Independent publisher and proprietor of Atomic Fez Publishing, Ian Alexander Martin was kind enough to take the time to answer a few questions about his company, the current state of the publishing industry, the challenges faced by both publishers and authors, and some information on the books his business is publishing both now and in the coming year.
Thanks to Ian Alexander Martin for his time, and for the tremendous and informative responses to the questions. They are greatly appreciated.
What was the background to starting Atomic Fez Publishing?
Ian Alexander Martin: Prior to creating the house, I was the acting head of an English-based small house, with whom I was involved for a little over three years. Prior to that, I was running a Vancouver-centric theatre news-site called The Boards which included reviews, features, editorials, and event listings about theatre in my area. As a stage and screen actor/director, I was dissatisfied with arts coverage in the area by the traditional print media, and recognized that the only practical thing was to take up the coverage slack myself.
In the latter- half of The Boards’ life, the content broadened to include Ontario, much of the USA's Pacific Northwest, and England. That UK content is what resulted in me getting to know Guy Adams, who lured me to his publishing house and into this career in the first place, and then proved he's a completely evil person by encouraging me to start the house which came to be called "Atomic Fez Publishing". It's entirely his fault.
What sets Atomic Fez apart from other publishers, for both authors and readers, in terms of options and benefits?
Ian Alexander Martin: Not all books are 'serious works of art.' When I started Atomic Fez, I wanted to bring some of the fun back into the publishing business and produce books whose primary purpose was to entertain rather than instruct. I wanted to publish books that simultaneously celebrated good (as in highly readable) writing, but were written by people who had a firm grasp of literary traditions; think Jasper Forde, for instance.
Take the logo and name: the absurdity of the fez as a piece of headgear in combination with the hope of the dawning of the 'atomic age’ – that kind of retro glam – made me laugh. Think Mad Men crossed with The Jetsons; if that appeals to your tastes, then have a seat and let me get you something to drink.
What genres of books does Atomic Fez publish currently?
Ian Alexander Martin: I’d say it could be a mystery, humorous, a bit scary, sarcastic, or simply weird. Something with a bit of odd content to make you say “what... but, if you... how does that work, exactly?” Warren Ellis’s “Transmetropolitan” series, Terry Pratchett’s “Discworld” series, Christopher Fowler’s work, and Cherie Priest’s “Clockwork Century” material. Whatever it is I read has to have an element of humour running through it. It’s the light which better defines the point at which you enter the darkness. When selecting material to publish, it’s much the same thing, but with less requirement for humour. I’m going to easily read the material in its totality four times by the time books hit the inside of a box. Logically, it’s going to have to hold my interest somehow through each of those readings.
As someone who lives with clinical depression, I do have to watch getting too firmly pushed into the “bleak and hopeless” end of the spectrum. As long as it’s extremely well-written, then that’s something setting it apart from some material already.
Does having an eclectic group of authors and titles help create a niche for the company?
Ian Alexander Martin: In a sense, it welcomes all interests, but at the same time may make it difficult for some retailers to know what section of the store to put Atomic Fez titles. That said, you’ll find books published by major houses in several areas of stores, so I see this as a strength.
Atomic Fez has shown interest in what you’ve described as ‘genre-busting fiction'. What is that and what is the market potential for this type of book?
Ian Alexander Martin: The five titles produced in 2010 span a variety of genres and combine elements of several in each book. For instance, The Terror and the Tortoiseshell, John Travis's first in the Benji Spriteman series, combines elements of fantasy, mystery, noir and science fiction as the animal kingdom moves from four legs to two and banishes the human population. Benji Spriteman is a sentient, six-foot tall, suit-wearing tortoiseshell cat. And one heck of a detective too.
However, “weird stuff” and “highly eclectic” is about right. There’s the detective story The Terror and the Tortoiseshell that I think is filled with humour, but other people focus on the horror and semi-dark events (which may say more about me than the book, frankly); meanwhile). Meanwhile there’s The Beautiful Red, which is a collection of some of the darkest and bleakest tales I’ve ever read. Wicked Delights is another collection, this one of tales which all include at least a vague reference to sex, but is supremely classy, witty, and intellectual throughout. Twisthorn Bellow is a novel that occasionally revels in its own puerility while delivering groan-worthy puns and sight-gags.
This assortment of styles and story-forms permits both a ‘something for everybody’ aspect to the catalogue, as well as banishing a bit of the reputation of any of the individual genres’ lack of respectability in some people’s minds. Atomic Fez is pre-designed with that “broad tent” approach to fiction.
Ian Alexander Martin (photo left)
This is a difficult time for a new publisher to start up, with both a down economy and some very real turmoil in both the publishing and book retailing sectors. What challenges does a new publisher face in today's volatile marketplace?
