Overview

In 1996, everything about Joe Biel's life seemed like a mistake. He was 18, he lived in Cleveland, he got drunk every day, and he had mystery health problems and weird social tics. All his friends' lives were as bad or worse. To escape a nihilistic, apocalyptic worldview and to bring reading and documentation into a communal punk scene, he started assembling zines and bringing them in milk crates to underground punk shows. Eventually this became Microcosm Publishing. But Biel's head for math was stronger than his ability to relate to people, and it wasn't until he was diagnosed with Asperger's Syndrome that it all began to fall into place. This is the story of how, over 20 years, one person turned a litany of continuing mistakes and seeming wrong turns into a happy, fulfilled life and a thriving publishing business that defies all odds.

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9781621060093

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Reviews

Praise for Good Trouble So much happens in Good Trouble. The book is punk autobiography, an indie small business manual, a reason to worry about what urban sprawl does to cut young people off from diversity and culture, and a painful look at what hides in some homes, hurting too many of those kids. --from the foreword by Joyce Brabner, co-author of Our Cancer Year Joe Biel is a part of a legacy--a lineage of independent publishers who scraped up just enough spare change to begin to put new voices into print...After I read Good Trouble my head was buzzing, my ears heard a silent ringing, I suddenly had new eyes to see my own life. --Sander Hicks, founder of Soft Skull Press I could not put this book down. Joe's struggle to run one of the staple businesses of the punk community while negotiating his personal and professional relationships as a man with Asperger's make this story both educational and compelling. It's part self-help book for anyone who has trouble understanding his or her own emotions (which I think is everyone) and part biography. It's a fascinating read. --Brea Grant, actress, Heroes, Friday Night Lights, Dexter Good Trouble is a wild and bumpy ride - heartbreaking and heartwarming, raw and intensely personal. Joe Biel's complex relationships with people, punk, and Asperger's make for both a relatable memoir and an appropriate frame for the twenty-year history of Microcosm Publishing, whose readers and writers have tried to create a better future from the heavily burdened trenches of the present. --Dawson Barrett, Teenage Rebels Shows an alternate American business model--one where vision and dreams trump financial resources and experience, and where DIY becomes the basis for decisions as Biel and the Microcosm staff define their own route to success inside American capitalism. A true American counter-culture story of the 90's to the present, Good Trouble presents one path to ensuring the survival of print. --Lisa Wilde, Yo, Miss Good Trouble is good medicine for anyone who's ever daydreamed of running a small business (or running away on a punk rock tour). --Ayun Halliday, author of No Touch Monkey!: And Other Travel Lessons Learned Too Late Good Trouble is a true story. It's also a success story. Good Trouble shows that road to success, however you define it, is twisty and bumpy and sometimes takes longer than you thought. And then when you get there, success doesn't look the way you thought it would look at all and there's a weird smell. You're all like, This is success? This is what I killed myself for? Maybe I can get my old job back at the pizza place if I beg. --Bob Suren, Crate Digger Praise for Good Trouble So much happens in Good Trouble. The book is punk autobiography, an indie small business manual, a reason to worry about what urban sprawl does to cut young people off from diversity and culture, and a painful look at what hides in some homes, hurting too many of those kids. from the foreword by Joyce Brabner, co-author of Our Cancer Year Joe Biel is a part of a legacy a lineage of independent publishers who scraped up just enough spare change to begin to put new voices into print...After I read Good Trouble my head was buzzing, my ears heard a silent ringing, I suddenly had new eyes to see my own life. Sander Hicks, founder of Soft Skull Press I could not put this book down. Joe s struggle to run one of the staple businesses of the punk community while negotiating his personal and professional relationships as a man with Asperger s make this story both educational and compelling. It s part self-help book for anyone who has trouble understanding his or her own emotions (which I think is everyone) and part biography. It s a fascinating read. Brea Grant, actress, Heroes, Friday Night Lights, Dexter Good Trouble is a wild and bumpy ride heartbreaking and heartwarming, raw and intensely personal. Joe Biel s complex relationships with people, punk, and Asperger s make for both a relatable memoir and an appropriate frame for the twenty-year history of Microcosm Publishing, whose readers and writers have tried to create a better future from the heavily burdened trenches of the present. Dawson Barrett, Teenage Rebels Shows an alternate American business model one where vision and dreams trump financial resources and experience, and where DIY becomes the basis for decisions as Biel and the Microcosm staff define their own route to success inside American capitalism. A true American counter-culture story of the 90 s to the present, Good Trouble presents one path to ensuring the survival of print. Lisa Wilde, Yo, Miss Good Trouble is good medicine for anyone who's ever daydreamed of running a small business (or running away on a punk rock tour). Ayun Halliday, author of No Touch Monkey!: And Other Travel Lessons Learned Too Late Good Trouble is a true story. It s also a success story. Good Trouble shows that road to success, however you define it, is twisty and bumpy and sometimes takes longer than you thought. And then when you get there, success doesn t look the way you thought it would look at all and there s a weird smell. You re all like, This is success? This is what I killed myself for? Maybe I can get my old job back at the pizza place if I beg. Bob Suren, Crate Digger

