Can we create books for an underserved audience without somehow being accused of hating everyone else?

Apparently, that’s a harder question than it should be.

After a completely normal drive-through conversation sends Rebekah into an existential publishing crisis, we tackle one of the biggest questions surrounding what we’re building at Lion Publishing: if we intentionally create stories that don’t center the themes dominating mainstream publishing, are we excluding people—or are we simply making room for readers who haven’t felt like there was much room for them?

We get into politics becoming religion, why simply saying “I don’t want to read that” can turn into a moral indictment of your entire character, age-appropriate books, free speech, bookstore boycotts, and the difference between allowing something to exist and demanding that everyone celebrate it. And yes, somehow The Hunger Games, JD Vance, Yellowstone, smut, rainbow glasses, and Cubs fans all make their way into the conversation.

Then we tackle another question we get a lot: why don’t we just call Lion a Christian publishing company? We talk about the infamous “little old lady test,” why so much Christian entertainment sacrifices storytelling for messaging, and the difference between Christian themes and Christian fiction. We want manuscripts from people across the political and religious spectrum because we’re not trying to create another ideological bubble. We want genuinely good stories where evil can exist without being glorified, goodness still means something, and heroes are allowed to be heroes.

At the end of the day, we’re not trying to erase anyone else’s stories or tell people what they’re allowed to read. We’re creating the space we wish existed—one where storytelling comes first, our faith doesn’t have to be hidden, and readers who have felt like the odd ones out finally have somewhere to belong.

In this episode:

☕ The drive-through conversation that started an existential publishing crisis

📚 Why we’re creating books for an audience that feels left behind

🗣️ Free speech, political litmus tests, and “books are inherently political”

⭐ Representation, disagreement, and whether not celebrating something equals hate

👨‍👩‍👧 What actually belongs in children’s and school libraries?

🔥 Why smut gets less pushback than saying we don’t want LGBT themes

📖 The “little old lady test” and our problem with Christian fiction

🎬 Why Christian movies have a storytelling problem

⚔️ Bringing back heroes who can face a broken world without becoming part of it

🦁 Why we aren’t Christian publishing—even though our faith is inseparable from our mission

Follow Lion Publishing:

Website: https://lionpublish.com/

YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/@Lion-Publishing

Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/lionbookpublishing/

X: https://x.com/lion_publish

TikTok: https://www.tiktok.com/@lionbookpublishing

Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/lionbookpublishing/

Follow the hosts/authors:

Rebekah: https://rebekahedwards.com/links/

Seth: https://linktr.ee/sethcordleauthor

Henry: (lol, you thought this guy had social media?!)

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