Friday, 14 February 2025

Blog Tour - Murder on West Lake by I. M. Foster

 


Murder on West Lake
By I. M. Foster


Publication Date: December 9th, 2024
 Publisher: Inez M. Foster – self-published
 Pages: 438
 Genre: Historical Mystery.

A scream shattered the tranquil air, echoing off the ice-covered lake, and Daniel's heart froze. He knew that voice all too well.

After a pleasant afternoon of ice skating on the frozen waters of West Lake, local librarian Kathleen Brissedon stumbles across a gruesome sight in the nearby gazebo. It only takes a moment for her beau, assistant coroner Doctor Daniel O'Halleran, to determine that the victim was murdered.

To protect Kathleen from the ghastly sight of the man’s slashed throat, Daniel insists she return home while he examines the body further. Though the immediate cause of death appears obvious, he fears the subsequent autopsy will uncover more questions than answers, and it's clear that he has his work cut out for him if he's going to find the person responsible.

Kathleen has no intention of remaining demurely at home, not when there's a murder to solve. Slipping back to the scene, she conducts her own investigation. Though her discoveries prove interesting, Daniel is too concerned about her safety to stifle his annoyance, especially after the killer makes a second attempt closer to home. But as the puzzle pieces begin to fall into place and Daniel starts closing in on the truth, the killer sets their sights on him.

With the danger increasing, Kathleen intent on assisting in the investigation, and his family descending on Patchogue to spend the Christmas holidays, Daniel has his hands full. 

Will he and Kathleen be able to put their heads together and discover who is behind the attacks, or will the killer continue to plague the tranquil South Shore village unhindered?

Pick up your copy of
Murder on West Lake
This title is available to read on #KindleUnlimited.

I. M. Foster


I. M. Foster is the pen name author Inez Foster uses to write her South Shore Mystery series, set on Edwardian Long Island. Inez also writes historical romances under the pseudonym Andrea Matthews and has so far published two series in that genre: the Thunder on the Moor series, a time-travel romance set on the 16th century Anglo-Scottish Borders, and the Cross of Ciaran series, which follows the adventures of a fifth century Celt who finds himself in love with a twentieth-century archaeologist.

Inez is a historian and librarian, who loves to read and write and search around for her roots, genealogically speaking. She has a BA in History and an MLS in Library Science and enjoys doing the research almost as much as she does the actual writing of the story. In fact, many of her ideas come to her while doing casual research or digging into her family history. Inez is a member of the Long Island Romance Writers, the Historical Novel Society, and Sisters in Crime.

Connect with Inez:




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Leaving Fatherland
By Matt Graydon


Publication Date: 20th August 2024
Publisher: Cranthorpe Millner Publishers
Page Length: 376 Pages
Genre: Historical Fiction

Oskar Bachmann always imagined that giving his first lecture would be the defining moment of his life.

It was, but not in the way he expected…

Growing up a misfit in pre-war Germany, a victim of his father’s beatings, Oskar’s love of books is a constant comfort in a world turned upside-down by conflict.

As a student, as a pilot in the brutal Luftwaffe during the Second World War, in an unhappy marriage to an English bride, he finds himself returning over and over to the circumstances of his childhood. What was the source and cause of his father’s mistreatment? Could there have been more to it than he had once believed?

Little did Oskar know that his first lecture at the University of Tübingen would ultimately lead to the end of a lifetime of searching… and finally reveal the figure who had been controlling his life from a distance.

Pick up your copy of
Leaving Fatherland
#KindleCountdown

Matt Graydon


Matt Graydon has always written stories, first as a schoolboy, then as a journalist and PR and now, in the culmination of his life’s work, as a writer of striking historical fiction. He likes to explore offbeat perspectives, inspired by true stories, especially in his tales of life in wartime. In his recently published short story, Saigo No Tatakai, his account of a kamikaze attack on a British warship is seen through the eyes of both the pilot’s wife and a Royal Navy sailor who witnessed it up close.  Now, in his first novel, Leaving Fatherland, inspired by a true story, Graydon tells the tale of a liberal German who returns home from his life as a New York university student to fight for the Nazis.

