09/12/2025
Remember when serious books mattered? When publishers fought to bring thoughtful, deeply researched works into the world, the kind that challenged you, made you think, and left you changed? I’ve just signed a new author who embodies that spirit: a heavyweight historian, Pulitzer Prize and National Book Award nominee, and now a good friend. His earlier work on Napoleon is a masterpiece, and I even had the privilege of helping him find a publisher for his last book, “The Shadow Emperor: A Biography of Napoleon III.” He has spent his life untangling the knots of French history.
Earlier this year, I pitched two of his newest books, both rich with scholarship and beautifully written, to more than a hundred publishers around the world. Not one took them. Not because the subjects were unappealing, but because today’s market rewards quick, easy reads that ask little of the reader. Twenty or thirty years ago, these books would have been welcomed without hesitation. We now live in a time when social media sets the tone, drowning us in hot takes and half-truths. The ocean is wide, but it’s shallow. And yes, I’m part of it too; I’m posting this here because that’s where people are. It’s almost impossible to stay away when the conversation lives online.
These days, I present far less music as a promoter. That ship sailed long ago, and the business has become too challenging. I’ve turned more toward literature, where my mind feels more at home. The collision of ideas has always been an abiding interest, and publishing gives me a way to share that with others. So, under our Casa Carlini publishing house, I’ve launched a new imprint called Storia, the Italian word for “history” and “story,” because good history is both. Its tagline is Past. Present. Perspective. The mission is simple: to publish serious history in a way that is engaging and readable without sacrificing depth.
Our first Storia title will be a gripping, meticulously researched account of the 1898 Fashoda Incident, the near-war between Britain and France over Sudan that shaped the balance of imperial power. It is the kind of book that proves history isn’t dusty and dead, but alive and thrilling. For my small press, this is a major win. For such an accomplished author, it is a sign of how the publishing world has shifted. But we’re not going quietly. If the big houses won’t champion serious history, Storia will—and we’ll make sure they notice.
Casa Carlini is a literary haven connecting authors globally, sharing diverse stories that transcend cultures, languages, and continents.
