As a team, we decided what we could design rather than making decisions from the top down, making sure that everyone’s opinions and ideas were considered. After great deliberation, we came up with designs that accurately captured our group’s imagination and vision, while also taking into consideration the novel, its themes, and thinking about our audience and what they would like as someone who would like this novel.
At Ooligan Press, we take branding seriously. We want everything we post to feel connected to the book, from the fonts we use to the colors that match the cover art. Having a consistent visual identity is key for helping readers easily recognize the book when they see it.
When this blog post is uploaded, Ooligan Press will have taught its first ever workshop aimed at high school students. Our course “A Publishing Crash Course for Teens” was on February 22, 2025, from 2 to 4 p.m. at Forest Grove Library in Washington County. Washington County is about a half-hour drive from Portland, and before this workshop, the librarians had never heard of Ooligan Press. So, how did we get here?
A well-crafted sales video doesn’t just tell potential readers what the story is about, it makes them feel the story before they’ve even turned the first page and helps them get established with the author on a personal level. This is a step-by-step guide on how to create a compelling video to capture readers early on.
THEMA is a system used for categorizing books by their subject matter. Like Book Industry Standards and Communications (BISAC) or Book Industry Communication (BIC), THEMA codes classify book subjects, making the process of classifying titles simpler. Unlike BISAC or BIC, these codes are not solely used in a specific region like Europe or North America. Due to THEMA being a multilingual system, it can be utilized on an international level.
Artificial intelligence (AI) has been present in our lives for the past few years now. You can find it on social media, writing tools, and even in search engines. Its ever-looming presence begs the question: are we going to lose our jobs to AI?
One of the most important parts of the acquisitions process for a publisher is determining if a manuscript they are considering is likely to sell enough copies to make financial sense to publish. One of the ways publishers can determine audience interest is finding comparative titles, or comp titles. While a winning set of comp titles isn’t the secret to getting a book deal, understanding their function in publishing and having a few solid options will help any author seeking publication position their book effectively.
Recently, I embarked on a mission to sell foreign translation rights to Croatia for one of our upcoming releases Supersymmetry. What seemed like a straightforward task quickly turned into a deep and enlightening dive through the complex world of foreign rights management.
The press kit should give a grand overview of the book itself but in the most condensed way possible. It’s important to touch on themes and highlight the very best of the book and its author. These things all add up, and scoring reviews is great publicity for us and helps us sell more books.
Tabling at an event comes with all sorts of factors to consider, many that you need to get a head start on. Working with a new venue, however, is a whole different ball game. In starting fresh somewhere new, there’s only so much you can figure out in advance.