Matt is half-Irish, grew up in a loving but strictly religious home and spent many months in hospital beds as a child. Now he enjoys spending his non-writing time standing in remote fields at night viewing and photographing stars and galaxies through his telescope, or attempting to keep his unruly Surrey garden in check. He lives in the one-pub village of South Nutfield with his wife and daughter, and sometimes son, who easily exceeded his father’s one year stay at university in the 1980s. Oh, and the family Cockapoo, Ozzy, a regular companion under the armchair, inherited from his grandpa, where he writes. Well-travelled, his passion for writing was ignited, at age 21, during a three-month, action-packed, hitch-hike across the USA, when his escapades made great material for an in-depth diary and, perhaps, one day, story.

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Times of Turmoil (The Time Locket Book 2) by Anna Belfrage



Times of Turmoil
(The Time Locket Book 2)
By Anna Belfrage
  

Publication Date: 29th September 2023
Publisher: Timelight Press 
Page Length: 382 Pages
Genre: Time Travel Romance

It is 1718 and Duncan Melville and his time traveller wife, Erin, are concentrating on building a peaceful existence for themselves and their twin daughters. Difficult to do, when they are beleaguered by enemies.

Erin Melville is not about to stand to the side and watch as a child is abused—which is how she makes deadly enemies of Hyland Nelson and his family.

Then there’s that ghost from their past, Armand Joseph Chardon, a person they were certain was dead. Apparently not. Monsieur Chardon wants revenge and his sons are tasked with making Duncan—and his wife—pay.

Things aren’t helped by the arrival of Duncan’s cousin, fleeing her abusive husband. Or the reappearance of Nicholas Farrell in their lives, as much of a warped bully now as he was when he almost beat Duncan to death years ago. Plus, their safety is constantly threatened as Erin is a woman of colour in a time and place where that could mean ostracism, enslavement or even death.

Will Duncan and Erin ever achieve their simple wish – to live and love free from fear of those who wish to destroy them?

Pick up your copy of 
Times of Turmoil

Anna Belfrage


Had Anna been allowed to choose, she’d have become a time-traveller. As this was impossible, she became a financial professional with two absorbing interests: history and writing. Anna has authored the acclaimed time travelling series The Graham Saga, set in 17th century Scotland and Maryland, as well as the equally acclaimed medieval series The King’s Greatest Enemy which is set in 14th century England.

Anna has also published The Wanderer, a fast-paced contemporary romantic suspense trilogy with paranormal and time-slip ingredients.

More recently, Anna has been hard at work with her Castilian series. The first book, His Castilian Hawk, published in 2020, is set against the complications of Edward I’s invasion of Wales. His Castilian Hawk is a story of loyalty, integrity—and love. In the second instalment, The Castilian Pomegranate, we travel with the protagonists to the complex political world of medieval Spain, while the third, Her Castilian Heart, finds our protagonists back in England—not necessarily any safer than the wilds of Spain! The fourth book, Their Castilian Orphan, is scheduled for early 2024.

Anna has recently released Times of Turmoil, the sequel to her 2021 release, The Whirlpools of Time. Here she returns to the world of time travel. Where The Whirlpools of Time had Duncan and the somewhat reluctant time-traveller Erin navigating the complexities of the first Jacobite rebellion in Scotland, in Times of Turmoil our protagonists are in Colonial Pennsylvania, hoping for a peaceful existence. Not about to happen—not in one of Anna’s books!

All of Anna’s books have been awarded the IndieBRAG Medallion, she has several Historical Novel Society Editor’s Choices, and one of her books won the HNS Indie Award in 2015. She is also the proud recipient of various Readers’ Favorite medals as well as having won various Gold, Silver and Bronze Coffee Pot Book Club awards.

Find out more about Anna, her books and enjoy her eclectic historical blog on her website, www.annabelfrage.com.

