This week at Valley Press, #55: 'When we were winners'

Dear readers,

This week, Valley Press won its very first literary award. Remembering Oluwale, an important and poignant collection of writing inspired by the tragedy of Leeds immigrant David Oluwale, was voted 'Best Anthology' at the 2017 Saboteur Awards. It was a moment of great satisfaction for the many contributors, including editor SJ Bradley and co-organiser Max Farrar (pictured below attending the ceremony), and of course the book's designer, our own Rosa Campbell. I was delighted too, even though my sole contribution was saying 'yes, we must publish that!' this time last year.

Sarah (SJ Bradley) had this to say shortly afterwards:

"It is so wonderful to have Remembering Oluwale recognised by the Saboteur Awards. This is a book which faces up to a shameful episode in Leeds’ history, and persuades the city to do better. David Oluwale was a man who could so easily have been forgotten – at the time of his death, the only official records left about him were the arrest records left by the police who victimised him, and papers from a psychiatric institution. It’s a testament to the resonances of his story that so much wonderful and powerful writing has come about and continues to do so. I am so proud to have been a part of it."

The news of our win, and subsequent reactions from the reading public, inspired me to finally finish the Kindle version of the book, which you can now access here. A half-finished file had sat on my hard drive for many months; the complexity of the formatting (with notes, and a multitude of page layouts) had discouraged me somewhat, and I was able to tell myself: 'they've got the paperback... Kindle publications are old news.' But I knuckled down on Tuesday afternoon and got the job done.

Leeds residents can attend an event celebrating Remembering Oluwale on Wednesday June 7th at Outlaws Yacht Club, from 7.15. This also seems an ideal time to announce that some of the team behind the anthology (including SJ) are lauching a new project along similar lines; a competition which leads to an anthology in support of a good cause. Entries aren't open yet, but you can read the details in the left-hand column here. We'll be publishing the resulting book in March 2018.

As promised, here are Sarah and Max at the Saboteur ceremony:

The other big news this week is that we have a new website. Not entirely-from-scratch new, but built 'on top of' our previous website by original designers Askew Brook.

As well as new functionality – you can now contact a department directly, and audiobooks and hardbacks can be listed alongside paperbacks – it has a new design. Less big blocks of turquoise, more white space, and we can now choose an 'accent colour' for each book, as well as upload a second image (which will sometimes be the back cover, sometimes an object photo).

You can see the new design firing on all cylinders on the Remembering Oluwale page (if you haven't already visited that by now!) It'll be a while before we've added the new images and colours to every book, but we'll get there eventually.

I hope you approve of the new site; these changes all came about by talking to VP fans over the last twelve months, so I'm hoping this version of the site will last us a good few years. If you have any feedback, or spot a bug, let us know.

* * *

Helen Burke update: we're very close to finishing the "primary typesetting" (a process I described last week). Tomorrow could be the day!

And finally, for those who missed Norah Hanson's reading last night at Wardle & Jones, our latest intrepid intern Rebecca has edited and uploaded a video of her poem 'Spark', which you can watch here. Enjoy!

All best,
Jamie McGarry, VP Publisher

This week at Valley Press, #49: 'Remembering'

Dear readers,

You may recall a book we published last year, titled Remembering Oluwale (with a title like that, how could you forget?) It's returned to the spotlight recently in various ways. One of the contributors won the 'Pitch and Pen' event we took part in during March, and is heading for a solo publication (the slow way – she still needs to write most of the book!) That encouraged me to re-read the anthology, and it's still as compelling a year on.

We're working on another anthology titled Verse Matters, due in November (eye-wateringly brilliant stuff, couldn't be more excited about that one), and during the first meeting today I heard that the editors were encouraged to offer it to Valley Press because of our great work on Remembering Oluwale. Particularly the design; so a big shout-out to Rosa Campbell, if she's reading. (She's very busy with her PhD at present.)

RO's editor SJ Bradley has been working tirelessly to get the book the attention it deserves, and this recently paid off in the form of a shortlisting for the Saboteur Awards. Unlike the typical literary awards, this one won't be decided in a secluded boardroom somewhere; it's a public vote, open until April 30th. Hustling for votes makes me feel a little queasy, but if you do feel compelled to give your opinions on literary matters, you can vote in all the award categories via their website here.

