Six days ago, Fieldmouse Press launched its GoFundMe campaign “Help Fieldmouse Press Stay Alive.” The emergency campaign cites recent Trump Administration “trade announcements,” e.g., the tariff war between the United States and China, which currently has both countries reciprocally raising tariffs on imported goods to 125%. For the small press publisher, this “sudden and sharp increase in tariffs” means that their China-based printer has asked them to pay an “additional 54% percent tariff” on its Winter Season 2025.
While it seems that the new tariffs may not apply to books, Fieldmouse’s situation is less clear. “Our particular situation is less clear,” wrote Alex Hoffman, Publisher at Fieldmouse Press, in an addendum to the GoFundMe campaign. “The printer we are working with, located in Shanghai, China, is operating under the belief that, for now, the tariffs are very much in place. Moreover, this remains a volatile situation overall, as threats of further US tariffs and worldwide retaliatory actions remain a real possibility.”
After receiving support from other small press publishers like Glacier Bay Books and Silver Sprocket, Fieldmouse has stopped accepting donations on its GoFundMe. Since the publisher is “uncertain” whether it’ll need the money raised from the campaign “until the boat with our books arrives” in three to four weeks, it has stopped taking donations, instead directing people to support Fieldmouse by supporting its Winter Season 2025 crowdfunding campaign.
“If the printer agrees with us that no further tariff should be levied,” continues the addendum, “and no tariffs are actually levied at the border, our current plan is to refund this GoFundMe.”
The Beat spoke with Fieldmouse Press’s Alex Hoffman about the industry’s confusion over whether the tariffs will apply to books, how small press publishers are working together, and what you can do to support these companies during this time, if you have capacity to do so.
This interview has been edited for readability and length.
OLLIE KAPLAN: I think there is some confusion over the current tariff situation. Can you explain to our readers more about what’s going on with your Chinese printer? (Does the Chinese response to the US tariffs impact this?)
ALEX HOFFMAN: The tariff situation is very confusing for both US-based companies and China-based companies. As of 4/9/2025, the USA has levied tariffs against Chinese imports at 125%. If you take this at face value, that means every single product coming out of China faces a 125% tax when it reaches the US border. However, there are some exemptions, and this is where it gets tricky. Based on data from Annex II and Annex III of the Tariff announcements, books and written materials appear to be exempt from tariffs. This is likely due to skittishness about appearing to limit freedom of the press and freedom of speech, which have been targets for the US courts in the past when tariffs were involved. That would generally mean that book publishers are okay – but our printer in specific didn’t believe that there would be tariff exemptions because of the information they were receiving from their port forwarding agency, and wanted us to cover a tariff payment of an additional 34%, after already paying a 20% tariff fee on top of our original total cost.
- The reason we launched the GoFundMe was because, frankly, we were being asked to pay an additional big sum of money up front after already paying for our entire Winter season, and we didn’t have the available cash. As a nonprofit, we’ve made the conscious effort to avoid loaning money to fund operations, and we didn’t have the cash on hand to handle that kind of payment. Under that kind of pressure, it was the option that made the most sense, knowing that if we didn’t need to use the funds, we could refund the pledges.
- Imports and exports are quite complicated, and unless a publisher has a particular employee who handles this work, most imports are managed through a port forwarding agency that works on the behalf of the printer, who coordinates the shipment on the publisher’s behalf. What that means is that Fieldmouse Press owns the books and is business on record with the shipment, and is technically importing them, but doing so with the help of an external business contracted by the printer that handles the logistics of getting them from China to our distributor. So a lot of hands are needed to move books from printer to dock to boat to dock to warehouse
KAPLAN: How can our readers currently support small press and indie publishers?
HOFFMAN: Readers can support small press operations by buying books already in stock and by supporting crowdfunding efforts. Fieldmouse Press is doing a preorder campaign on Crowdfundr, but we have a great backlist that we would love folks to check out. Buying books already in stock gives small publishers the capital needed to face these sorts of challenges and stay solvent.
KAPLAN: You’ve been in contact with CBLDF regarding your situation. Any advice for others?