Connect with Anna:





Ride with the Moonlight (Thunder on the Moor, Book 2) by Andrea Matthews



 Ride with the Moonlight
(Thunder on the Moor, Book 2) 
By Andrea Matthews


Publication Date: 25th November 2020
Publisher: Inez M. Foster
Page Length: 387 pages
Genre: Historical Time Travel Romance

After rescuing sixteenth-century Border reiver Will Foster from certain death at her family’s hands, time traveler Maggie Armstrong finally admits her love for the handsome Englishman, though she can’t rid herself of the sinking suspicion that her Scottish kin are not about to let them live in peace. What she doesn’t expect is the danger that lurks on Will’s own side of the Border. When news of their plans to marry reaches the warden, he charges Will with March treason for trysting with a Scot. Will and Maggie attempt to escape by fleeing to the hills, but when Will is declared an outlaw and allowed to be killed on sight, they can no longer evade the authorities. Will is sentenced to hang, while Maggie is to be sent back to her family. Heartbroken, she has no choice but to return to Scotland, where her uncle continues to make plans for her to wed Ian Rutherford, the wicked Scotsman who she now realizes murdered her father in cold blood. With Will facing the gallows in England, and herself practically under house arrest in Scotland, she continues to resist her uncle’s plans, but her efforts are thwarted at every turn.Will’s family, however, is not about to stand by and watch their youngest lad executed simply because he’s lost his heart to a Scottish lass. A daring plan is set into motion, but will it be in time to save Will’s life and reunite the lovers? Or will Ian’s lies prompt Maggie’s family to ensure the bond between them is forever destroyed?

Pick up your copy of
Ride with the Moonlight


Andrea Matthews


Andrea Matthews is the pseudonym for Inez Foster, a historian and librarian who loves to read and write and search around for her roots, genealogical speaking. She has a BA in History and an MLS in Library Science, and enjoys the research almost as much as she does writing the story. In fact, many of her ideas come to her while doing casual research or digging into her family history. She is the author of the Thunder on the Moor series set on the 16th century Anglo-Scottish Border, and the Cross of Ciaran series, where a fifteen hundred year old Celt finds himself in the twentieth century. Andrea also writes historical mysteries under the pen name I. M. Foster. Her series A South Shore Mystery is set in the early 1900s on Long Island. Andrea is a member of the Long Island Romance Writers, and the Historical Novel Society.

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Thursday, 13 February 2025

The Dream Collector: Sabrine & Vincent van Gogh (Book Two) by R.w. Meek

 

The Dream Collector: Sabrine & Vincent van Gogh 
(Book Two) 
By R.w. Meek


Publication Date: 30th April 2024
Publisher: Historium Press
Page Length: 654 Pages
Genre: Historical Fiction

Finalist Chanticleer International Goethe Award (winner announced April 2025)
Pulitzer Prize Nominee 2024
International Firebird Award, Second Place Literary Fiction 2024
Literary Titan, 5 Star Gold Medal 2024
NY Big Book Awards, Distinguished Favorite 2024
Shelf Unbound Notable Indie 100, 2024
International Coffe Pot Book Club Award, Silver Medal Historical Literary Fiction 2024
Historical Fiction Company, Bronze Medal Literary Fiction 2022

Sabrine, hospitalized for five years at the infamous Salpêtrière Asylum for Women, gains her release due to intervention of her sister Julie Forette and a young Sigmund Freud. The reunited sisters are introduced to the dazzling art milieu of 1886 Paris, and soon become close friends to the leading Impressionists. Sabrine attracts a cult following as a poetess, the enigmatic "Haiku Princess." Seemingly cured by Freud of her Grand Hysteria, Sabrine soon enters into a tumultuous relationship with Vincent van Gogh.

Jule and Sigmund Freud, alarmed by the eerie parallels between the emotionally volatile couple and their self-destructive impulses, begin an urgent search to discover the root causes for Sabrine and Vincent's growing psychoses. Julie, 'The Dream Collector' seeks their most unforgettable dream for Freud's interpretation and revelations occur.

