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Publishing & Cooperative

January 2012

News from the Home Office

 

Old and New

As we say goodbye to the old year, what comes to mind is: NEW. Since our last newsletter went out in the fall, we have a newly expanded office suite, two new members for our MAP team, and a slew of new books that have been published. We're all excited to enter the 2102 with renewed energy and creativity and wish the same for you! 

 

Expansion into Our New Space

We moved to our office space across from the ferry terminal in October 2010. In November 2011 we expanded into the adjoining office previously occupied by our landlords, the Creelmans. In this large open space we have our shipping and receiving department, display space for all our books, desks and workspaces for Colleen and Andrew, and even a small lounge area complete with comfy chairs. Plus it has the best view on Main Street! If you haven't already seen the space, please feel free to stop by and check it out.

 

New to the Office

Custom Museum Publishing (logo)We've recently hired Andrew Maxcy, who published Obsidian Shards: A Collection of Dark Fiction through our company. He holds a Bachelor's in English from the University of Maine. Performing a variety of tasks, including, but not limited to, shipping and receiving, answering phones, ordering supplies, doing permissions research. He's turning out to be a real go-to guy around the office. He is pleased to be working with us, and we're happy to have him here. You can email him at andrew@maineauthorspublishing.com.

 

Custom Museum Publishing (logo)We've also hired Lindy Gifford, who graduated from Tufts University with a double major in anthropology and archeology. After traveling and working in various countries as an archeologist, she went back to school at Massachusetts College of Art to learn graphic design and has since worked as a graphic designer for more than twenty-five years in Boston and Maine. She served as the art director for several magazines, including WoodenBoat, and has designed books for DownEast and Tilbury House, among other book publishers. We're happy to have her join us as our second graphic designer. Lindy can be reached at lindy@maineauthorspublishing.com.

New books published Fall/Winter 2011

Many new books were released during the last half of the year. Here are just a few:

  

Custom Museum Publishing (logo)

Paula Benoit - Baxter in the Blaine House, a children's book about the Maine governor's lively Jack Russell terrier mix (http://baxterblogs.wordpress.com/). Illustrations by Thomas Block.

 

Ann Blackman - Off to Save the World: How JULIA TAFT Made a Difference*, a biography about a dedicated humanitarian (www.annblackman.com/).

 

John Chandler - Unspeakable Acts, four one-act plays that cover controversial topics including religious beliefs, alcoholism and mental illness.

 Custom Museum Publishing (logo)

Deborah H. Gould - Father is here... ...he's as fat as a pig, a picture book featuring hilarious Maine postcards from the 1900s to 1920s.

 

Astrid Marshall - Widow Watched*, a murder mystery where experienced criminal defense attorney Mallory Ingalls stumbles into something bigger than she expected (www.mallorymysteries.com).

 

Katherine Mayfield - The Box of Daughter*, a memoir eloquently portraying the author's triumph over emotional abuse (www.theboxofdaughter.com/).

 

Jane Harvey Meade - Summer of the Disco King, a mysterious tale where Janet Connors must determine the culprit behind a recently exposed danger (www.janeharveymeade.com/).

Custom Museum Publishing (logo) 

Kevin C. Mills - Breakwater*, a novel continuing the Miller family's struggle to find happiness in an ocean of sorrow (www.kevincmills.com/Breakwater.html).

 

Doug Norwood - Letters to Lauralee, an old-fashioned love story that transpires on the Maine coast.

 

Jack O'Mara - Whitewater Opera: Death Comes to the Allagash*, a harrowing adventure where seven friends must find the leader within as they battle Maine's Allagash wilderness (www.whitewater-opera.com).

Custom Museum Publishing (logo) 

Gayle Portnow - food, however peripheral, a poetry book containing food-related tales full of wisdom, wonder, and humor.

 

Steven D. Powell - Patch Scratching*, a heartfelt story where abandoned child Jed is confronted by ghosts from his past. Illustrations by Thomas Block.

 

Susan B. Raven - There Was a Little Girl, a children's island-themed educational book illustrated with brilliant colors.

 

*Also available as e-books for Kindle and Smashwords. 

 

Submit your news  

Have news or events to share? Send it to us and we'll share it in the next newsletter! Email it to

colleen@maineauthorspublishing.com.  

Big News For our Authors!  

New England Book Festival Honorable Mentions 

 

New England Book FestivalWe just learned that three of our authors received Honorable Mentions from the New England Book Festival Awards: Jeff Foltz for Birkebeiner in the General Fiction category; Don Carrigan (with illustrations by Thomas Block) for Togus: A Coon Cat Finds a Home in the Children's category; and Kathleen A. Fox for The Good in the Spirituality category. The Festival is held each year in Boston and honors books that show general excellence and the author's passion for telling a good story, and that have the potential to reach a wider audience. Congratulations to Jeff, Kathleen, Don, and Tom! To all authors, keep entering those awards contests.

