About this blog

In early 2013, at very nearly opposite ends of the country, Emma Wright and Jamie McGarry were considering the same question: how can a small press expand enough to afford to employ staff when the very thing holding it back is the lack of manpower? Publishing is a numbers game and a successful publisher needs to bring out a constant stream of new titles, but a small press run by a single person will soon reach maximum capacity. Editing, commissioning, designing, marketing, selling and networking all demand equal amounts of time and the small publisher neglects one or the other at their own peril – but how to produce enough books to earn a living when maintaining the quality ends up eating into time which should be spent actually selling the books?

Emma and Jamie, both of a romantic bent and resistant to the idea of compromising their core values, came up with a solution: holy* matrimony. To be joined in the eyes of God and the law*, to share their knowledge and ideas, and to support each other and their growing enterprises. As a sign of their commitment to each other, they will share this blog from this day on, to contain news of their presses, book reviews and other articles as they see fit. The banns relating to this sacred* union can be read here.

*not true

The Emma Press & Valley Press, 28/08/2013

About Valley Press

Valley Press is the home of independent literary publishing in Scarborough, North Yorkshire; publishing poetry, fiction and non-fiction in paperback and ebook formats. The first books to appear with the Valley Press name appeared in October 2008, created by English Literature student Jamie McGarry, who began running VP as full-time self-employment in January 2011. A 50th title is scheduled for release on our fifth anniversary in 2014. If you'd like to find out more about VP, get in touch through our website www.valleypressuk.com, on Twitter (@valleypress) or on Facebook (facebook.com/valleypress).

About The Emma Press

The Emma Press is a Birmingham-based publisher dedicated to producing books which are sweet, funny, and easy on the eye. It was founded in 2012 by Classics graduate Emma Wright, who previously managed the ebook production at Orion Publishing Group. The first Emma Press title, The Flower and the Plough, a collection of love poems by Rachel Piercey, was published in January 2013. The Emma Press runs regular calls for submissions and you can keep up with our latest publications on our website – https://theemmapress.com/ – as well as on Twitter (@theemmapress) and Facebook (facebook.com/theemmapress).