(I also heard SJ is gearing up to edit another 'prize anthology', this one exclusively for short stories – more details later in the year. That's probably a secret though, so shh!)

I'm constantly astonished at how a single project can send out ripples in all directions that don't become obvious until many months, or even years, later; that's been a big lesson from 2017 so far. The Chinese project I've been hinting at (which I will explain soon, I promise) originated from someone attending one of our very first book launches in 2011 – over the years, word spread from that room in Scarborough library to the foothills of the Qinling Mountains, in the middle of China.

That's all I've got to say this week, though after all this it would be remiss of me not to offer you 20% off Remembering Oluwale; use code REMEM at the checkout to claim that. Oh, and I also enjoyed reading this blog post by one of the 'winners' of our 2016 submissions process, Caroline Hardaker, who has a pamphlet coming out in early October. It's a rare insight into what happens after we say 'yes'; something I'm hoping to do a lot more in the near future.

All best,
Jamie McGarry, VP Publisher

This week at Valley Press, #29: 'New and Selected'

Dear readers,

It's been a busy first week in the world for baby George. Just reading the hundreds of lovely emails he received after last Sunday's newsletter was quite tiring enough – but afterwards, before he went for his fifth sleep of the day, he asked me to thank you all for your kind words. We were touched!

As for me, I'd like to apologise to the authors of the other two-hundred emails I received this week, about important publishing stuff, all of which I've had to ignore. I think we may be getting into the beginnings of a routine now, a week after D-day, so perhaps this time next week I'll be back to full speed? Let's remember, I've lost my 'executive assistant' too – thanks in advance for your understanding!

I know you read these newsletters for the cutting-edge literature, and vital news from 'one of Yorkshire's leading publishers' (I'll be milking that quote until George is in high school), so I'll get back to that stuff straight away; no more baby-related frivolity. What's that? Oh ... go on then, one more picture!

Somehow, Valley Press managed to release a new book this week – the latest project from our Associate Editor Rosa Campbell, who has just started studying for her PhD up in St Andrews (so she might be quiet for a while). As hinted in the last two newsletters, this is a monumental 380-page poetry collection which took no less than forty-five years to write; it's the New and Selected Poems of Paul Sutherland.

VP followers will know Paul best as the author of 2012's Journeying, one of our most popular poetry titles, or perhaps for his many years of work on the journal Dream Catcher. He's been writing and publishing consistently since 1970, and (as I discovered in the last four years) has not slowed down at all – by spring 2014 he had offered me two excellent short collections, and it was that May when I realised I wouldn't be able to keep up, and suggested we do a big book bringing all Paul's best work into print at once.

There's so much content in this book (and this is going to be a long post!) that I'm going to struggle to describe it concisely; so will quote from Rosa's excellent blurb:

"[The book] charts the poet’s life from his Canadian roots to immigration to the UK, from agnosticism to Christianity to Sufi Islam, and from natural wonderment to a greater understanding of the world around us. The collection is in turn heartfelt, philosophical, and beautifully lyrical, as Sutherland lays bare for the reader his experiences and perspectives – at once particular and universal. Completely unique, this is an unflinching and forensic exploration of a life lived through language."

The book retails for £20, which is quite a serious price; but we think that's exceptionally good value for such a comprehensive collection. Plus, as you're a newsletter reader, you get special treatment: 20% off all this week with the code PSUTH. You can buy the book here, and make sure you click through anyway to see the extraordinary cover image; a dramatic photo of Paul by Abigail Smith.

Elsewhere this week, far away from nappies and baby-gros, Jonathan, Kelley and Malene started our autumn tour by taking Valley Press to Swindon – the performance was nicely reviewed here, well worth reading that if you couldn't make it. We'll be in Manchester and Sheffield soon; that's the 11th and 17th respectively, follow the links for times and booking.

There's also a Lucky Dip launch event coming up at our Scarborough HQ in Woodend, at which you might actually get to meet baby George – that's 10.30am on Saturday 8th (so before the next newsletter). Maybe I'll see you there, or at one of the tour events? In the meantime, thanks for reading, have a great week, and look out for next week's newsletter which will have a brilliant offer for early Christmas shoppers.