"Praise for Good Trouble So much happens in Good Trouble. The book is punk autobiography, an indie small business manual, a reason to worry about what urban sprawl does to cut young people off from diversity and culture, and a painful look at what hides in some homes, hurting too many of those kids. --from the foreword by Joyce Brabner, co-author of Our Cancer Year Joe Biel is a part of a legacy--a lineage of independent publishers who scraped up just enough spare change to begin to put new voices into print...After I read Good Trouble my head was buzzing, my ears heard a silent ringing, I suddenly had new eyes to see my own life. --Sander Hicks, founder of Soft Skull Press I could not put this book down. Joe's struggle to run one of the staple businesses of the punk community while negotiating his personal and professional relationships as a man with Asperger's make this story both educational and compelling. It's part self-help book for anyone who has trouble understanding his or her own emotions (which I think is everyone) and part biography. It's a fascinating read. --Brea Grant, actress, Heroes, Friday Night Lights, Dexter ""Good Trouble is a wild and bumpy ride - heartbreaking and heartwarming, raw and intensely personal. Joe Biel's complex relationships with people, punk, and Asperger's make for both a relatable memoir and an appropriate frame for the twenty-year history of Microcosm Publishing, whose readers and writers have tried to create a better future from the heavily burdened trenches of the present."" --Dawson Barrett, Teenage Rebels Shows an alternate American business model--one where vision and dreams trump financial resources and experience, and where DIY becomes the basis for decisions as Biel and the Microcosm staff define their own route to success inside American capitalism. A true American counter-culture story of the 90's to the present, Good Trouble presents one path to ensuring the survival of print. --Lisa Wilde, Yo, Miss Good Trouble is good medicine for anyone who's ever daydreamed of running a small business (or running away on a punk rock tour). --Ayun Halliday, author of No Touch Monkey!: And Other Travel Lessons Learned Too Late Good Trouble is a true story. It's also a success story. Good Trouble shows that road to success, however you define it, is twisty and bumpy and sometimes takes longer than you thought. And then when you get there, success doesn't look the way you thought it would look at all and there's a weird smell. You're all like, ""This is success? This is what I killed myself for? Maybe I can get my old job back at the pizza place if I beg."" --Bob Suren, Crate Digger"