The Dream Collector is an exploration of the psychological consequences of betrayal, abandonment--and the redemptive power of art.

Pick up your copy of
The Dream Collector: Sabrine & Vincent van Gogh 
HERE!


R.w. Meek


R.w. Meek has a Master’s degree in Art History from the American University in Washington, D.C., his areas of expertise are Impressionism and Post-Impressionism, with a particular interest in Vincent van Gogh.  He has interned and conducted tours at the National Museum of American and the National Gallery of Art. In 2022 and 2023 five of his chapter excerpts from his soon to be published novel “The Dream Collector” were either finalists or published in various literary journals. The author has also won the Palm Beach Book Festival Competition for “Best Writer in Palm Beach’ his manuscript judged by a panel of NYT Best Selling authors. “The Dream Collector” also received gold and silver medals in the Historical Fiction Company literary contest and earned runner-up for the “Best Historical Fiction Novel’ of 2022. 

The author was born in Baltimore, adventured in Europe for many years, and recently moved from Delray Beach, Florida to Santa Clarita, California.  His wife is a psychologist, sculptress, playwright and stand-up story teller.  His daughter Nora is a story board artist in the animation world and resides in Hollywood, California. His favorite writers are Dostoevsky, John Fowles, and Antoine de Saint-Exupery. 

Connect with R.w. Meek:

The Magician's Daughter by Alison Chambers


The Magician's Daughter
By Alison Chambers

Publication Date: 5th February 2025
Publisher: Holand Press
Page Length: 369 pages
Genre: Historical Fiction

October 1942.

Deadly espionage attacks are escalating across US Army Air Force bases stationed around London, threatening to derail the upcoming goodwill visit of First Lady Eleanor Roosevelt.

Brigadier General Maximilian Landry, commander of the base in Heathbridge, is on his way to attend the birthday party of his mentor, General Bedford ‘Ford’ Masterson, when his car misses hazardous boulders strewn in his path - one in a series of sabotage incidents.

A female OSS agent, Corporal Anne Beasley, is sent to investigate the disruption. She soon finds herself embroiled in a labyrinth of deceit, where nothing is as it seems.

While Anne serves as Landry’s temporary adjutant during a severe staffing shortage, Max grows suspicious of her and asks Major Brett Calloway, who he has served with for over ten years, to spy on her.

As the attacks increase, suspicions mount surrounding who could be responsible as confidential information is leaked. With no one to turn to and no one who will believe her, the agent fights desperately to defend herself and uncover the culprit.

A conspiracy unfolds, which could not only endanger the life of the First Lady, but threaten the success of the war effort itself.

Interview

Alison Chambers on The Magician’s Daughter

The Magician’s Daughter is a story about treacherous Nazi spies, high-level fascist conspiracies, and escalating sabotage, all taking place at the time Eleanor Roosevelt is set to tour US Army Air Force Bases in England in 1942.

What made you decide to write about World War II?

I have always been fascinated by World War II and the events leading up to it more than any other period in history. When I was just eighteen, I read Rise and Fall of the Third Reich by William L. Shirer and Eleanor and Franklin by Joseph P. Lash. More recently, I have enjoyed reading the many historical fiction books that have been released dealing with spies and sabotage, particularly women spies, who risked their lives to save others, set in either Occupied France, England, or even in Nazi Germany itself.

Why did you choose the setting you did?

I felt that there were very few historical fiction stories I found recently that told the story of the US Army Air Force base personnel serving in England during World War II, ala the book, movie and TV series 12 O’Clock High. I attempted to tell that story with more than a few twists and turns along the way.

Why 1942?

1942 seemed like a good place to start, considering the war was in a difficult place, the Allies were far from succeeding, and the tide had yet to turn. These were perilous times. The Allies were still years away from the D-Day invasion that seemed like an impossible feat with too many overwhelming logistical challenges at the time. The daring daylight air raids over Occupied Europe had not yet been successful. In fact, the results were so disastrous that only twenty percent of bombs had hit their mark, others fell harmlessly or even worse, injured and killed countless civilians by striking residential and retail centers instead.

