Article printed in Writers Forum‚ May 2005

In recent years‚ many writers have become aware that despite excellent writing skills‚ often remarked upon in publishers' rejection letters‚ their novels will not be accepted by mainstream publishers or agents‚ unless the writer has a degree of celebrity or good fortune.  One agent was quoted as saying that she was not interested in the mid-list‚ only best sellers.  This trend has prompted some members of Guildford Writers' circle to set up their own publishing house‚ Goldenford Publishers.

In 2004, a group of writers from Guildford Writers' circle, headed by Jennifer Margrave, a solicitor, decided to set up a publishing company - Goldenford Publishers - with several books already in mind and with the possibility of adding other writers to the stable in two or three years' time.  The company would be independent of Guildford Writers, and, in fact, would be a limited company with the directors holding shares in the company.  Now this company has been set up, and for several months, we have been working on our first publication.

We realise that, as we expand, we will require more capital, and we envisage that we could interest 'literary angels', rather on the lines of the angels who invest funds in theatrical productions, which may or may not be successful.  We hope to attract such contributions both from within and outside the group. However investment will not ensure publication.  Neither, in fact, will being a member of Guildford Writers be any guarantee.  The decision to publish will be based on the merit of the book.

The members of our team include people from different career backgrounds with a range of skills.  One member is an IT expert.  Several of us are familiar with office administration, another an expert editor, while our managing director, Jennifer, is a visionary, with big ideas and wide horizons, whose ambitions are held in check by the more pessimistic or pragmatic members of the team.

In writing terms, we feel justified in our confidence in ourselves.  Among our team are several writers whose fiction has won prizes or has been shortlisted frequently in short story competitions.  Some, but not necessarily the same people, have had non-fiction work published.  Two of us, myself included, have published our own work and have had sufficient sales to regard the enterprise as a success.

In January 2004, Esmé Ashford, one of the founder members of Guildford Writers, died, and this gave us the notion of our first venture.  We knew that she had been writing poems and stories for many years and almost never submitted her work for publication.  With the help of  her daughter, her stories were extracted from her computer.  Esmé was something of a technophobe, and a great deal of work was required from the group in reading, arranging and standardising the prose, and by Mike, our technical expert in putting it in an acceptable format for our short-run printer, Antony Rowe. 

To enhance the book, we also used black and white illustrations, drawn by Esmé and her husband.  There was also much discussion on the design of the logo with its yellow lettering on a river blue background, and its position on the back, the front and the spine.  These decisions will be applicable to our future books.

When the finished product was presented to us, we were entirely satisfied by its appearance.  Esmé's short stories were sometimes quirky and eccentric and owed something to the shaggy dog story school of story-telling.  Extending further the animal metaphors, some could be regarded as 'cock and bull stories'.  The front cover illustration showing a silhouette of a bull, based on a line drawing within the book, neatly illustrates the theme, as well as encapsulating one of the stories, in which an enraged bull of impeccable taste, tramples to death the artist who is, at the time, painting its portrait.

Esmé was also a political person with decided views, which are reflected in her work.  For this reason, the stories feature, often with humour and humanity, many people on the fringes of society, such as tramps, drunks and criminals, hence the collection's title, On the Edge.

On the Edge was launched in January 2005, timed as close as possible to the anniversary of Esmé's death.  Many family members attended the evening celebration at the Guildford Institute, but, since it was, in addition, the launch of Goldenford Publishers, the Mayor of Guildford and various local councillors were also in attendance.  Others were invited simply by virtue of their interest in writing and the world of books.   

As the guests milled around, drinking wine and eating the refreshments, Jennifer Margrave read out the cover story, Criticism May Prove Fatal.  Because of Esmé's sympathies with those marginalised by society, a collection was made, to be shared between two charities - Amnesty and Shelter.

As we particularly wanted to produce On the Edge on the anniversary of Esmé's death, some aspects of the book publishing process have been left in abeyance.  We concentrated on the book itself, together with its launch, the fliers to accompany it, producing information on Goldenford and setting up a website with information about us and details of forthcoming books.  It will be important to expand on publicity for all these books, and that will be one of our jobs in the coming months, in particular, this time, to organise publicity in advance of their publication. 

Unusually, we do not at the moment, intend to offer a particular genre of books.  Esmé's political persuasions are not necessarily echoed throughout the writers of the group, and similarly her style of writing is individual to her.

The next two books to be published are in an entirely differently genre to each other and to Esmé Ashford's book.  They are my own novella, A Bottle of Plonk‚  a set of stories linked by a bottle of wine, and The Moon's Complexion by Irene Black‚  a full length romantic thriller set in India.

Future publications include Jennifer Margrave's trilogy of historical novels and Anne Brooke's novel set in a London café with a host of ambivalent characters.  Despite their differences, we believe our future books will have in common their individuality, their originality and strength.

The first print run of On the Edge was sold before we had even set up accounts with booksellers and we are now forging ahead with publication of the next two books.  Although we do not underestimate the task ahead, we feel we have reason to be optimistic, and can only advise, Watch This Space.

On the Edge is available from Goldenford Publishers @ £6.99‚ plus  UK P & P‚  £1; Rest of the World‚ P & P‚ £3

Jackie Luben