Liz Bright: Of Square Pegs For Round Holes

Today’s guest post celebrating the release of Light Touch Paper Stand Clear, is from Liz Bright, the publisher at Peggy Bright Books. Liz founded this boutique publishing enterprise only about three years ago, with the notion of publishing work that was out of the box, i.e. “a square peg for a round hole”. Its first book, published in 2009, was Edwina Harvey’s The Whale’s Tale, based on a short story Edwina had entered for the Mary Grant Bruce Award some years ago, achieving a “Highly Commended”. This was followed soon after by Simon Petrie’s speculative fiction collection Rare Unsigned Copy. Liz has kindly agreed to speak of the company’s latest achievement. 

If you would like the publisher's input, I'd like to say it was a pleasure to be working with Simon and Edwina again, and that publishing Light Touch Paper, Stand Clear was a little out of the box for Peggy Bright Books. With its rich diversity of well-known authors and high-class stories, we hardly considered we were publishing “a square peg for a round hole.”

We have high hopes for this anthology, and have been pleased with the way the anthology has been welcomed by readers and reviewers.

We had all been considering the future of Peggy Bright Books, as the publishing industry seems in such turmoil at present, and we are a very small fish in a very big sea.

I always consider Simon and Edwina's suggestions, as I feel they have different views to my own on publishing and speculative fiction through their activity with Andromeda Spaceways Inflight Magazine.

Originally we invited two other people - who later both contributed to Light Touch Paper, Stand Clear - to edit the proposed anthology, but both were busy with other projects at the time. One had suggested a wonderful title for the anthology, but had to later withdraw that as well.

For a while it seemed the anthology would be nothing more than a good idea, until I convinced Edwina and Simon, who, I know, have worked well together previously, to edit this project.

We all brain-stormed to find a title that was as broad-reaching and appropriate as the original title, and we seemed to be going nowhere until Edwina suggested " Light Touch paper, Stand back" as it was a saying she tended to use herself. We altered this slightly to Light Touch Paper, Stand Clear and the project that had seemed doomed to be nothing more than a good idea grew wings and flew!

Liz has invited me to offer, on her behalf, an ebook giveaway of this anthology., and to offer, also ebook versions for reviewing. The competition for the free ebook will go for the next week, till midnight July 10 East Australian time. If you’re from overseas or Western Australia, I’ll try to allow the extra hours till your midnight. I think Blogger is on northern hemisphere time anyway. Actually, if you can get your entry in by Wednesday afternoon, about 4 pm my time, I'll accept it. 

Just comment on this post and say whether you want epub, mobi or PDF., and whether you’d like to enter the competition or have a review copy (review copies will continue, of course). Unfortunately,  Liz says, the company can only offer ebooks; the current print run is small and PBB is, indeed, a very small fish in a huge ocean. The good news is, it isn’t limited to Australia. You can enter or send a request for a review copy wherever you are!

For tomorrow's post, Kathleen Jennings will tell us how she interpreted the writers' brief in her story Kindling. See you then!