Milkweed Editions

Milkweed Editions is an independent literary publisher established in Minneapolis in 1979.

The logo of the publication.

History

Originally founded as Milkweed Chronicle in 1979, Milkweed was initially a literature and art journal by Emilie Buchwald and R.W. Scholes. Scholes served as the art director, and Buchwald as the editor. Chronicle eased publication in 1987 and Milkweed subsequently became Milkweed Editions, a publisher and distributor. Thought it had a local focus initially, it also published authors from all over the nation, as it sought to not be unnecessarily restrictive in what it printed.

In 1999, Milkweed partnered with the Minnesota Center for Book Arts and the Loft Literary Center to purchase an old warehouse, which each organization subsequently called their home. It has since been known as the Open Book, a vast, four-floored arts center that includes the businesses, a café, an Orchestra Hall, and a theater.

The Open Book, the building which houses Milkweed

Daniel Slager was named CEO of Milkweed Editions in 2007. Slager has since greatly expanded the quantity of books published. During his tenure, he helped Milkweed reach over 350 books published since their 1980 inception. He also oversaw the opening of a bookstore, Milkweed Books, also located in Minneapolis. Milkweed continues to publish books, and is hitting historical levels of success thanks to several breakout titles within the last century.

Milkweed Prizes

Milkweed gives out the Lindquist & Vennum Prize for sPoetry, a regional prize where submissions are open from poets located in the states of Minnesota, Wisconsin, Iowa, North Dakota, and South Dakota. Those who win it are given $10,000 and a publishing contract with Milkweed. Milkweed also ran the Max Ritvo Poetry Prize, another $10,000 poetry competition, once in 2017.

Braiding Sweetgrass, the most popular text Milkweed has published.

Goal and Ideals

Milkweed states on their website that their mission is to be a site of "metamorphosis" in the literary ecosystem. They're very focused on reading as an important tool and influence in people's lives, stating that "reading should be life-changing". Their goal is exemplified by their name; a caterpillar uses a milkweed plant to change into a beautiful butterfly, just as a book can change someone's world for the better.

Milkweed understands and respects the far-reaching influence of a book. It believes that literature is a major proponent of the butterfly effect; once something has been read, it embeds itself into a reader's mind, changing their thoughts and actions and making it so that it lives within them forever. Due to this, it does not restrict itself by genre, and instead publishes works it considers important and potentially influential. It uses the word "transformative" to describe the literature it seeks out, as it wants a reader to walk away from a book not only feeling satisfied, but also influenced. It values works, of any type, that push boundaries and provoke thought.

Audience

Milkweed does not wish to limit an audience, which leads to much of their success. They most value works that can reach a very wide variety of people, from many different backgrounds and many different upbringings. Thus, there is no primary audience in mind. However, their most successful works have involved deep contemplation and appreciation of nature, so, despite it not being their primary goal, they have attracted a subset of fans that values those things.

Structure

Since there is so much importance placed on the books that Milkweed publishes, they work very closely with their authors. It's a very personal experience, and they attempt to invest as much as they can into the success of their authors. “I am working with a dream publisher," said Milkweed-published author Michael Kleber-Diggs. "The book has a talented team behind it invested in its success. I have a talented team behind me invested in my growth and development. I’m having conversations on big stages with leading writers and thinkers. I thought I was launching a book, but now I feel like I’m launching my career.” Though they aren't huge, they use the fullest extent of their resources to ensure their writers succeed.

World of Wonders

Finances

Milkweed is a nonprofit, and they are thus tax-exempt. In the fiscal year ending in December 2024, they reported a revenue of $4,783,456 and expenses of $4,417,366, for a net income of $366,090. They have been publishing at a good rate and have an upward-trending level of income, so they appear to be doing well. They are not enormous, but have published some very well-known works, which allows them to survive and thrive as an independent publication.

Most Popular Works

You are Here

Milkweed's crown jewel is Braiding Sweetgrass, a nonfiction bestseller by Robin Wall Kimmerer about the relationship between humans and the natural world. It's extremely well-regarded, and achieved Milkweed's goal of invoking genuine thought and change in many people. This is likely to be the book that is most heard of by those who are unfamiliar with Milkweed. Other popular works are World of Wonders by Aimee Nezhukumatathil, a series of essays on animals and nature, and You are Here, a bestselling collection of poetry related to the natural world collected and edited by Ada Limón. Milkweed stays within theme by having the most success with works that take a deep, insightful look at nature. Milkweed does not restrict itself to this type of book, but their best known texts are all related to nature in some capacity, and they have come to be known with their association to it.

Emilie Buchwald

Emilie Buchwald is an American author and editor. She was the original founder of Milkweed Chronicle, alongside R.W. Scholes, in 1979. She helped grow Milkweed for 24 years before retiring in 2003. For her efforts in the publishing industry, she received the Ivan Sandrof Lifetime Achievement Award in 2007. She has also won awards for her children's novel, Gildaen. She currently acts as the publisher of The Gryphon Press.

Emilie Buchwald

Daniel Slager

Daniel Slager

Daniel Slager is the current CEO of Milkweed. He worked his way up in the editing industry before joining Milkweed as an editor in 2005. He's also a very prolific German-to-English translator who's been the primary translator for many works by German authors such as Marcel Beyer and Felicitas Hoppe. His proficiency in a variety work has led to him being a well-respected member of the publishing, editing, and translating communities.