Although schools and educators, libraries and librarians, parents and students all feel the effects of book bans, one group that receives less media attention but is no less important is authors.
According to a new report from PEN America, the 2023-24 school year “targeted authors across state lines and across school years.” Titles that were banned at the onset of the current book ban movement continue to be targeted, and “several authors also continue to experience the ‘Scarlet Letter’ effect,” in which they face a cascade of bans against their earlier titles “after experiencing their first book ban.”
It’s not just seasoned writers whose passion and livelihood are affected by book bans. Up-and-coming authors are being impacted, as well. Earlier this year, blind author and illustrator Paul Castle and husband Matthew faced an unusual, but no less alarming book ban. During Pride Month, Paul’s LGBTQ-inclusive title The Secret Ingredient, was rejected and returned by a bookstore that had previously ordered 100 copies.
Children’s book author Paul Castle’s LGBTQ-inclusive book “The Secret Castle” was rejected by a bookstore that had previously ordered 100 copies.
Focused on a pair of penguins who “deliver birthday cakes to their colorful animal friends,” The Secret Ingredient is about adoption and families of all types. “The message of … The Secret Ingredient is, ‘What are the ingredients to a successful, happy family in their creativity, love, courage, and patience?’” Matthew, partly in tandem with his husband, told GLAAD.
“Kids nowadays really need to see that kind of representation,” especially incidental representation where “the messages of the story are relatable to every child,” Paul said. “Whether or not they have that sort of family or their friends do, it’s just more and more common, so I think that that needs to be reflected in the literature that kids are consuming, as well, from a young age.”
Paul previously found success promoting The Secret Ingredient through bookstore visits and signings, so the rejection came “out of the blue.” Gone was the contact Paul worked with, and the person who emailed him claimed the employee “wasn’t entirely up to speed” with the business’ policies.
“So, of course I called and asked, ‘What were these policies?’” said Paul. “I wanted to really understand what was going on, because nothing like this had happened before. And she simply said that the message didn’t align with the bookstore itself without explicitly saying what that message was.”
The rejection left Paul “devastated,” and he took to social media to share his story in a now viral post. “I saw it almost immediately as an opportunity to talk about censorship,” added Castle. “If a message … contradicts a store’s policies and they remove it from the shelf – because, from what I understand, it was already on display – this constitutes as a ban, because banning includes school reading lists, libraries, and bookstore shelves.”
Matthew and Paul are no strangers to social media success. As with many social media influencers, they started recording videos as a “pandemic project,” as Paul described it. From there, they amassed a large following – 2.4 million strong on TikTok and 1.6 million on Instagram – recording not just fun couples’ content such as lighthearted pranks, but also heartfelt conversations.
“It was October 2022 when, for the very first time, we decided to share more of our lives as an interabled couple,” said Matthew. Living with retinitis pigmentosa, Paul is legally blind, and has lost 90 to 95 percent of his vision. “I started a video by saying, ‘my husband is blind, and … these are some things I do to help him out around the house,” continued Matthew. From there, he said, their channels grew “in a way that surprised us.”
Given the couples’ follower base across multiple platforms, what should come as no surprise was the support the couple received after announcing The Secret Ingredient’s ban. Not only did they sell out of the 100 copies that were returned, many additional were purchased, leading it to sell out temporarily.
“It’s a reminder of how important it is for advocacy work still to be done,” said Matthew. “That’s exactly what GLAAD is doing. That’s what Paul’s trying to do through his books.”