All best,
Jamie McGarry, VP Publisher

P.S. Thanks to the in-laws for entertaining George and Laura while I wrote this!

This week at Valley Press, #27: 'Surprise!'

Dear readers,

Yesterday was Poetry Book Fair day, the single most important date on the British poetic calendar as far as I'm concerned. For the first time in five years I didn't attend, in case a full-term Mrs McGarry should need swift transport to the hospital (she didn't!) – but VP was ably represented by the always dynamic and charming Rosa Campbell, pictured here behind the stall with our best pal Emma from The Emma Press:

Huge thanks to Rosa for stepping in, and doing (reports suggest) a marvellous job. Thanks to the organisers too, Chrissy and Joey; they do extraordinary work putting it all together, I can't imagine the effort that must be involved in wrangling that many poetry publishers. We're an eccentric lot!

Last week, I promised that anyone who attended the Fair would receive a 'significant Valley Press surprise' – were you intrigued? Lurking in the 'goody bags' given to visitors on their arrival was a brand new anthology, VP50, which included fifty classic Valley Press poems; one for each poetry book we've published so far. You may have actually chosen these, if you replied to my request back in May for your VP favourites. They include all of our 'greatest hits' (like James Nash's first sonnet), and some 'deep cuts', like Kate Fox's poem honouring Billy Bragg's beard, from her Glastonbury project.

In total, we gave away five hundred copies of this anthology – our biggest publicity stunt ever. This means that five hundred people could have sat on their trains/buses home on Saturday night, learning (maybe for the first time) about all the wonderful poets and poetry we've published over the last eight years. I am bursting with pride!

The anthology is now available to buy; though after our generosity yesterday, it seems a little steep to charge you the full £10.99 RRP (even though it is an extremely classy, shiny production – that's the front cover in this week's header image). Please accept 50% off VP50 all this week, by adding the code FIFT at checkout. More information and buying links for the book can be found here.

I'd like to end with a plug for our autumn tour – I know, another surprise! – in which Valley Press poets are headed to the Swindon (Sept 29th), Manchester (October 11th) and Sheffield (October 17th) literature festivals. Click the city names for more information and links to book tickets. We'd love to have your support, and of course it's a chance to grab those all-important submissions forms!

I'll give those gigs another mention in the coming weeks; got to make sure the venues are packed to the rafters (then they might have us back). For now, enjoy your anthology if you were lucky enough to get one, and I'll be back next week with another new book, this one including no less than 380 pages of high quality poetry...

All best,
Jamie McGarry, VP Publisher

This week at Valley Press: 'Quick and the late'

Dear readers,

I'm writing to you a bit later than usual this week, as I've been out enjoying some unusually warm weather – not a bad excuse! We'll start with a word from Associate Editor Rosa Campbell, who has been busy (again):

This week I’m very very excited to announce the release of Quick, the first collection of poems by Peter Spafford, a professional writer for more than twenty years, and a giant of the Leeds literary scene. Peter’s plays have been performed throughout the country and on the radio, and he is currently Director of Spoken Word at East Leeds FM as well as being a founder member of the band Schwa (look out for Threshold, their touring performance).

Somehow, on top of all that, he’s also managed to write a truly wonderful poetry collection. Exhibiting a bold playfulness with language and a stunning lightness of touch, the poems in Quick explore topics as diverse as the Yorkshire landscape, the joys and despairs of parenthood, and the surreal escapades of a horse in Tesco. They are rich, funny, and often breathtakingly poignant. And, uh, not to get overexcited, but Andrew McMillan – winner of the Guardian First Book Award 2015 for the incredible Physical – loves this book (see the front cover for proof!)

According to Ralph Dartford of A Firm of Poets, ‘these poems demand to be read aloud, as well as in solitude,’ so count yourselves lucky, because this Friday you have an opportunity to hear Peter himself read from Quick! We’re celebrating the launch at HEART in Headingley, Leeds, along with guest poet Anne Caldwell (of Cinnamon Press) – and you’re all invited! It’s going to be an unmissable evening. Full details are available here. Hope to see you there!