 

And Speaking of Awards...

 

Custom Museum Publishing (logo)The deadline is approaching for entering your book for The Independent Publisher Book Award, also known as The IPPY. This award honors books released by self-published, independent authors, university presses, and other independently operated publishers. Books released from November 1, 2010 to March 15, 2012 are eligible. There is an entry fee of $95, but if you enter by January 7, you will save $10. One of our authors has won this award in the past, and we'd love to see more of our authors and titles among the winners. For entry information, go to: www.independentpublisher.com.

 

Children's book authors: there is an award just for you: The Moonbeam Children's Book Award. Entries are accepted until August 31, 2012, but if you enter by March 31, you'll get $20 off the entry fee. More information can be found at: www.moonbeamawards.com 

 

And Even More Awards!

 

We have compiled a list of book awards that are a good fit for self-published authors. While we can't vouch for the awards or the organizations that offer them, we wanted to have the information available for our authors. If you would like a copy of the Excel sheet, please email Andrew or Colleen.

 

 

A Deal not to be Missed
Generous MWPA Membership Offer
MAP is offering $10 toward new memberships to Maine Writers & Publishers Alliance until January 15th. MWPA is a thirty-five year old nonprofit organization whose mission is to enrich the cultural life of Maine by supporting writers and the literary arts. They act as a network for writers, readers, and publishers, offer workshops and conferences throughout the year, and put out a wonderful print newsletter. For more information about MWPA, go to www.mainewriters.org.

 

The usual membership rate is $35/year. MWPA is offering us the reduced rate of $25, and MAP will pick up $10 of that fee for our co-op members. The cost to you is only $15--what a fabulous deal! If you want to take advantage of this opportunity, please contact andrew@maineauthorspublishing.com or colleen@maineauthorspublishing.com. Remember, offer ends January 15th, so hurry!


Maine Authors Publishing wishes you well with all your writerly pursuits in 2012!

 

Self-publishing for Maine Writers
Adult Ed courses throughout Maine - sign up today!

 

 

One of our pleasures is connecting with not-yet-published authors and letting them know how self-publishing works. Every year we teach classes through local adult-ed programs. Below is this year's schedule. Please pass this information on to your friends that would like to learn more about self-publishing.

 

Date

Time

Location

1/28/12

11:00-12:30

Rangeley Public Library
(call 207-864-5529 to register)

2/9/12

6:30-8:30

Portland, Maine

3/8/12

6:30-8:30

Bucksport

3/22/12

6:30-8:30

York

4/5/12

6:30-8:30

Camden

4/12/12

6:30-8:30

Mt. Desert

4/26/12

6:00-7:30

Louis B. Goodall Memorial Library   

(call 207-324-4714 to register)

 

Register online here. 

 

Find us on FacebookJoin the conversation!

Facebook and other forms of social media are also a fantastic way to connect with readers, yet some of our authors are reluctant to be on Facebook, fearing an invasion of privacy. Understandable, but keep in mind, you decide on the level of privacy in the settings section of Facebook. You can also set up a gmail account through Google to create another level of privacy.

 

If you're not a fan of Maine Authors Publishing on Facebook, you're missing out! We encourage conversation and questions on our page. 
 
 

Have you joined our Author Pod Group? This is a closed group, for co-op authors only. Our co-op members are using this group to organize book signings and other author events. Social networking at its best! To join the group, first send a friend request to Cheryl McKeary. She will invite you to join the group. Feel free to post your own events and ideas here--it's your group!

 


 
Do you have questions or knowledge you'd like to share?
 
Become a fan and join the conversation!
 

 
About Maine Authors Publishing
Maine Authors Publishing, located in Rockland, produces and markets books for self-publishing authors. Maine Authors Cooperative is a program within the company that offers catalog and fulfillment services to get self-published books into Maine book stores.

Please contact me today if you'd like to learn more about self-publishing your own book.
Sincerely,

 

Jane Karker, Owner
Maine Authors Publishing and Custom Museum Publishing
info@maineauthorspublishing.com
(207) 594-0091
Like us on Facebook
Become a fan and join the conversation on Facebook to get frequent updates and tips about self-publishing.

Maine Authors Publishing & Cooperative
& Custom Museum Publishing Inc.

558 Main St. Rockland, ME 04841
207-594-0091
Fax 207-226-2015

 

Contact us today to learn how you can self-publish your own book! 

 

Jane Karker, President

 

David Allen, Art Director

 

Colleen Conlan, Publicity and Co-op Coordinator

 

Genie Dailey, Editor/Consultant

Lindy Gifford
Graphic Designer

Tom Jordan, Business Manager

Andrew Maxcy
Distribution Supervisor

Cheryl McKeary, Marketing & Media Specialist