed all of the Americas and a much greater diversity of authors. My list today would be very different, but I think this post encapsulates the feel of Book Riot back in 2015: passionate, political, tongue-in-cheek, and fun. — Danika Ellis, Editor
Hold My Earrings: The Art of Comment Confrontation
Back when I was still a contributor, one of my tasks was to moderate comments across Book Riot’s social media feeds a few days a week. I happened to be at the helm when we shared the news that a Brooklyn bookshop was hosting a ritual to place a hex on newly appointed Supreme Court Justice Brett Kavanaugh. The comments were buck wild that day, a veritable cesspool of misogyny and assault apologists. I wasn’t sure how aggressive I was allowed to be in response to these comments, or if I had it in me to wade through them at all.
So I messaged our then Executive Editor Amanda Nelson who responded in less than ten seconds: “I got this. I’m going in.” I sat back and watched her do work in that comment section, and learned a few creative insults that I still keep in my back pocket. But the real gift of that incident was feeling unequivocally seen and supported. That shit was rad, and a big part of why I’d go on to work for the company someday. — Vanessa Diaz, Managing Editor
A Most Mysterious Apple Fritter
One more: on my very first day, it was sort of a surreal experience to walk into the Book Riot offices and see Jeff O’Neal sitting in the corner. This was the Jeff O’Neal I’d been listening to in my podcast feed for years, and now he was like my great-great-grandboss, chilling and typing away mere feet from my desk. When he wasn’t in the next morning, I thought he might be working from home, but it turns out he was on a mission: to get me a donut from his favorite donut place, a hole in the wall with hours that could best be described as “when we feel like opening, maybe.” It took actual surveillance to track down this apple fritter I was presented with, one that came with a delightful anecdote about Jeff’s now-defunct donut blog, As I Lay Frying. The donut shop has since shuttered (RIP), but that memory is still so sweet. (Eew, I know, feelings!) — Vanessa Diaz
Rincey (the Former Rioter) Reads
Before working for Book Riot, there weren’t too many online bookish places I frequented. The only bookish space I visited often, really, was Goodreads. I’d opened an account on it just a couple of years after it had first launched, and there were a few people whose reviews I’d always look for. One of those people was Rincey, who I soon found out had a YouTube channel where she went even more in-depth on certain titles. I had been following her YouTube and Goodreads reviews religiously for years because it felt like our taste in books was nearly 1:1. So, when she started singing the praises of a company called Book Riot, I knew I’d like them, too. And I did. Half a decade later, we’re still doing the damn thing. Shout out to the homie Rincey, for putting me on! — Erica Ezeifedi, Associate Editor
Making Amends With Jennifer Weiner
In Book Riot’s early days, Jennifer Weiner and Jodi Picoult were calling out the gender disparity in book reviews. Book Riot published a satirical piece we’d never run today, leading to a Twitter clash with Weiner. Unhappy with how it went down, I reached out at Book Expo America to apologize to Weiner over breakfast.
On my way, she texted: “I’m in the cushy chairs in front of Norma’s in the Parker-Meridian. 56th between 6th and 7th. Plum-colored dress, look of sleep deprivation.”
I read that and thought, “she even texts like a writer.” Breakfast was lovely, the apology was made, and we bonded over our triathlon experiences. — Clinton Kabler, Chief Operating Officer
As If Book Expo Wasn’t Stressful Enough
On the last day of Book Expo America 2016 in Chicago, Jeff, Yan, and I returned late from our last meeting, jammed our clothes into suitcases, and flagged down a beat-up taxi, desperate to make our flights at O’Hare.
After speeding through city streets, we hit highway gridlock. Our driver’s driving style was simple: wait for a gap, then violently lurch forward. Staring directly at the sign warning of a $50 fine for vomiting, I could feel Jeff turn green. When Yan asked if there was an alternate route, the driver swerved onto the shoulder, floored it, and sent debris flying.
Suddenly, missing my flight seemed a minor concern. I just wanted to survive. Jeff stuck his head out the window into the pouring rain to keep from throwing up. We made it to O’Hare, and the moment the cab stopped at Jeff and Yan’s terminal, I bailed to walk to my terminal. — Clinton Kabler
The Full Spread
Naming things is always hard, and over the years, we have spent a lot of time in the Bad Idea Committee on our way to figuring out what to call new projects. Nothing was harder to name than our comics vertical, Panels, which has since been folded back into main Book Riot coverage. By 2014, most of the good comics-related terms were already taken (just like every decent pun on “shelf” in books coverage), which is how we found ourselves having a conversation in which one executive who shall remain nameless sincerely suggested “The Full Spread.” Would have been great for SEO and terrible for customer satisfaction. — Rebecca Joines Schinsky, Chief of Staff