Having just re-read the collection myself, I can confirm it is as great as everyone says. Peter has felt like part of the Valley Press team for several years now – as he welcomed an endless stream of VP authors onto his radio show – and it's great to welcome him officially to 'the family' this week.

Talking of radio shows, I hope you all tuned in to hear Kelley Swain on 'Start the Week' last Monday? If not, we have the answer here on the BBC iPlayer – discussion of her forthcoming book The Naked Muse begins 28 minutes in, but it's all worth listening to if you're a fan of the arts (most of them get a mention).

My favourite bit of discussion was when Kelley was asked the difference between nude and naked; to paraphrase, she suggested that when you're posing for a painting without wearing any clothes, you are nude ... if you're having a cup of tea afterwards and still haven't put your clothes on, you're just naked. (But 'The Nude Muse' doesn't have the same ring to it, I think we can agree.)

It's been a while since I've given you money off a Valley Press book in these newsletters, so it's time to put that right; albeit in a somewhat unusual fashion. When we printed Malene Engelund's The Wild Gods, we received hundreds of perfect copies, but also ten where the 'textblock' was inserted the wrong way round (so the cover is upside-down). These have sat on my shelf since then, but this week I'd like to offer you the chance to buy one, at 30% off the usual price – so if you add the book to your basket, and use the code WONKYGODS at checkout, you'll receive one of these ultra-limited-edition copies. Move fast though, there really are only ten!

I'm going to end this week by promoting a book we didn't publish – such things do exist, it turns out. The brilliant poetry organisation Live Canon invited 154 modern poets to write 154 new poems, each responding to one of Shakespeare's sonnets, and have now published the results in a book. A dozen of the 154 were poets from our own stable, and it's filled with other familiar names, doing great work – don't spend all your poetry-buying dollars on 154, but you have my permission to spend some. (That may not happen again, so make the most of it.)

All best,
Jamie McGarry, VP Publisher

This week at Valley Press: 'Coming and going'

Dear readers,

I'm going to call it: this is the busiest thirty days in the entire history of Valley Press. Things are hectic, to say the least – schedules have conspired to see us delivering a new book to you every week, starting with Shenanigans this past Thursday, and ending with a book called Quick on May 12th. Up next is Homecoming, and here's what on-duty Associate Editor Rosa Campbell has to say about it:

This week sees the release of the second Valley Press book I’ve overseen, the wonderful Homecoming by Joanna Ezekiel. I reckon I captured the spirit of this excellent collection in the description I wrote for the website, so let’s take a look:

“By necessity, to come home is to look with fresh eyes at what is familiar. Joanna Ezekiel’s exquisite second collection captures this experience with a combination of quiet observation and vivid sensuality. She draws on her British Jewish upbringing and Indian Jewish heritage to explore what it means to belong – to a family, to a country, to a culture – in poems that sing with warmth and generosity. Playful juxtapositions of characters and landscapes create a sense of the unexpected, and her treatment of the past is as subtle as her commentary on the present. Evocative and tender, Homecoming is a collection that invites the reader into an unfamiliar place and makes them feel at home.”

Yeah, not bad, me. In all seriousness, though, this is a fantastic book, including poems that wouldn’t look out of place next to the greats of contemporary British poetry (think Moniza Alvi meets Grace Nichols meets – somehow – Pride & Prejudice). It also features cameos from Roger Moore, Jean Rhys, and George Osborne, among others. Prizes for anyone who spots a certain infamous ex-PM, as well.*

Alright, enough gushing. I need to get my mind back on all the exciting forthcoming VP titles that I’m responsible for. I’m currently working on the anthology of entries to the Remember Oluwale Writing Prize which, I cannot stress enough, is going to be the most incredible and affecting collection of new writing, and with which I’m so honoured and excited to be involved. Also coming soon, a truly brilliant debut collection from Peter Spafford, whose touring performance Threshold is coming to Scarborough in a couple of weeks! Phew, it’s all go, and it’s all good.

*There may or may not actually be prizes.

I'll add to that: there's a launch event for Homecoming on Tuesday 26th in York, from 7pm, at the Oxfam Bookshop on Micklegate (not High Petergate!) Joanna will be there, as well as me and Rosa, and there will be sets from our own Oz Hardwick and the equally great Amina Alyal. Facebook event here, if you'd like to RSVP.

