Why I Started My Own Publishing Imprint

Hello everyone! I hope your weekend is going well! I know I missed last week’s blog post, but I had a trip to Idaho for a book signing event at Hidden Pages Books in Kimberly, and I am also in the process of moving, so sitting down to write has been a little bit lower on my priority list than it normally is.

But! I wanted to share some really cool news that I’ve been sitting on for a while now. 

I started my own publishing imprint! 

I have a lot of reasons why I did this, and I’d like to share some of them with you today. First, I have been publishing my own work for the last eight years, and I absolutely adore the process. I love to get my hands in the different parts of the publishing process, and I love challenging myself to learn better ways to do things. 

Over the last few years, I have had the pleasure of working with other authors in several different parts of the process, and it has been a dream come true! I’ve also had the opportunity to expand and get in touch with bookstores, and this has launched my author work into areas I only ever dreamed could happen for me.

So, a few years ago, I started using the imprint name AzureStar when publishing my own works. Since I published Clairvoyance back in 2022, I knew I eventually wanted to expand this into something bigger. 

Then, toward the end of last year, I had a family friend come to me with a written manuscript for a children’s book, and this person wanted me to help make this piece of writing into a full, illustrated children’s book. I was able to spend some time every week throughout the last year illustrating this book for them. As the illustrating process progressed, I worked with this author to figure out how they wanted to publish, and they wanted me to do it for them. 

This was so special, and I was honored that they trusted me to help them through the publication process. 

So, I got to work and was able to register AzureStar Press as a business, and I set to work writing up contracts, designing logos, and more. I’m still in the process of putting things like a website together, but if you’re interested in learning a little bit more about the way I designed this publishing imprint, you can view AzureStar’s temporary webpage located on this website. (I’ll put a button at the bottom of this post if you want to check it out). 

The big thing is… I really wanted to design the business so that I have the ability to support authors with any part of the process (if they just want an editor, an illustrator, a designer, or a book coach), or through the full publication process. 

I am so excited to have this publishing imprint officially started! I will say that, as of right now, I am going to keep this business small. I have a job that I absolutely adore and have no intention of quitting, and I want my parenting and my writing to take my biggest attention in the time that I’m not working, so at least for now, AzureStar Press will mostly be focused on publishing my own work and limited other authors. I hope that as the business grows, I will be able to hire people to help me and I will be able to take more submissions. 

Now! The last tidbit that I’d like to share with you today is this: 

AzureStar Press will be releasing author Gary R. Motte’s wonderful debut children’s book, The Little Red Fergie on November 1st this year! 

Click to visit AzureStar Press’s Temporary Webpage