Acquisition of Shebooks Furthers She Writes Press as Gold Standard, Leader in Hybrid Publishing for Women
BERKELEY, Calif., and TEMPE, Ariz. (PRWEB) March 02, 2018 -- SparkPoint Studio, parent company of award-winning hybrid publisher She Writes Press, announced today the acquisition of Shebooks, a women’s e-book publisher with the mission to bridge the gap between magazines and books by carefully curating and publishing short e-books by and for women, and designed for women’s busy lives. The acquisition of Shebooks, which SparkPoint will roll into She Writes Press, is a testament to the reputation and success of She Writes Press in the hybrid publishing space and demonstrates SparkPoint Studio’s continued investment and commitment to growing She Writes Press as the leader and gold standard in hybrid publishing for women authors.
Shebooks was co-founded in 2013 by Laura Fraser, journalist and best-selling author (An Italian Affair); veteran magazine editor Peggy Northrop (former Global Editor-in-Chief of Reader's Digest and former Editor-in-Chief of More magazine and Sunset magazine); and publishing veteran Rachel Greenfield (former Executive Vice President, Martha Stewart Living Omnimedia).
When it launched, Shebooks was awarded a seed grant by the New Media Women's Entrepreneurial Fund, raised additional funding, and was able to publish 75 high-quality short e-book titles from well-respected authors, including best-selling author Hope Edelman; National Book Award nominee Ann Pearlman; best-selling author Caroline Leavitt; PEN award-winning memoirist Faith Adiele; and many others.
“We’re very proud of having published 75 high-quality, short books by women authors,” said Shebooks co-founder and editorial director Laura Fraser. “As we evolved, we saw a natural fit between Shebooks and She Writes Press, which shares a mission similar to ours, and we’re pleased our stories will have a home." Added Peggy Northrop, Shebooks cofounder and president, "We are excited to see Shebooks flourish as part of She Writes Press and SparkPoint Studio.”
“We are happy to bring Shebooks into the SparkPoint family and that the Shebooks mission of publishing quality writing by and for women will continue under our company’s capable leadership, falling under our She Writes Press brand,” said SparkPoint Studio CEO, Crystal Patriarche.
Patriarche said she will keep the Shebooks name, rebranding it with a new logo and changing it to SheBooks to match her other brands, and will operate it as a new e-book only option under She Writes Press, which has published and distributed women authors in both print and e-book to this point. Brooke Warner, publisher of She Writes Press and SparkPress (SparkPoint’s other thriving hybrid imprint which publishes male and female authors), will take the reins as publisher of the new SheBooks as well.
“Brooke is a known industry innovator, indie author advocate (particularly for women), and trailblazer for hybrid publishing. SparkPoint fully supports her passion, expertise, and vision,” said Patriarche. “As publisher of the new SheBooks, she will continue to seek out and publish high-quality works by women in new formats and lengths we haven’t done before.”
“We are working hard each and every season to grow and create more opportunities for She Writes Press and SparkPress, innovating and leading the disruption of the traditional publishing industry and setting the standard in hybrid publishing,” said Warner. “We will now have additional ways for female authors to publish their stories through SheBooks, including more formats and lengths, while still maintaining our current publishing package and tried and true model that is working well for our She Writes Press and SparkPress authors.”
Warner continued, “The original Shebooks authors will benefit from our traditional distribution program with Ingram Publisher Services. Their e-books will transfer to She Writes Press as publisher and be made available as SheBooks titles to 127 e-retail platforms. And we’ll be looking to publish new SheBooks titles as early as the Fall 2018 list.”
SheBooks submissions and new product offerings will be rolled out this Spring.
About She Writes Press: She Writes Press is an independent publishing company with headquarters in Berkeley, Calif. and founded in 2012 to serve members of SheWrites.com, the largest global community of women writers online, and women writers everywhere. She Writes Press is both mission-driven and community-oriented, aiming to serve writers who wish to maintain greater ownership and control of their projects while still getting the highest quality editorial help possible and full distribution into the marketplace. In 2014, SheWrites.com and She Writes Press became part of SparkPoint Studio, LLC, creating a powerful combination that no other hybrid publisher brings to the table, including strong female entrepreneurial leadership with start-up experience and expertise in traditional and digital publishing, community and platform-building; a strong editorial vision; traditional distribution; two award-winning hybrid imprints (She Writes Press and SparkPress), and a leading, innovative marketing and publicity team. As of 2017, She Writes Press and SparkPress have more than 400 signed authors, all curated and selected based on quality of work, and more than 40 bestsellers. In 2017, She Writes Press won BISG’s Industry Innovator Award. She Writes Press and SparkPress titles are frequently named to best indie books of the year lists, indie book award lists and in national and industry media. For more, visit http://www.SheWritesPress.com and follow @SheWritesPress on social media.
About SparkPoint Studio:
SparkPoint Studio, headquartered in Tempe, Ariz., is fast becoming the leading disruptor in the publishing industry, leveling the playing field for indie authors and emerging as the front runner and quality standard in hybrid publishing, with nearly 500 titles under its three imprints: SparkPress (a hybrid imprint for male and female authors), She Writes Press (an award-winning hybrid publisher for women authors) and the newly acquired SheBooks (e-book only options by women).
SparkPoint Studio doesn’t just publish authors through its innovative and recognized publishing arms. SparkPoint’s BookSparks division is the leading, go-to publicity and marketing agency for publishers and authors, executing more than 400 book publicity campaigns that merge traditional and digital media and delivering stellar results for New York Times bestselling, emerging and debut authors and publishers. BookSparks is a recognized game-changer and influencer in the book promotion industry. SparkPoint Studio also operates SheWrites.com, the largest online community of women writers around the globe, and SheReads.com, a new destination where women readers can find their next favorite book. SparkPoint Studio is a female-led, unique, multi-media company for All Your Story Needs™: gold standard publishing options through SparkPress, She Writes Press and SheBooks for writers who want to publish their stories; innovative publicity and marketing through BookSparks for authors and publishers to promote their stories; a community of women writers at SheWrites.com for women who want to join a platform of other storytellers; and a community of women readers at SheReads.com for those looking to find great stories to read. For more, visit GoSparkPoint.com.
Crystal Patriarche, SparkPoint Studio, http://www.gosparkpoint.com/, +1 (480) 650-1688, [email protected]
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