How does Eleanor Roosevelt fit in?

Eleanor Roosevelt had an indomitable personality. She pressed on, performing her duties with grace and aplomb, despite challenges to her marriage, her health, due to her grueling schedule, and despite receiving endless criticism of everything from her looks to her pursuit of both civil and women’s rights. She did visit the troops in October of 1942, less than a year after the United States entered the war. She was anxious to study the home front effort of the British and visit US troops stationed there. She stayed almost a month and besides the bases, visited factories, schools, bomb shelters, hospitals, Red Cross clubs in England, Scotland and Ireland. She was tireless in performing her duties and praised the British people for their spirit to ‘carry on’ in the face of unrelenting obstacles. She lauded the work of women during the war and advocated for American GIs stationed in Great Britain when they complained about late paychecks and lack of mail from home.  She did much to improve morale and won over the troops with her sunny ‘can do’ attitude. Prime Minister Winston Churchill commented that she had left ‘golden footprints’ behind her.

Who is the Magician?

The magician is loosely based on the life of stage magician Jasper Maskelyne, who applied many of his sleight of hand tricks to the business of war while working for the British. He created ingenious weapons for use by spies and with his band of fellow artists, created faux tanks and battleships to conceal the Suez Canal and ‘move’ Alexandria Harbor. While there is some conjecture regarding the reality of some of these events, they still make great fodder for a story!

Talk a bit about your main character.

My main character is a woman spy working for the OSS. The fledgling organization had just begun in 1942 and at its inception, General William Donovan felt there was great potential in recruiting women. Over the life of the organization, more than 4,000 officers were women. It was important for me to try to communicate the important role these women played in helping to win the war. I also added the element of romance because I feel romance helps cement the characters together and adds a much-needed pause in the action. When I thought about what my character’s backstory would be, I wondered, ‘What if her father was a magician?’ This led me to find out about Maskelyne and I was fascinated by his story.

In different ways, Eleanor Roosevelt and Jasper Maskelyne were both master magicians during a dangerous time, aimed at influencing others and ultimately helping to change the course of the war.

Pick up your copy of
The Magician's Daughter
HERE!


Alison Chambers 

Sandra Koehler, who writes under the pen name of Alison Chambers was Vice-President of one of the largest association management companies in Wisconsin.  She has traveled extensively and served as Executive Director of several national medical associations, where she was responsible for marketing, communications, and public relations, as well as overall management.  She has been quoted in USA Today, the Los Angeles Times and other national media and has received four awards for service excellence.  She has also written for newspapers.  Koehler, who majored in political science and history, earned her Bachelor of Arts degree from the University of Wisconsin-Milwaukee.  She first started writing when she was a teenager, sparked by an interest in Nancy Drew books and a desire to tell a good story.  She enjoys keeping her hero and heroine in dangerous and exciting situations against a backdrop of exotic settings, lost treasure and unsolved historical mysteries.

Connect with Alison:

Website









The Woven Lie (Three Sisters) by Liz Harris

 


The Woven Lie
(Three Sisters)
By Liz Harris


Publication Date: 13th February 2025
Publisher: Heywood Press 
Page Length: 319 Pages
Genre: Historical Biographical Fiction

From award-winning author Liz Harris comes the third standalone novel in the epic series Three Sisters, in which each book tells the story of one of the three Hammond girls.

The Woven Lie is Violet’s story

Suffolk, 1948

When Violet Hammond sees an advertisement for a manager to run a museum in a village outside Bury St Edmunds, she jumps at the chance of a job that sounds both different and a challenge.

For Dr Edward Russell, forced to resign from managing the museum owing to the increasing pressures on him as a doctor, the person to succeed him is obvious – the highly competent Gladys Wilson. After all, Gladys had worked at the museum for years and had run it on her own on many occasions.

But when Edward interviews Violet, he’s excited by her enthusiasm and ideas for modernising the museum and her vitality, and he finds himself offering her the position. With a smile on her face and the right words on her lips, Gladys assures Edward that she’ll support Violet as much as she can.