HOFFMAN: When we put out our cry for help, we had a ton of people come to our aid. We also contacted all the people we could think of – CBLDF, CLMP (the Community of Literary Magazines and Presses, a nonprofit organization of independent presses and magazines), and other publishers. This sort of answers questions 3 and 5, but generally, small press publishers in comics make books because they love the art form and are passionate about it. It’s so hard to make a profit on small-run books, but we’re doing it because we think it’s essential work. Fieldmouse Press is a 3-person operation, and we all volunteer our time. Bulgilhan Press is one person. Glacier Bay is one person. Strangers Press is one person. Even the highly respected Koyama Press (RIP) was only two people.
My advice is, if you’re a small press or a person thinking about publishing a book, and you’re struggling to figure something out, or if you need help, email me. Email other publishers. Avi Ehrlich of Silver Sprocket has given us so much direction and assistance over the last few years. Annie Koyama helped us design our rights contract. I think we all generally believe that a rising tide lifts all boats. Building that network and recognizing that we all have experience and can help each other is the way that this industry is going to survive the harsh economic environment that might be coming over the next few years.
KAPLAN: Can you tell me a little more about your upcoming books?
HOFFMAN: We’re so excited to show off our latest season of books. Fieldmouse Press publishes books in “blocks” of titles because it helps consolidate costs and shipping fees, so we organize our books into two major seasons: Winter and Summer. Our Winter 2025 season is one we’ve affectionately been calling “The Fieldmouse Festival of Nihilism” because a lot of the books grapple with difficult topics, including addiction, abuse, suicidal ideation, and disordered eating, just to name a few. But these books are beautiful because they are hard. Not to get too philosophical here, but the human experience is largely a combination of moments of great love and suffering. We’re working with artists who reveal the human experience through its suffering and show that even in the midst of pain and trauma, life is still worth living. You can find out more about our books at the preorder campaign on Crowdfundr here.
Here’s some general info, however:
- Soften the Blow by Bread Tarleton is a 380-page, Smyth-sewn paperback in full color—our largest book to date, and one that’s been in process since 2021. Can a person find self-acceptance and community in the face of their own trauma and addiction?
- The Ardent by Carl Antonowicz is our first landscape book. It is a 172-page Smyth-sewn hardcover in full color. What lengths would you go to for something you believe in?
- Souvenir by Sara Jewell is an 84-page Smyth-sewn paperback in full color—a mixed-media sunburst of a book. How can you come to accept who you are when you’re stuck trying to stay in the past?
- Totality by Jeff Lok—124-page Smyth-sewn paperback in black and white—is an autobiography in its rawest form. What happens to a person when everything they thought they believed about the American Dream turns out to be a lie?
- Ambiguous Blu by Noah Schiatti is a 52-page, perfect-bound paperback in full color, initially published in the ShortBox Comics Fair with a new adaptation. What do you do when your self-image is fraying at the edges, and no one seems to understand?
KAPLAN: Many small presses seem concerned about the economy. Some, like Glacier Bay (which recently posted about the tariffs) and Silver Sprocket (which has also been open about the struggle), also supported your campaign. Are all the publishers working to support each other? Can you walk me through that ecosystem?
HOFFMAN: I think, in addition to what I said above, the ecosystem is one of loose mutual aid. We’re all trying to make good books and make art that matters. And to a certain degree, we’re all trying to earn the same dollars. But I think each of the various publishers in the indie comics space has its own niche and its own interests. And more importantly, there’s a sort of DIY/community ethos that guides us. I wouldn’t necessarily publish some of the things that Silver Sprocket publishes (for example), and I think that’s a great thing, because it means that there is a greater diversity of voice and storytelling that more people can experience.
KAPLAN: Anything else you’d like to add?
HOFFMAN: We’re really grateful for all of the support we’ve received over the past week. It’s meant a lot to see people fighting for us and for Fieldmouse Press. It’s a reminder of the strength of this community. And we’ve got a lot more work to do – we have a great Summer 2025 season planned, with books releasing in time for SPX 2025, and a few surprise releases as well!
(Featured Image: @fieldmousepress)
If you’d like to support Fieldmouse Press, pledge to their Crowdfundr campaign by April 23, 2025, or purchase digital editions from the publisher’s previous seasons! In addition, keep up-to-date with all of the latest announcements from Fieldmouse Press via their Linktree!
