Today we’d like to introduce you to Mychael Zulauf
Hi Mychael, so excited to have you on the platform. So before we get into questions about your work-life, maybe you can bring our readers up to speed on your story and how you got to where you are today?
I started akinoga press pretty much directly after graduating from the University of Baltimore’s creative writing and publishing arts MFA program. I fell in love with the publishing process while in the program (at UB, MFA students not only write a creative thesis, they design and publish it, too) and wanted to continue doing it in some capacity. I didn’t think that desire would manifest in a small press, but here we are.
And I got to where I am today by largely loving and having a passion for publishing books. I’m fortunate enough to have a job that affords me a fair amount of free time in the evenings/on the weekends; I work as a cabinetmaker at a very small shop, so I physically can’t take any of my work home with me, which means no overtime/a VERY hard line between work and the rest of my life. And I deeply enjoy all of the steps of the publishing process, so it generally doesn’t take a lot to generate the momentum and motivation to read through a manuscript for editing or hop into InDesign to continue with a layout. And, because I do everything by myself, I can move at my own pace/allow the various processes take as long as they’re going to take.
Though, if I’m being honest, getting a small press off the ground really wasn’t all that difficult, especially in this day and age. It’s so incredibly easy to find the answers to pretty much any question I have with a cursory Google search, website generation was a breeze with Squarespace, Instagram make promotion and connecting with readers almost fool-proof, listings on sites like Poets and Writers do almost all of the legwork of finding people to submit. Honestly, I could go on and on. I think the things that took me the longest to develop were my sense of style/aesthetics for the press and my skills as an editor, which can only really be honed by just designing and editing books.
I’m sure it wasn’t obstacle-free, but would you say the journey has been fairly smooth so far?
Yes, I’d say it’s been fairly smooth. Like I mentioned, there are TONS of sites and resources that can do a lot of the heavy lifting for you, at least when it comes to promotion and actually selling books. And as a single-person operation, I have a lot of freedom when it comes to setting my own schedule and doing the work that needs to be done on my own terms. But, running akinoga press by myself has also been a source of a number of challenges. Before starting the press, I never really understood how much coordination has to take place to keep things running. Sometimes I actually plan out my evenings based on the work that needs to happen, i.e. I have to do some manuscript edits and also tinker with a layout, but I can’t do them on the same night because I need to be in two different modes for the respective work, so Monday night is editing and Tuesday night is the layout. But, I also need to cook dinner for the week…and spend time with my partner…and a night to decompress from a randomly frustrating day at the shop…and oh my writing group is meeting on Monday, so now editing has to be bumped and….
It can just be a lot for one person to have to navigate and deal with. Don’t get me wrong, I love running the press and I’m happy to give my time and energy for this weird dream that is someone still being dreamt. It would just be nice to get a helping hand once and a while.
Appreciate you sharing that. What else should we know about what you do?
Akinoga press is a micropress based out of Baltimore. The press specializes in hand-bound poetry chapbooks, but I am open to publishing just about anything. The weirder, the better. I think I’ve been gaining a reputation of being a publisher that publishes debut work…and work that authors don’t know what to do with. I can’t tell you how many books in the akinoga catalogue came to me because someone was like, “I have this thing. It’s really weird, and I don’t know who would want to publish it.” The answer is almost inevitably, “ME! I will publish the hell out of that!” I’m really proud of that, actually; I liking being the home for first books, as well as books that don’t seem to fit anywhere else. I like creating space for them, and helping other people realize that those books are worthy of their attention.
I think that might be something else I specialize in (and, if I’m being honest, I am exceedingly proud of): publishing books with designs and layouts and papers/materials that make people want to pick them up, that make people want to spend time with them. One of the most common compliments I get about the books I’ve published is that they are beautiful…and that they look like they want to be held. I truly can’t ask for more.
So, before we go, how can our readers or others connect or collaborate with you? How can they support you?
Work with: send me a project proposal when the press is open for submissions. I run submissions a little differently than most presses, but all of that information can be found on the press site (just Google “akinoga press”; I am literally the only result)
Collaborate with: send me an email! I LOVE collaborating with folks! I actually do my best to make the entire publishing process with the authors I work with as collaborative as possible, but that’s besides the point. I am game for most things literary/artistic/creative, so shoot me an email and let’s talk!
Support: Buy some books! Or tell folks about the press! Most of the sales, and knowledge of/interest in the press, have happened via word of mouth, so shout akinoga’s praises as far and wide as possible. The press also technically has a Patreon, so if people subscribed there, I wouldn’t be mad at it…
Contact Info:
- Website: https://akinogapress.com
- Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/akinogapress/
- Other: https://www.patreon.com/akinogapress
