August 11, 2022
Well, it’s official. After almost two years of researching, writing, networking, and learning, I have decided to create my own publishing company. Introducing… Enchanted Moon Press LLC, Books For All Phases of Life. I will start with publishing a chapter book, then a picture book, and finally a YA novel. Once I have those under my belt, I will be open to submissions from other authors. My goal is to have a variety of quality books for all ages.
This idea came to me as a download while I was stuck in traffic. Imagine me in the driver’s seat, the whole family asleep, and cars stopped along I-75 for as long as you could see. I had two choices. I could let the aggravation take over OR I could enjoy the quiet time to myself. At that time in my life, my quiet thoughts often drifted to my writing. I was getting frustrated with how long it was taking to meet with agents and publishers. I was meeting wonderful people in the industry, but many of them wanted me to change my writing for political purposes. I had a dozen completed manuscripts sitting and waiting on my computer. Things weren’t feeling aligned. I was rolling all this around in my head when the idea came to me.
I grabbed a fast food napkin from the glovebox and started jotting down my ideas. My pen was moving as fast and furious as my mind was racing. I knew I had some great concepts for books. My manuscripts were begging to come to life. I had met many traditionally published authors leaving that part of the industry to self-publish their next books. Why hadn’t I thought of this before? I can create my own imprint, publish a few of my own books, and then open up for submissions from other debut authors. Yes! But can I really do this?
Yes, I can. There is no time like the present. I’m going for it. Why not? I recently turned down an offer from a publisher for my MG chapter book and I’m going to make that one my first published book under Enchanted Moon Press. This is all new, but you’ve got to start somewhere. I am humbly declaring that I am ready for the challenge. And once I’ve got the hang of it, I will be thrilled to take on other authors. Moving forward, I will be creating a website, hiring Beta Readers, hiring an editor, looking for illustrators, playing around with formatting, continuing my research of publishing through podcasts and conferences, and remembering to enjoy the process along the way.
So friends, get ready for some awesome books that will be available for purchase through Amazon and local bookstores. Each book published under Enchanted Moon Press will have some reference to the moon. It might be a chapter book about a ten-year-old boy seeing the moon through a telescope. It might be two teenagers running from danger along a path lit only by the moonlight. It might be a picture book with an illustration of the moon hidden in the art. Happiful writes, “The moon’s energy is potent and powerful, just like we are if we choose to believe it, and it can be used as a way to connect more deeply with ourselves, and our feelings.” That’s what I hope our books will do too.
Happy Reading!
Laura Coy 