Zibby Owens is an author, host of a literary salon and the creator and host of the award-winning podcast Moms Don't Have Time to Read Books. Vulture has called her "New York's Most Powerful Book-fluencer." A few weeks ago, after reading an article in Shelf Awareness about the Book Industry Charitable Foundation (Binc), she made a generous leadership gift to Binc. We spoke with her recently to learn more about it.
Tell us about yourself.
I've always been an avid reader. When I was young, I would often write fan letters to authors c/o their publishing houses and my mom would mail them for me. I became pen pals with the author Zibby Oneal and met her for tea at the Plaza Hotel. I wore a blue silk dress with '80s power shoulder pads. It was a major highlight for me, and ever since I've always thought of authors as rock stars whose words have the power to transport you.
I wanted to be a writer, and when I was just starting high school I wrote an article for Seventeen magazine that received a lot of letters. I thought I was on my way. During college, I interned at Vanity Fair magazine--but was put into the contracts department, and knew I'd never get to write for them. I went back to business school, and on 9/11 lost my best friend in the WTC attack. I wrote about it for the school newspaper; people were shocked at how willing I was to put myself out there. But really what I learned was if I was going to be killed at my desk, it should be for something I genuinely care about, which was writing and books.
How did you come to donate this leadership gift to Binc?
When Covid-19 hit, I kept thinking about how I could help. I opened a Bookshop.org storefront and started hosting live events on social media to talk about books, and it is helping people during this time. Then I heard about Binc through Shelf Awareness, and thought about people who work in bookstores. Binc is not a big faceless corporate entity, it helps specific individuals. They seemed like a really smart charity, and I felt that I could trust them.
Why are bookstores and booksellers so important?
Bookstores are my favorite places in the world, and the people who work in them are the soldiers in the war that I care most about. They are the caretakers of the literary world, the true purveyors of book discovery. That's not to say that a website can't sell books--but there's something very different and so much better about finding a book through from a bookseller that no algorithm can replicate. Indies are in a tight spot right now, and my heart goes out to them. I've always felt that they are my tribe.
What are your favorite bookstores?
Book Hampton, East Hampton, N.Y., and Berry and Co., Sag Harbor, N.Y.
What's next for you?
We're working on launching a new online magazine, We Found Time. It is a literary retreat for anyone who prizes connection and relishes that nod of recognition when they read something that resonates with them. It will have five new exclusive author essays a week about what we feel we don't have time for, and yet do it anyway. Such as work out, eat, breathe, sex, read.
Zibby, we just want to thank you for being such a bright spot in all this darkness. Your contribution to Binc had us all cheering and gave us hope.
You're welcome!! Thank you!