But Gladys has no intention of doing so. On the contrary, she wants Violet to be sacked as soon as possible. She has too much to lose if Violet stays.

A gripping emotional story set in 1948 in a village in Suffolk, England, from the author of Darjeeling Inheritance and The Road Back. 

Pick up your copy of
The Woven Lie

Liz Harris


After graduating in Law in the UK, Liz moved to California where she led a varied life - from cocktail waitressing on Sunset Strip to secretary to the CEO of a large Japanese trading company. Upon returning to England, she completed a degree in English and then taught for a number of years before developing her writing career. 

Her debut novel, THE ROAD BACK, was voted Book of the Year 2012 by US Coffee Time & Romance, and in the following year, A BARGAIN STRUCK was shortlisted for the RoNA for Best Romantic Historical. These and THE LOST GIRL, EVIE UNDERCOVER, THE ART OF DECEPTION, the last two being contemporary novels set in Italy, were shortlisted in their respective categories by the Festival of Romantic Fiction. A WESTERN HEART, a novella set in Wyoming 1880, was published digitally and as an audio book. 

THE DARK HORIZON introduced readers to The Linford Series, a sweeping saga set between the wars. It was followed by THE FLAME WITHIN and THE LENGTHENING SHADOW. Each of three books can be read as a standalone, and they are now available in a box set, THE LINFORD COLLECTION.

Her most recent novels, DARJEELING INHERITANCE, COCHIN FALL, HANOI SPRING and SIMLA MIST comprise THE COLONIALS. Each is a standalone set in a different location, with different characters, in different years.

EINE ERBSCHAFT IN DARJEELING, the translation into German of DARJEELING INHERITANCE, was published in July 2022, and was followed by LIEBE UND VERRAT IN COCHIN (the German version of COCHIN FALL) in October 2022.

AM TAGESENDE (THE DARK HORIZON) was published in February, 2023, and will be followed later in the year by DIE WIEDERKEHR (THE FLAME WITHIN) and IM DÄMMERLICHT (THE LENGTHENING SHADOW). All of Liz's German translations are by Ingrid Price-Gschlössl.

A second edition of THE ROAD BACK was published in August 2022, and this was followed by the publication in November 2022 of IN A FAR PLACE, which tells the story of one of the characters in THE ROAD BACK, the missionaries' son, Peter Henderson.

Liz's latest series is a trilogy, THREE SISTERS, each of which tells the story of one of the daughters of John Hammond, owner of several haberdashery stores. THE LOOSE THREAD, published in 2024, will be followed in September 2024 by THE

SILKEN KNOT. THE WOVEN LIE will be published early in 2025.

Liz now lives in Windsor, Berkshire. She's a member of The Romantic Novelists’ Association, The Historical Novel Society, and The Society of Authors. She gives talks and workshops at literary festivals and conferences. Her hobbies are theatre, cinema, reading and cryptic crosswords. 

Connect with Liz:

Wednesday, 12 February 2025

Holand Press: Writing A New Chapter


 Holand Press: Writing A New Chapter




Books matter. Readers matter. Writers matter. As such, there is always a demand for new stories and new authors. Holand Press has been founded to help meet that demand.


Although we may be the new publishers on the block, there are two questions that we are most frequently asked. What type of books are you looking for? And what type of author are you looking for?


This blog aims to answer those questions.

The short answer to the first question is that we are looking for good books. Books which the reader is compelled to turn the pages of. Part of the purpose of a book is to make someone want to read another book (preferably a Holand Press title). We are looking to publish books, both fiction and non-fiction, which resonate or introduce audiences to brave, new worlds. Books which entertain and inform, as well as maybe even edify. Books which will reach and satisfy their readership.


Also, for a more pragmatic answer, we are looking to publish titles in a number of commercial genres: Crime/thrillers, history books, memoir/biography, historical and literary fiction. Do please check out our FAQs and submissions page for further information.