Rosa also mentioned a touring performance called Threshold, which is coming to Woodend (our Scarborough HQ) on the 5th May. I highly recommend this event, which includes songs, stories and actual hospitality; everyone involved is hugely talented, and it has been organised by one of the best creative companies working in the north. You can find out more here, and see the FB event here.

Two great bits of press for VP books this week: first, an interview with Michael Stewart in the Yorkshire Evening Post, which is essential reading for any fans of his short story collection Mr Jolly. (Apologies to those who've ordered that book in the last few days, by the way; we've run out, so need to get some more stock, meaning your orders will arrive late – good news for us, not so much for you!)

Second, I was pleased to see the London Review Bookshop giving a huge plug for Reward for Winter on Instagram – see here. They say it's 'one of the most exciting collections of the year', and from people who spend as much time with books as they do, that means a lot. I also hear the book has spent some time at the sharp end of the 'Poetry Bestsellers' list on Amazon, which as we know, is where fortunes are made...

This Friday I will be setting off for the town of Much Wenlock, where (you may remember) me and Emma will be 'Publishers in Residence' at the world-famous Wenlock Poetry Festival. You can read more about what we are doing there on the festival's website, which also includes the chance to book a one-on-one session to pick our brains about all things publishing-related. If you do book one with me, please be kind – I'll be a long way from home!

Due to the aforementioned hectic-ness, I didn't have time to write my fifth 'behind the scenes' article this week, but hopefully I'll get to that soon. Next Sunday's newsletter will be coming to you 'live' from Wenlock (in that I'll be trying to write it whilst 'in residence'), so be sure to give it a read – should be interesting.

All best,
Jamie McGarry, VP Publisher

This week at Valley Press: 'Playing the fox'

Dear readers,

I sit here at the end of a particularly exhausting week, and realise that at no point during it did I do any work to move a Valley Press book closer to publication – but that's how it goes, sometimes. Since 2008, I've slowly discovered there's a lot more to the job of publisher than actually publishing. One day I even hope to come to terms with that...

Fortunately, someone has been getting work done, and I'm pleased to say this week will see the release of the first VP book overseen by Associate Editor Rosa Campbell. Though freelance designers and editors have come and gone over the years, this is the first title I haven't designed or edited, that I haven't worked on at all; the first book brought to the shelves entirely by Rosa (and the author – a familiar face, thank goodness). A significant milestone!

I asked Rosa to say a few words on this occasion, so over to her:

Good afternoon, VP family! It’s a beautiful sunny Sunday over here on the “West Coast,” and to make things even sunnier, the first Rosa-Campbell-edited-and-produced Valley Press book is just about ready to be launched into the wide, waiting world. And what a book it is! The second collection from the award-winning Patrick Lodge, Shenanigans (from the Irish sionnachuighim, meaning “I play the fox") is as cleverly crafted as the foxy friend on its back cover suggests (pictured above).

This highly-anticipated collection makes delightful use of wry remark and delicate wordplay, and is remarkable (I think!) for the interweaving of distinct landscapes and voices. Look out for poems about Mykonos and Cambodia, nestled next to a soaring, brilliant retrospective on the industrial past and commercial present of my hometown, Leeds. At once familiar and strange, Lodge’s poems are rich in detail and narrative – astute observations that transport the reader to a whole new world with each turn of the page. And, in keeping with VP tradition, I’ve tried very hard to design a cover that lives up to the book’s contents, with the wonderful help of illustration work by artist (and friend of the author), Denise Phelps. It’s a real ray of sunshine, and I really, really hope you guys enjoy this book as much as I’ve enjoyed working on it!

... which means we've got a natural choice for this week's half-price paperback: Patrick's first collection, An Anniversary of Flight, which you can save 50% on using the code 50FLIGHT. More from Rosa next week, with her second book. She's been busy!

Outside the office, me and Mrs McGarry managed to attend two poetry events in Scarborough; one a wonderful tribute to our own Nigel Gerrans (with Nigel as the star guest) and the late, great Chris Woodland, whose work you may know from A Pocketful of Windows. It was a rare chance to hear the life's work of these two extraordinary poets, and a real achievement by the readers, deserving of a mention here.

