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Dec. 25--SARASOTA -- There's a tree in Sarasota that has started to sprout green. The Peppertree Press started as a nonprofit literary magazine showcasing the work of local authors and has turned into a publishing company with 68 titles under its belt.
"We have made mistakes, like any company, but we've learned from them," says Julie Ann Howell, the owner and publisher.
Published works include "The Dolphin Door" by 11-year-old author Matthew Boerner and "The Stuff in the Back of the Desk" by Robert Wells Elementary School teacher LeeAnn Brink.
Howell started Peppertree Press book publishing last January after starting the Peppertree Literary Magazine a year earlier. The offices are in an old house on Swift Road, off Bee Ridge Road in Sarasota.
Howell works there with creative director Vern Firestone and publishing assistant Teri Franco. They bill themselves as a professional publishing company with a personal touch. Authors come in to have coffee and chat with them on Tuesdays and Thursdays.
"The reason our sales are growing is people respect our personal touch," Howell says. "We care about what we're doing and we care that they get their books done on time."
For now, authors pay to have their books published and keep the royalties. In the future, however, the owner wants to follow the traditional publishing model, she says. They already have one book in the works, by local historian Jeff LaHurd, who wrote about Sarasota during the Roaring '20s. He will receive 12 percent of his book sales.
"We're working more and more toward becoming a traditional publishing company where authors don't pay," Howell says.
Howell started the Peppertree Literary Magazine in May 2005 and met Firestone in April. They started talking about a book publishing company. Now they have published 32 books and have another 36 in the works.
Firestone does the layout, graphics and cover design for each book. Before coming to Peppertree, he worked as a freelance graphic artist, often working with authors and publishing houses.
At Peppertree, Firestone assigns the ISBN numbers and Library of Congress numbers to the books. The graphic designer also makes mock-ups of seven different covers for authors to choose from.
"We don't just slap covers on and we don't have templates," Firestone says.
Even if a book is by a first-time author, Firestone says he does not want it to look that way. He wants it to look like something by an experienced author like Dean Koontz or Norah Roberts.
Franco started in June as publishing assistant. The former preschool teacher handles things like book ordering, book signings, marketing and verbal and written correspondence with the authors.
"Everyone works together on projects," she says. "Everyone brings something very strong and different."
The company also has about eight freelance editors and seven illustrators in its stable. Students from the Ringling School of Art and Design have had their designs appear on the covers of Peppertree books, which are distributed worldwide and contain the artist's name and biography.
Peppertree sells its books to online stores like Books-A-Million, large chains like Borders and small stores like Little Bookworms on Main Street at Lakewood Ranch. All the books are fully returnable, too, which makes it easier for bookstores to take a chance on unknown authors.
The publisher has been easy to work with and very accommodating, says Heidi Allwood, co-owner of the Lakewood Ranch bookstore. They have even dropped off books, saving the store shipping costs.
"They have been very supportive because we're both independent, locally-owned businesses," Allwood says.
Little Bookworms held a book signing last week with Gerrie Sobel, author of "Jacob and His Magical Flying Bears." The store also carries "The Great Dolphin Door."
"It's also great to have a local self-publishing firm available for people whose dream it is to write a book," Allwood says. "A lot of self-publishing houses make you send your stuff to another state and give over control."
In addition to selling locally, Peppertree advertises in Advance, a publication used by 22,000 booksellers and libraries across the globe.
"There's been an increase in sales all over because those ads really hit," Firestone says.
In the future, Howell says she would like to launch a Web site to sell the publisher's books. They can already accept MasterCard and Visa from booksellers. Next year, they plan to sell their books as eBooks online.
Howell and her coworkers have spoken with a studio in Tampa about recording books as audiobooks and placing them online for download on iTunes or Napster.
They also have some charitable works planned, such as "A Cats Tale," from which all proceeds will go to the Humane Society of Sarasota County. They will also print a book for Big Brothers Big Sisters at no cost.
"The company tapped a nerve in the creative community in Sarasota," Franco says. "They can drive down Swift Road and come in and have coffee. They come in a writer and they leave a published author."
Peppertree Press
--Business: Publishing company
--Location: 4017 Swift Road, Sarasota
--Founded: 2006
--Owner: Julie Ann Howell
--Employees: Three
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Copyright (c) 2006, The Bradenton Herald, Fla.
Distributed by McClatchy-Tribune Business News.
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