Ian Alexander Martin: You're absolutely right about tumultuous nature of the industry: this is easily the most revolutionary period in books since Gutenberg created a reliable printing press using movable type. As Warren Buffet points out, however, “when everyone is doing something, it's time to do something else instead”..” The main challenge any publishing house faces is how to get attention for its titles when more than a million new books are being published in the US alone every year.
With fewer brick and mortar retailers out there in the marketplace, how is Atomic Fez leveraging the internet to help market books?
Ian Alexander Martin: The internet actually allows for simultaneous worldwide distribution and saves consumers both time and money on shipping costs. The cost of shipping printed books from Canada to the UK or vice versa often exceeds the cost of the books themselves, especially when purchasing from online vendors – free shipping offers such as Chapters/Indigo or Amazon only apply in a particular country. Atomic Fez is committed to making its books available in as many formats as technologically possible in accordance with consumer demand.
All Atomic Fez publications have been produced in multi-platform, digital rights management-free eBook formats at the same time as the printed books are released. All of the titles are available in both the Kindle and Kobo stores; as well as epub, pdf, html and mobi formats.
Atomic Fez has always released its titles in both printed and eBook format simultaneously. This year we're going to experiment with this formula a bit. Two of the five 2010 titles were published in jacket-less hardcover format; the other three as trade paperbacks. We're going to do our best this year to reduce production costs so we can also reduce the cost to the consumer. We're also going to consider more trade paperback publishing and, potentially, publishing eBooks prior to printed versions.
Late in 2010 we reduced the price of our eBooks to $6.99 for most titles and $4.99 for our shortest book, Andrew Hook’s Ponthe Oldenguine. I’d like to achieve similar price reductions for the paper books; while still managing to pay the printer, the authors and myself.
What advice would you have for a would-be author seeking to publish a book today?
Ian Alexander Martin: Write the book you want to, and do not submit it to anyone until you’ve worked through it so much that you’re at a loss as to what more can be done to it. Once you’ve done that, then send it around to people; all the time realizing that it’ll change several more times before it sees publication. Everyone’s work needs editing – many authors admit they’d not be able to operate without their editors’ help – so don’t get too precious about your words. That said, if your story is strong, major plot threads and characters shouldn’t have to be changed so much it’s not your book any more.
How can authors contact Atomic Fez to receive consideration for publishing their book?
Ian Alexander Martin: I’ve got more than enough on my desk right now to keep me busy well into the middle of the decade. That said, the door is always open for a proposal. Send me a quick synopsis, something about your writing credits, plus the market or category you see the work appealing to, and not much more. Attachments are best for those, as lengthy blocks of text pasted into an e-mail make for over-load.
Heading to www.AtomicFez.com/about/submissions/ will provide a quick run-down of those things, as well as a few tips on how to get my attention (wine seems to work, for instance). Take a look at the www.atomicfez.com web site; sign up for the blog feed (which features a weekly round-up of articles of interest to authors, both tips on writing and trends in publishing), and talk to (or follow) me on Twitter.
What is the one piece of advice you would give to any would -be author seeking a publisher?
Ian Alexander Martin: Don’t pay anyone for the opportunity to be published. Real publishers pay the writer, not the other way around. That said, don’t give up your ‘day job’, because the likelihood of making a living from your writing is about as slim as becoming a Hollywood star. While not impossible, it’s highly unlikely.
What is next for Atomic Fez?
Ian Alexander Martin: Atomic Fez is committed to the principle of publishing entertaining fiction. Plans are underway to publish four new titles in 2011: two in late spring, two in the fall. We'll be publishing works by new Canadian authors, as well as second books from two of our existing authors.
In spring of 2011, Atomic Fez will publish Gananoque, Ontario-based Carol Weekes' Terribilis, a mystery/thriller and her first novel. Also in the spring line-up is Calgary, Alberta-based Chris Roth's first novel Dirk Danger Loves Life, which tells the story of a young man’s discovery that life can be something other than a complete failure.
Then in the fall of 2011, we'll be releasing the second in John Travis’ “Benji Spriteman” series, a follow-up to The Terror and the Tortoiseshell, as well as John Llewellyn Probert’s first novel. The award-winning Probert wrote – and we published – Wicked Delights – in 2010.
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Ian Alexander Martin has been over the years a photographer, a photo-lab store-owner, stage actor, and performing arts journalist; thus demonstrating a fascination with embracing trends already well into their death throws. Currently he's the Proprietor of Atomic Fez Publishing, which is dedicated to providing well-written stories to people at fair prices in a variety of formats; including electronic, hardback, and soft-cover editions. He's lived in Metro Vancouver all his life, and in Burnaby with his wife and two cats for rather less than that.
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