The other event, a performance poetry night at the Stephen Joseph Theatre, couldn't have been more different ... suffice to say, it ended with a rambling two-hour set from a somewhat tipsy legend, which very nearly turned into a drunken brawl (and I'm sure resulted in some injuries) but was worth three times the ticket price. Both events were thoroughly unforgettable.

Of course, I also found time to hear Di Slaney on Woman's Hour (34 minutes in on the link, don't miss it!), and produce part four of my series of articles. The longest (and let's be honest, dullest) installment yet, part four is all about pricing books, the economics of printing and what to do about business overheads. It does answer the question of why poetry books cost more than prose, though (sort of), and there's a cat photo...

I'm going to try and get something constructive done now – wish me luck!

All best,
Jamie McGarry, VP Publisher

This week at Valley Press: 'Polishing type'

Dear readers,

A fairly quiet week this one, which I must admit has come as something of a relief! We have three new books coming up in April, however – including the first two overseen by 'Associate Editor' Rosa Campbell – so things won't stay quiet for long.

So what has happened? The biggest news was that results of the 'Remember Oluwale' competition were announced, which also meant we got our first look at the book's contents (wow). I posted the third installment in my series of 'behind the scenes' articles about publishing, this one dealing with the issue of how to sell books – which it turns out, isn't that complicated. (Did you know you personally are part of my 'tribe'? Now you do!)

I can also reveal details of our first 'outreach' event for prospective 2017 Valley Press authors, which is happening during the Wenlock Poetry Festival. VP and our perennial allies The Emma Press will be 'publishers in residence' at the festival, which will see us literally taking up residence in Much Wenlock on the Saturday and Sunday (23rd/24th April) to answer any questions anyone might have, and offer some workshops. The actual festival programme is amazing too – but I promise to dutifully man my post and not sneak off to too many other events.

In the week to come, I'm looking forward to hearing Di Slaney discussing Reward for Winter on BBC Radio 4's Woman's Hour (that's 10am, Thursday 7th); not the first time a VP author has graced the national airwaves, but still a huge deal for this humble publisher. If you want to hear from Di before then, she did a great interview on BBC Radio Oxford a fortnight ago, starting 2 hours 8 minutes in here (after 'Take On Me'...)

Last week's newsletter included some poems, and the response to that was surprisingly strong – so I'd like to offer you another one to end this week. It's the title poem from Helen Burke's first collection (pictured in the header), which is actually a rather risky choice as I only have one copy of that book in stock ... so if you'd like it, move fast! (Or go for Helen's second book, which you can have half-price with the code HELEN2.)

I've chosen this poem simply because it's been stuck in my head during the week, particularly the penultimate line – hope you enjoy it.

All best,
Jamie McGarry, VP Publisher

---

The Ruby Slippers

by Helen Burke

You come in to the shop with me and
we take my new false leg off and
look around for an assistant but
they all seem to be very busy breathing and
polishing the shoes in the window.
Which is strange because they don’t look the polishing type.
I have seen the pair I want.
They are red and exotic of course and
I would like to point to them but
a small elderly man comes out from the back-room
(where I think he has been in storage since 1940)
makes eye-contact with you and asks you what you would like.

You say you would like to be treated like a normal human being.
All the assistants stop polishing now, to listen.
Which is strange because they don’t look the listening type.
The man says he fought in a war for people like us
and where has it got him?
Then he accidentally knocks my wheelchair and has to make eye-contact
with me which is painful to him. Just like the war was.
Then, he wheels me to where they keep
the selection of trainers that nobody buys, and walks off back to 1940.

We were happy before we came in.
We had bought chocolates and Parma ham and
we were oh so happy.
Now, you are frothing at the mouth and I have fixed that smile on my face
like Harry Corbett, when he used to say –
‘Bye bye, everybody, bye bye.’
when Sooty had done something wrong and he was covered in flour and water.

Then, as if by magic – the ruby shoes get up and walk out of the window
and climb up onto my knee and apologise.

And all the assistants suddenly want to open doors for us and bow and scrape and help us get the hell out.
Which is strange because they don’t look the opening doors type.
So, we leave, with those ruby slippers clinging on to us for dear life and
I want to say: ‘Don’t you know – I’m fighting in a war for people like you.’

