Metaphysical Publishing Trends for 2025
Lee Anderson of Crossed Crow Books shares their thoughts
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The publishing world is always changing. New books, formats, publishers, and topics means the industry must adapt as consumer demands and trends shift. But what about metaphysical books? What changes might we expect in 2025? Lee Anderson of Crossed Crow Books shared their thoughts on the 2025 trends in occult publishing.
1. What metaphysical topics do you think will be big in 2025 - and which ones are done to death?
We've already started seeing a trend toward community-minded topics, and I think 2025 is going to be a big year for these kinds of books. Ancestor veneration, folk magics, land-based practices, and revivals of old-school traditions and philosophical ideas that draw people together or harken back to where we've come from and how we can stick together are springing up left and right. And with the world and our futures feeling as uncertain as they are for most (if not all!) of us, I see the divinatory boom continuing to grow. We're not anywhere near the tipping point yet, though I am now seeing -- and think we will continue to see in 2025 -- more unique applications of tarot to the human condition, as well as resurfacing of lesser-known cartomancy systems, such as Lenormand, and plain old-fashioned playing cards.
Things that are leaving the spotlight in metaphysical publishing are a little more abstract. Wiccan influences where they don't need to be (in talking about Norse practice, for example) are slowly being culled, and while obviously Wicca is still a huge cornerstone for many folks, it's becoming less ubiquitous within metaphysical books. Hand-in-hand with that community-based lens, I'm seeing less patience from readers for overly prescriptive and wildly general beginner's books. Not talking about the theory, history, or ways a reader can build a framework for their own opinions on the topic isn't flying well anymore, nor is providing a few general concepts with no ground to rest on.
2. Will AI play a significant role in publishing? If so, what might that look like?
The folks who make AI are certainly going to try! Their success in the matter will depend on several factors, and it's important to note that there's no universal standard in publishing for this yet, so every company will take a different approach and point of view. But, from my perspective, there are two major arenas for AI interception: the publishing process and the written content itself. The written content is straightforward: it's almost certain that more people will write books with AI and publish them, either through traditional means or self-publishing. Given how controversial AI still is, I think most of this sort of work will still appear through non-traditional publishing journeys; I wouldn't be surprised to see more AI-generated manuscripts on Amazon in 2025 than in 2024. So it wouldn't hurt to beef up your marketing skills going into 2025 so you can beat thoughtless, human-less (and likely plagiarized or falsified, being real about what language-learning models like ChatGPT can actually produce) writing, especially if you're hoping to self-publish.
And then there's publishing houses themselves using AI. There's a lot more gray area in AI use in an office setting, especially for time-saving purposes, than there is with writing. Yet these moves are often incredibly controversial: in November 2024, for example, HarperCollins came under fire for announcing a partnership with Microsoft to sell nonfiction manuscripts for AI training purposes. And there's a tech startup/vanity press, Spines, that announced around the same time that they were hoping to publish 8,000 books in 2025 using AI. (This is a problem for many reasons, first and foremost being that if you're going to use AI to publish your book, don't pay someone else $5,000 to push the buttons.) But not every publishing house is going to be that explicit in their AI use -- some may use it as an internal tool to take care of the nitty-gritty bits, like keyword optimization, and some will (and currently are) vehemently anti-AI. Most publishers fall somewhere on this end of the spectrum, in my experience. But AI use in publishing is going to remain controversial in 2025, and barring any big changes or explicit legal constraints (especially with copyright law), I think it's unlikely an industry consensus on the topic is coming soon.
3. Do mystical authors need to focus on platform building? If so, which social media platforms should authors focus on?
Let me first say that platforms are not the end-all be-all of book publishing: a good book is. So, while building a platform can absolutely help build your case to a publisher and sell your book, it's not going to make or break your chances of publication. Which specific social media platform I'd recommend looking into depends primarily on your readership -- who do you hope will read your book? Who do you feel the most kinship with, and who do you think will learn or gain something from your book? Look for where those potential future readers are already hanging out. Someone who spends hours scrolling TikTok may not read the same books as someone who pulls up their list of Substack newsletters like the morning paper. The most important part, though, is a connection between you and said readers, so platforms where you can directly engage with them, like TikTok, YouTube, Substack, Patreon, or even Tumblr (I've seen some people on Facebook, but there are only a few scant situations in which that'd be your best option), is what I'd recommend if you're interested in building a bit of a following ahead of time. You'll be hard-pressed to find people successfully creating a cult of personality on Reddit, for example, in part because of the site's anonymity. Make friends and watch how your community and platform grows organically.
4. How will tariffs affect the publishing industry?
Tariffs are going to play a pretty big role in what publishers can and can't (or won't) do in the next few years. Because a majority of printers and manufacturers are overseas, the physical production process is going to become more expensive, especially for decks (tarot, oracle, or anything else). Expect fewer books out per year from publishers and a substantially smaller number of new decks on the market. Books that are getting published will have a harder time getting hard-cover copies or full-color pages in some parts of the industry as well -- I've heard the phrase "live and die by the black-and-white paperback" fluttering in a few corners. Even paper is expected to get more expensive with the proposed tariffs, so you may notice some books are made with slightly lower quality pages. And, on a writer's side, this all means it'll be more difficult than ever to place your book with a publisher. Don't lose hope!
5. Will self publishing be a thing or not in 2025?
Self-publishing will always be a thing -- and it should! -- and I think we're going to see even more of it in 2025. This is partially in response to fewer books released and less work accepted for publication by traditional publishing houses. Because fewer high-quality books are going to be printed traditionally, more authors with good books are going to be looking at accessible options like self-publishing to get their work out there. We've also seen a shift away from some of the stigma of self-publishing that shows no signs of stopping. Ultimately, I think this points to self-publishing growing even faster with more success for self-published authors and a better understanding of its pivotal role in the industry in 2025.
6. What are metaphysical publishers looking for in 2025?
Well, I certainly can't speak for everyone, but original voices -- including but not limited to non-white, queer and trans, and disabled authors, as well as original perspectives and fresh takes on already established topics -- is something we need more of, especially in metaphysical publishing. Push boundaries! Deepen, question, and elaborate on what's already out there -- don't just rehash it. Be creative! And provide your readers with the opportunities to be creative, inventive, intense, and boundary-pushing, too. Show the world what we don't know we need yet.
Bio: Lee Anderson is a trans editor with an MFA in Creative Writing from Northern Arizona University. They are the current Chief Editor at Crossed Crow Books, Managing Editor of Half Mystic Press, and work with a slew of other literary presses, journals, and awards. You can find their Pushcart- and Best of the Net-nominated writing in Brevity, Salt Hill Journal, The Rumpus, and elsewhere. They currently live in Chicago with their partner Emily and a cat named Pretzel.
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image from stock photography Roman Samborskyi
I hadn't thought about tariffs affecting deck creation, that's good input.
Interesting article! I agree with Lenormand becoming more known, while Kipper has a long way to go. On a recent trip to Barnes and Noble, to my shock, there were a couple of Lenormand decks. I bought one to add to my collection because I adore Lenormand.