ABOUT THE INDIE PRESS

The Indie Press was started in 2007 as a result of artist Ken Hull's search for a different medium to express his creativity. When this search led him to write a book, he needed a way to publish it. Having spent most of his adult life being an independent artist and maintaining control of his work, he struggled with the notion of signing on with a formal publishing house. In that world, an author (especially an unknown) makes very little money from the sale of their work. The publishing house also gains the rights to the work and therefore "controls" it. The upside is that they fund the production and bare the entire risk of that investment. They are also responsible for marketing, distribution, and sales. For some authors, this is the way to go – for Ken, this was giving up a part of his creativity and business savvy, not to mention this book was a means to a living (like his art) and he needed to reap as much of the profit as possible.

Having been blessed with many talented friends and acquaintances all living in central PA, it wasn't hard to find experts in every field of book production. This all made perfect sense too, because a book about supporting local business should be written and produced locally. Ken found Rose Ann Hoover, a gifted artist, living near Warriors Mark (10 miles away), who took charge of the book's cover design, logo and promotional materials. She also became his CEO (Chief Encouragement Officer) during the entire publishing process. One of his best friends and next door neighbor Bryan Benner is a top graphic designer and agreed to do the interior layout. Bien Concepcion, a Happy Valley transplant and brilliant web designer, came on board and created the book's website as well as this one. Then came the printing – which if not done extremely well, would negate all of the work Ken's team created, including much of the book's selling potential. Welcome Dennis Devlin and Advanced Color Graphics of State College whom Ken used many times to print his fine art pieces. Dennis and his team took a simple CD with a years worth of work by Ken and hundreds of hours of work from his team, and made one of the coolest books ever out of it.

Ken's ability to write, oversee production, market, distribute, and successfully sell his book, made the decision to self-publish a wise one. The Indie Press was born from the desire to be independent and free to create and provide a living from that creativity, without the confines of corporate protocol and the limitations therein. With "in-house" talent and resources, The Indie Press strives to continue its' independence, creativity, profitability, and the production of "the coolest books ever." But none of that is worth a hill of beans without integrity and the honoring of God, through which none of this would have been possible without His grace. I should know; I am The Indie Press.

Thank you for supporting my efforts.

Ken Hull