grace grits and gardening

ramblings from an arkansas farm girl

One Mississippi Press

By

One Mississippi Press

You may have heard, I recently started my own publishing company—One Mississippi Press.

Several things led to this decision, but it all boils down to patience and control. Evidently I’m lacking in the former and want more of the latter. Ha.

Patience is a virtue, until it isn’t.

For those of you interested in writing and publishing a book, my opinion on the topic has changed wildly over the past three years. And who knows. Maybe it will change again.

I have lots to say about this. (Not that I intend to bore you with it here.) One thing I will say is that traveling the pathway of traditional publishing requires a triple-truckload of patience. Not only to find a publisher—there’s the time spent writing query letters and book proposals, designing marketing plans, pitching to various publishers and agents, waiting to hear back (often hearing only the sound of crickets), and then, if you are in the exact right place at the perfect time with a company that happens to want precisely what you are selling, you find out the publishing house is backlogged until, say, 2022.

Oh, and then there’s the rumor that no one ever buys/reads a book that has more than 299 pages.

Can this be true? I often read books that are much longer than 299 pages. In fact, I love a long book. Lengthy books are somehow getting published. (I do agree the longer the book the less the profit. Therein lies the primary issue, if I had to guess…)

Anyhoo, I decided to take my jacks and regroup. The process had become an energy-zapper and a major de-motivator. It’s not like I’m twenty-five years old with decades of blank years in front of me.

One Mississippi Press / Jacks

The great news—the process I went through brought me to this point. All the pitching and proposal-writing and explaining how I would market my book was not a waste of time. Quite the opposite.

Basically, I convinced myself I could do it myself. ?

I started One Mississippi Press to publish not only my forthcoming book, Gene, Everywhere, but also to republish The Accidental Salvation of Gracie Lee.

Yes! I now have the rights back to my first novel. And it feels a bit like rediscovering a misplaced treasure.

Why Not?

Having lots of creative ideas for the book I birthed but being unable to implement them felt stifling to me.

You can bet I didn’t make this decision without much thought and great gnashing of teeth. After all, finding a publisher is a big deal! But things change, and I was ready to venture out in a new direction.

Now, with One Mississippi Press I have control over book design and formatting, description, pricing, all the things. Yes, I’m limited by what I don’t know. But I am willing to dig in and learn.

One Mississippi Press—the Name and the Logo

I chose the name, One Mississippi Press because of several reasons.

One Mississippi Press

Gracie Lee counts in One Mississippis. It’s her way of bracing herself for what’s to come. Her way to draw strength into herself, to give herself time, to pause and think things through.

One Mississippi, Two Mississippi, …

Like Gracie, I do the same thing. I always have. When I was a kid, I was taught that the time it took to say, “One Mississippi,” equalled one second. I still do that to estimate time. Don’t you?

One Mississippi is my reminder to slow down. Enjoy the ride. Don’t rush the process. With effort and dedication, things will work out in the time that they should.

And the dandelion logo?

While some may see pesky weeds, I see wishes and dreams. As I scatter words like wishes, I hope to spread a tiny amount of good with my writing.

One Mississippi Press

Guess What’s Coming NEXT WEEK?

Cover Reveal  ❣❣❣

I cannot wait to show you the cover for Gene, Everywhere AND the new cover for the 2nd edition of The Accidental Salvation of Gracie Lee!

Let the countdown begin.

Talya
Grace Grits and Gardening
Farm. Food. Garden. Life.

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Comments

  2. Great news, Talya, and congrats on the new venture! I love the logo, and I can’t wait to see what changes you have in mind for Gracie Lee and what’s in store for Gene.

  5. I’ve seen ’em, I’ve seen ’em…..but I will never tell. I do have privileges you know…..(that’s what Mamma would say.)

  11. How exciting – you are a gifted writer and I’m sure you will be an excellent publisher! Love the name and the logo. Looking forward to Gene, Everywhere and more!!!!

  13. This is awesome! Have you watched the show “Younger”? This is just like it but not! Congratulations!

  15. Love the idea behind the name and can’t wait for new book!
    I’m actually letting someone borrow The Accidental Salvation of Gracie Lee tonight to read.

  16. Hurray for you! I know you’ll do well. Love the title @ the logo. I just taught my great nephew to count in Mississippi. ?

    • I KNEW counting in Mississippis was still a thing! Thank you for telling me this!

  17. So excited and proud for you! Can’t wait to read about Gene! I love that he and Lucy had a special bond. As a new publishing company owner, will you be getting things submitted by others for your consideration to publish? Or will you only be publishing your own material exclusively? (Sorry if that’s a dumb question!) LOVE the name of the Co and the dandelion! Takes me back to our childhood days when you, me and Staci use to string together flowers, clover, dandelions and such to
    make fancy necklaces. We wore those with such pride and a sense of accomplishment as if they were real jewels around our necks. Haha And I (too) still count in Mississippi’s!
    So excited for you and your anxiously awaiting fans! Love you! ❤️

    P.S. I think the title for one of your future books should be Talya, Everywhere! ?

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