Mainstream houses and independent presses are releasing fewer titles and arguably taking fewer risks. It’s a problem for publishing, one which Holand Press intends to help solve.


As to the second question – what kind of authors are we looking for? – the short answer is those who wish to be read and are willing to work to reach their audience. We not afraid of shaping and amplifying new voices. Debut writers matters, and we are keen to help raise their sales and profile. But, as most gems need polishing, most debut authors need to be open to being edited and taking advice on promoting their work.


We are, of course, receptive to hearing from established authors. You may want to publish outside your normal genre. As well as looking to the future, we are mindful of the past. Previously released books can be republished and repromoted. We will consider publishing backlist titles. You may also be an author who has self-published, who wants to find a larger readership. We are happy to consider such authors. Please note that we are not a vanity press, however.


We hope that this first blog post has answered some questions you might have, and will encourage you to check out our books and get in touch should you wish to submit your manuscript.


Help us write a new chapter in our story, as well as yours…

 

Holand Press Interview


Tell us about Holand Press. What are you looking for?

 

We are a new, enterprising, enthusiastic and efficient independent publishers. We publish kindle editions as well as print on demand hardbacks and paperbacks. We set ourselves up to fill gaps in the market and give new voices a platform to find a readership. Major trade publishers, as well as independent presses, seem to publish far fewer titles nowadays and it is riskier for them to publish debut authors or writers who haven't wholly broken through. There are plenty of great authors writing crime/thrillers, historical and literary fiction. But there is also too much talent falling through the cracks. With some editorial and marketing help we hope to break more writers through and narrow their odds in reaching their audience.

 

Holand Press isn't a vanity press. We pay a royalty and our strategy is to work with our stable over a long period of time, publishing multiple titles, to build their brand and sales.

 

In terms of what we are looking for I would suggest that authors check out our website Holand Press - Holand Press

We already publish in a number of genres - including crime/thrillers, historical and literary fiction - but we are open to other submissions, whether fiction or non-fiction. We do not publisher erotica, illustrated or children's books, however. We can publish series or stand alone titles. As well as debut writers we are happy to publish more established names. We will consider backlist titles and books which have been self-published. We are already publishing a number of US as well as UK authors. We are understandably looking for writers, whether new or experienced, to submit to an editing process. It's rare that a submission is ready to be published as soon as it comes in. We need to ensure that each manuscript is polished and commercially viable. We also prefer working with writers who are engaged with the process of expanding their profile and readership.

 

Can you tell us about some of your titles and what we can expect from Holand Press?

 

We have published our first wave of ten titles or so, with another batch to be published next month. In some ways these titles reflect the taste of our staff and advisory board - consisting of historical fiction and crime/thrillers. But we are happy to publish outside these genres and take chances on new voices. Again, we would ask your readers to check out our website for our catalogue, but I particularly enjoyed The Magician's Daughter, a WW2 mystery, by Alison Chambers - and The Last Known Sighting by Barry Lees, a modern crime thriller.

 

I suppose readers can expect more of the same of what's on our list already (partly as we are keen to have authors publish multiple titles with us). But they can also expect more of other genres and periods as we look to expand our list. We will aim to publish over a hundred titles in 2025. We have a team of readers who enjoy going through submissions and we have a good idea of what can and does sell, so we are happy for writers to get in touch. We can be contacted at submissions@holandpress.com We would urge people to take a look at our website and read our FAQs etc beforehand.

 

What's it like, starting a new publishing venture?

 

Hard work, but exciting. Thankfully we have a team and advisory board pushing in the same direction. It's been a marriage of experience and enthusiasm. As much experience as we have, though, it's important to constantly evolve and take on board new ideas, as well as new writers. We need a business model and stable of authors which will help us grow over the next five years, not just five months. Like any business we need to be aware of controlling costs and maximising sales. But publishing can and should be fun. Selling books is not like selling beans. We are working with some wonderful people and helping writers to reach their readerships. There are worse jobs. Our mood is a lot sunnier than the weather at the moment.