Praise for Good Trouble So much happens in Good Trouble. The book is punk autobiography, an indie small business manual, a reason to worry about what urban sprawl does to cut young people off from diversity and culture, and a painful look at what hides in some homes, hurting too many of those kids. from the foreword by Joyce Brabner, co-author of Our Cancer Year Joe Biel is a part of a legacy a lineage of independent publishers who scraped up just enough spare change to begin to put new voices into print...After I read Good Trouble my head was buzzing, my ears heard a silent ringing, I suddenly had new eyes to see my own life. Sander Hicks, founder of Soft Skull Press I could not put this book down. Joe s struggle to run one of the staple businesses of the punk community while negotiating his personal and professional relationships as a man with Asperger s make this story both educational and compelling. It s part self-help book for anyone who has trouble understanding his or her own emotions (which I think is everyone) and part biography. It s a fascinating read. Brea Grant, actress, Heroes, Friday Night Lights, Dexter Shows an alternate American business model one where vision and dreams trump financial resources and experience, and where DIY becomes the basis for decisions as Biel and the Microcosm staff define their own route to success inside American capitalism. A true American counter-culture story of the 90 s to the present, Good Trouble presents one path to ensuring the survival of print. Lisa Wilde, Yo, Miss Good Trouble is good medicine for anyone who's ever daydreamed of running a small business (or running away on a punk rock tour). Ayun Halliday, author of No Touch Monkey!: And Other Travel Lessons Learned Too Late Good Trouble is a true story. It s also a success story. Good Trouble shows that road to success, however you define it, is twisty and bumpy and sometimes takes longer than you thought. And then when you get there, success doesn t look the way you thought it would look at all and there s a weird smell. You re all like, This is success? This is what I killed myself for? Maybe I can get my old job back at the pizza place if I beg. Bob Suren, Crate Digger

Praise for Good Trouble So much happens in Good Trouble. The book is punk autobiography, an indie small business manual, a reason to worry about what urban sprawl does to cut young people off from diversity and culture, and a painful look at what hides in some homes, hurting too many of those kids. --from the foreword by Joyce Brabner, co-author of Our Cancer Year Joe Biel is a part of a legacy--a lineage of independent publishers who scraped up just enough spare change to begin to put new voices into print...After I read Good Trouble my head was buzzing, my ears heard a silent ringing, I suddenly had new eyes to see my own life. --Sander Hicks, founder of Soft Skull Press I could not put this book down. Joe's struggle to run one of the staple businesses of the punk community while negotiating his personal and professional relationships as a man with Asperger's make this story both educational and compelling. It's part self-help book for anyone who has trouble understanding his or her own emotions (which I think is everyone) and part biography. It's a fascinating read. --Brea Grant, actress, Heroes, Friday Night Lights, Dexter Good Trouble is a wild and bumpy ride - heartbreaking and heartwarming, raw and intensely personal. Joe Biel's complex relationships with people, punk, and Asperger's make for both a relatable memoir and an appropriate frame for the twenty-year history of Microcosm Publishing, whose readers and writers have tried to create a better future from the heavily burdened trenches of the present. --Dawson Barrett, Teenage Rebels Shows an alternate American business model--one where vision and dreams trump financial resources and experience, and where DIY becomes the basis for decisions as Biel and the Microcosm staff define their own route to success inside American capitalism. A true American counter-culture story of the 90's to the present, Good Trouble presents one path to ensuring the survival of print. --Lisa Wilde, Yo, Miss Good Trouble is good medicine for anyone who's ever daydreamed of running a small business (or running away on a punk rock tour). --Ayun Halliday, author of No Touch Monkey!: And Other Travel Lessons Learned Too Late Good Trouble is a true story. It's also a success story. Good Trouble shows that road to success, however you define it, is twisty and bumpy and sometimes takes longer than you thought. And then when you get there, success doesn't look the way you thought it would look at all and there's a weird smell. You're all like, This is success? This is what I killed myself for? Maybe I can get my old job back at the pizza place if I beg. --Bob Suren, Crate Digger

Author Information

Joe Biel is a writer, activist, filmmaker, teacher, and founder of Microcosm Publishing and co-founder of the Portland Zine Symposium. He shows his films on tour with the Dinner and Bikes program. He has been featured in theTime Magazine, Publisher’s Weekly, and Utne Reader. He lives in Portland, OR. Sander Hicks (Foreword) lives in New York City. He founded Soft Skull Press, winner of the Outstanding Publisher of the Year award for the publication of controversial George W. Bush biographyFortunate Son. Joyce Brabner (Introduction) lives in Cleveland, where she is a social activist and writer of political cartoons. She co-wroteOur Cancer Year with her late husband Harvey Pekar, and is most recently the author ofSecond Avenue Caper.

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