But, I don’t. And Kansas? It just gets further and further away.

This week at Valley Press: 'Jolly, early, messy'

Dear readers,

Last week I introduced you to our second February book, Michael Stewart's short story collection Mr Jolly. This week it arrived – punctual as the 606 bus – and is pictured above on my windowsill. You can get a paperback copy here, and it's also available now for your Kindle ... much as we all frown at the antics of Amazon, at £3.99, that is a veryefficient and affordable way to read some quality fiction.

If you like reading (and I assume you do!) we're also currently looking for some 'early readers' – people to read forthcoming books that are more-or-less finished, and let us know if there are any final tweaks we should make (or typos that have slipped through the net.) Currently we're looking for readers of poetry books; so if you'd like to help out, please write to Rosa on rosa@valleypressuk.com and let her know.

I'd also like to remind all the writers out there that this week is your last chance to enter the 'Remember Oluwale' Writing Prize. All details are here; there's £100 up for grabs, and the chance to appear in one of our books (what a treat!) The deadline is March 6th, so by the time I write the next newsletter, it'll be too late.

A few people have been writing to ask when our general submissions process will re-open: quite soon, is the answer. Definitely during March. We just want to make sure everyone who sent in their work last time has been replied to; hopefully that makes sense. You'll hear about it here first, so watch this space!

This week's half-price paperback is Winston & Me by Mark Woodburn, our classic 2012 novel detailing the adventures of Winston Churchill and a fictional orderly during World War One. One of our more popular (and least intimidating) books, it currently has a whopping 18 five-star reviews on Amazon (them again!), and of course now has a sequel, which I'll put on offer later in the year so canny buyers can collect the 'full set' without emptying their wallet. Just enter the code WINSTON50 at checkout to get Winston & Me at half price.

Finally for today: long-time readers of this newsletter will be familiar with The Emma Press, and Emma herself (surely one of the most exciting publishers ever to walk the earth) – she's just posted a fantastic blog post, a full-power blast of honesty and insight, titled 'On publishing, feminism, mixed ethnicity and being a hot mess'. Read that, then read everything else I've told you to read!

Next week: a new pamphlet, straight from the wilds of Scandinavia...

All best,
Jamie McGarry, VP Publisher

This week at Valley Press: 'the dawn of a new era'

Dear readers,

Welcome to another year on board the unstoppable literary juggernaut that is Valley Press; which, since I last wrote, has been described as 'one of Yorkshire's leading publishers' by the Yorkshire Post. I could get used to that!

I want to try something a bit different this year with the newsletter; rather than giving you a lengthy missive at random intervals, I'm going to do a short email every Sunday afternoon. Most people I've broached this idea with have reacted in horror, but I've always felt market research can only take a person so far ... so let's give it a whirl.

February will see the launch of our new website, and with that operational, I'll be able to give out 'exclusive discount codes' to newsletter subscribers; so there's one good reason to stick around. The plan is to have a half-price paperback on offer every single week – but in the meantime, I'll do a 'buy one get one free'. This week, anyone who buys our latest publication, Jo Brandon's The Learned Goose (pictured above), can receive a second VP book free of charge. Just make sure to formally request the free book at the checkout. You can specify which you want, or say 'surprise me' and see what turns up!

Two bits of news since the last newsletter: first, I've expanded the team at Valley Press, with the finer details announced in this blog post. My newly-minted colleagues have been working wonders with our Twitter feed since then; plus, Rosa has resurrected our Tumblr (which to be honest, I'd forgotten existed) and launched us onto Instagram. If you're into that sort of thing, make sure you follow us; and there's always Facebook too.

Finally, and perhaps most excitingly, I need to draw your attention to a new opportunity for writers, which could lead to publication in a Valley Press book this June. The Remember Oluwale Writing Prize, to be judged by Caryl Phillips, Marina Lewycka and Ian Duhig, has been explained wonderfully on the Leeds Big Bookend site, so head there if you think you could come up with a short story or shorter poem on an important subject.

Check your inbox for more of the same next week – thanks for reading.

All best,
Jamie McGarry, VP Publisher