From covers to interiors to collateral, InDesign is great for book designers, especially because it is a publishing industry standard. However, learning InDesign can be quite a task, especially if you are new to the industry. Here are some helpful InDesign tips that I have learned during my time at Ooligan Press.
Whether it’s fantastical worlds filled with gorgeous Fae or a war college of lethal dragon riders, book lovers can’t seem to stop sinking their canines into one of the most popular subgenres to date, romantasy. Following any popular book phenomenon, there are not only more wonderful stories for readers to enjoy, but the detrimental consequences of publishers trying to suck as much profit from this new subgenre as possible. Everyone’s trying to get their share of Romantasy before, or if ever, it bleeds out in the future.
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 manuscript wish list (MSWL) is a curated list created by literary agents, editors, and publishers that outlines the specific types of manuscripts or book projects they are currently interested in acquiring. By creating or viewing MSWLs, both authors and publishing professionals can streamline the process, ensuring that the right stories find their way to the right hands.
“In most of our lives, for most of our days—especially here in the rainy, gray Pacific Northwest—we are surrounded by neutral shades. These are important. They make up most of our color landscape. So why shouldn’t they make up more of our compositions as designers?”
When you listen to an audiobook, the goal is to create an immersive, clean audio version of the story. Take a look at one of the first steps of audiobook production that sets things up for a successful, clean audiobook recording!
There are multiple types of editing; copyediting is just one of them. Copyediting is what most people consider or think of when they think of “editing.” So what exactly is copyediting? How does it differ from other types of editing? What are some common misconceptions about copyediting?
It’s not always clear how manuscripts move between departments in the publishing industry. Who decides when they’re ready to go and what information gets exchanged? This process may vary from press to press depending on the size of the departments, but here at Ooligan, there’s a standardized process to transfer the manuscript from acquisitions to copyeditor and the project manager who will take the manuscript throughout the rest of the publishing process.
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.
Ooligan strives to handle every manuscript with care and to take into account every aspect, and angle, of the potential of each one that comes our way. It is an anxious time waiting for a publisher to get back to you about your story that has been worked on for years. That is not something that we take lightly.