Small Press Profile: Red Wheel/Weiser/Conari

Red Wheel/Weiser/Conari, a small press based in Newburyport, Massachusetts, publishes books on the occult, astrology, health, self-help, spirituality, metaphysics, and other New Age topics.

One of the country’s largest publishers of occult teachings and New Age titles, Red Wheel/Weiser/Conari releases around 30 titles per season under the tagline “Books to Live By.” The company handles fulfillment of its titles though the Virginia-based company Books International and its own team of commissioned sales reps. Red Wheel/Weiser/Conari also distributes books for a half-dozen other publishers in the U.S. and the U.K., including London-based AEON Books and Hierophant Publishing in San Antonio, Texas.

“We’re living in interesting times, and I think that we have the books that can really help people either reconnect with the spiritual tradition, find another way of looking at things, or just help them get through the day,” said Michael Kerber, Red Wheel/Weiser/Conari’s president and CEO. “We’re really looking to publish books that inform and inspire.”

Weiser Books, which is celebrating its 60th anniversary in publishing this year, was originally founded in 1957 by Donald Weiser as Samuel Weiser, Inc., an offshoot of the Samuel Weiser Bookstore in New York City. In 2000, Donald, who died last month at the age of 89, sold the publishing company to Kerber and Jan Johnson, who renamed it Red Wheel/Weiser and created the Red Wheel imprint, publishing spiritually oriented self-help and how-to books.

Red Wheel/Weiser ceased publishing under the Red Wheel banner in 2002 after acquiring Conari Press, which was publishing the same types of titles. The Red Wheel name now operates more like a symbol for the company, Kerber said, as wheels symbolize the concepts of motion and wholeness in practically every culture and religious belief system there is.

Today, Weiser Books continues to acquire books on such topics as occultism, astrology, Eastern religions, Wicca, and other esoteric subjects. Its large backlist includes the 1989 book Astrology for Lovers by Liz Greene, which has sold close to 80,000 copies, as well as rare occult books, including titles by the British occultist Aleister Crowley.

“This September, Weiser will be publishing a facsimile edition of a very well-known 1969 title by Crowley called The Book of Thoth, which is the basis for one of the most popular Tarot decks,” said Kerber. “Crowley’s books have been in print almost continuously with Weiser since the business was founded in 1957. Weiser is known for keeping books in print for a long period of time.”  

Red Wheel/Weiser/Conari’s other imprints are Hampton Roads Publishing and Disinformation Books. Red Wheel/Weiser/Conari entered into a joint operating agreement with Hampton Roads in 2009. Founded in 1989 by Frank DeMarco and Bob Friedman. Hampton Roads publishes books on everything from Tarot to astrology to Reiki to reflexology, and is well-known for its Conversations With God series by Neale Donald Walsch and its Little Book series, which includes Pope Francis’ Little Book of Compassion and Jesus’ Little Book of Wisdom, both compiled by Andrea Kirk Assaf. Disinformation Books, previously a property of the Disinformation Company until its sale to Red Wheel/Weiser/Conari in 2012, has more than 80 backlist titles and publishes books on conspiracy theories, secret societies, ancient civilizations, and current affairs.

Red Wheel/Weiser/Conari’s acquisitions editors have recently taken a more proactive approach to finding new authors, including looking for specialists and practitioners who are out on the road conducting workshops in their particular areas of expertise. But for the most part, authors and agents come to the publisher first.

“A lot of times people approach us first because of Weiser’s reputation; they want to be published by the most prestigious name in their fields,” said Kerber.

In September, Weiser Books will publish Old Style Conjure: Hoodoo, Rootwork, and Folk Magic by Starr Casas, a practitioner of Southern American folk magic who lives in Texas. Old Style Conjure is a guide to using a particular style of magic that first emerged during slavery to achieve love, success, and spiritual fulfillment. Also coming from Weiser in September is Odin: Ecstasy, Runes, and Norse Magic by Diana L. Paxson, which explores the Norse god’s origins and appearance in sagas and old magic spells, as well as his influence on such modern media as Tolkien’s Lord of the Rings trilogy.

Kerber said that while Red Wheel/Weiser/Conari does sell Tarot cards and other items related to the practice, the publisher’s main focus is on selling books.

“A lot of independent bookstores don’t think they have a market for books on Wicca or pagan topics or even Tarot, but of course there’s a variety of strong customer bases they’re just not aware of,” said Kerber. “Each season, we say to our indie reps and indie stores, if you give space to these categories, the buyers will come. We want to provide service to as many metaphysical stores as independent bookstores, which don’t tend to buy as wide a range of titles as metaphysical stores but they buy deeper, and the books they do buy they support very well.”

This year, Conari Press is celebrating its 30th anniversary of publishing books with a spiritual perspective on relationships, social issues, and parenting. Before Red Wheel/Weiser acquired the company in 2002, Conari was a separate publisher based in Berkeley, California, with bestselling titles including the Random Acts of Kindness series by Conari founder M.J. Ryan. This year, Conari will publish a new edition of Ryan’s 2011 book Attitudes of Gratitude: How to Give and Receive Joy Every Day of Your Life with a forward by Mark Nepo, author of The Book of Awakening, another bestselling Conari title and one of Oprah’s Favorite Things in 2010.

On May 1, Conari is set to publish Last Things, a graphic memoir by Marissa Moss, the creator of the Amelia’s Notebook series. Moss appeared at this year’s Winter Institute in Minneapolis to promote Last Things, the story of her struggle to deal with her husband’s illness and death while trying to maintain a sense of normalcy for herself and her family. The book was also chosen by booksellers to appear on the May 2017 Indie Next List. On October 1, Conari will publish Swimming With Elephants, a memoir by former physician Sarah Bamford Seidelmann, who worked as a doctor for 20 years before becoming a shaman. The book recounts Seidelmann’s quest for a new way to heal people, including her spiritual pilgrimages to such countries as India and Taiwan.

Earlier this year, Red Wheel/Weiser/Conari met with a host of independent booksellers through the new publisher consultation sponsorship level at Winter Institute. These days, said Kerber, the company is working on collaborating with indie bookstores more often, starting with more in-store events.

“Independents have really been a renewed focus of ours starting this past season,” Kerber said. “Events at indie bookstores are a new development for us; we feel that we have a list that supports that now, as well as the authors, and, more importantly, we have the support of the independent stores.”