Like many writers, I've had to juggle my writing with a demanding full-time job, so I know how hard it is to carve out time to achieve a full manuscript that I'm proud of and think is publishable.
Like most writers, I always seem to have a digital folder full of incomplete stories, outlines and partially written manuscripts - the ideas come faster than the time available to write and scribbled-in notebooks litter my house and my handbag! Until recently, I've been a fairly slow writer, - I hold my hand up to advanced levels of procrastination! But things change, and this year I've taken the plunge to scale back my academic work and focus on my first love.
Some years ago, I had a job that took me inside the publishing industry and gave me much needed experience in editing fiction books and the process of online publication. That job also gave me a deeper understanding of how much work there was for writers still to do beyond creating the story - months of editing to whip a manuscript into shape plus the invaluable role of an editor to make the final work 'oven ready'. It was fascinating to be on the other side of the business and I learned so much. The experience not only gave me more confidence as a writer, it also led to a number of acquaintances asking me to cast a professional eye over their own manuscripts. So, with a chunk of all kinds of editing and proofreading experience under my belt, along with beta reading, and helping others navigate the online publishing process, I can proudly look at a number of published titles that I've contributed to.
In 2018, I finally got round to publishing a children's book that I had written for my granddaughter, Ruby. It had been lying around for a while, and I just managed to put a copy into her hand before she was way too old to want to read it! Job done - although I was too busy to do much in the way of marketing it and, to be honest, I didn't feel the need at first. A few years later, a good friend asked me to mentor her as she wrote a memoir of her career in midwifery and eventually we shared a glorious launch event at a local bookshop.
About that time, a dear friend wanted to write a very personal story and I offered to help with the editing and publishing side. I began to think seriously about becoming an independent publisher and helping other unpublished authors achieve their dreams. But first I needed to relocate from Australia back to the UK, and there was a slight hitch - Covid meant Australia wouldn't let us out for two years.
However, at the back end of 2022, I wrote a second book and decided to make it a series - story number three is almost here. The Caraway Press started to became a reality.
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