Publishers Weekly published the 2013 list of fastest-growing independent publishers, and right at the top was Oak Press, LLC, the company founded by self-publishing bestseller Bella Andre. Bella’s talked before about her own self-publishing journey, but what inspired her to found her own company? We asked Bella to drop by and talk about going from author to entrepreneur.
1. Congratulations! Your company Oak Press was just named the fastest growing independent publisher of 2013 by Publisher’s Weekly. When did you start thinking of yourself as an independent publisher –apart from being a writer and author?
Thank you! I was very excited to hear this news from Publishers Weekly. When I first started self-publishing in 2010, honestly, I was just focused on the great new opportunities to get my books out to readers. But once the eBooks began to sell well and I began to also delve into audiobooks and translations, I realized that I had become a full blown publisher! That was when I started Oak Press in 2011 to publish my Bella Andre and Lucy Kevin titles in all possible formats.
2. As a successful publisher, what’s your top tip for turning self-publishing into a full-time business?
I actually have two! First, never forget that great books are the most important part of publishing. Second, pay attention to what’s happening in the industry, on the indie, traditional and hybrid sides (all of which often overlap!).
3. Tell us more about your company? Are you doing this all by yourself?
I am the only full-time employee of Oak Press, and I work with a dozen part-time contractors on a variety of things that I need help with. (Copyediting, Proofreading, Formatting, PR, Online marketing, Translations, Accounting, etc.) At the end of 2012, Oak Press signed a groundbreaking English language print-only deal with Harlequin for 12 books in my New York Times bestselling series about The Sullivans, we’ve licensed the foreign rights to “The Sullivans” series in 10 countries so far, and are also working to set up translations of other various Bella Andre and Lucy Kevin titles. Plus, Oak Press has put out more than 20 audiobooks in the past year and a half, which have also been doing extremely well. And one other fun thing that Oak Press has done is to publish my husband’s illustrated children’s books (CLEVER LITTLE MOUSE written as Paul Ramage). In fact, after Oak Press undertook translations of his books in five languages, he became an instant bestseller in Italy, Spain, Germany and France.
4. What are your plans for the future?
To keep enjoying writing new books that my readers will love and to keep moving forward with innovative deals and projects!
5. If you could revisit one decision and do it differently, what would that be?
Back in 2011 when I first began to experiment with hiring translators for my books, I decided to translate into six languages at once. Looking back, it probably would have been a better idea to start with one language at a time to learn the ropes. But it was a great learning experience and I made some really good changes to my plan for the global market as a result.
Other than that, everything else has succeeded beyond my wildest dreams, and I can’t wait to see what the future holds.
Thanks so much for having me here today! If people would like to find out more about my work, they can visit http://www.BellaAndre.com and http://www.LucyKevin.com.
