404 Ink co-founders launch new book and industry fundraiser for small presses
We are excited to announce one final 404 Ink book: Publisher Not Found: A Decade of Disruption, 404 Ink 2016-2026 ahead of our closure in Summer 2026.
Publisher Not Found offers a behind-the-scenes perspective into what it takes to keep a company afloat against an unstable economic backdrop, political upheavals and an ever-shifting culture. Exploring what it means to be disruptive and disrupted, their book navigates topics of financial transparency, mental wellbeing, and the tensions of survival small presses are facing. 404 Ink’s story comes to an end not with a whimper, but a celebration of their authors and books, making the case for meaningful literary cultural support for other institutions across the country before it is too late, and essential platforms and voices are lost.
More importantly, as a final campaign, we will launch a crowdfunder in early 2026 to offer multiple £1,000 and £500 bursaries to fellow indie presses and those looking to create books, as well as fees towards paid internships for those looking to enter or advance in the industry, in the spirit of our FutureBook Award-winning ‘In(k)ternships’, which championed paid remote, flexible and curated traineeships over five days.
404 Ink will contribute an initial £3,000 towards the initiative, with two bursaries allocated to supporting publishers’ creative projects (£1,000 each), and two bursaries that will allow publishers to take on an intern (£500 each), with more detailed information to come in 2026.
Publisher Not Found is available to pre-order at 404ink.com ahead of publication in Spring 2026, with the co-founders pledging their royalties on pre-orders towards match funding on the upcoming crowdfunder.
“One of the unexpected but recurring pieces of feedback we received over our ten years was people noting they’d appreciated hearing our ‘behind the scenes’ stories – how publishing works, the realities of money and mental health, and insight into what is often walled off mysteriously in publishing,” says Heather. “While we’ve had fun revisiting our ten years and discovering much we’d forgotten about, it feels a fitting end for us to do one last behind the scenes look and (we hope) both channel it into something positive with our crowdfunder, and make a case for supporting the infrastructure of the arts more strongly going forward.”
“We’re keenly aware of the sacrifices made by those behind the small publishers that shape a vibrant literary culture and want to honour them as much as possible over 2026,” adds Laura. “Considering how generous people were during 404 Ink’s inception, it is appropriate for us to return the favour as much as we can ahead of our closure with these bursaries towards the small publishers that really need it in this increasingly challenging publishing climate.”
404 Ink encourage any literary organisations or publishers who would like to hear more on this initiative and potentially donate funds to contact Heather and Laura at hello@404ink.com for further information.
