Northodox is an independent publisher based in Manchester and Sheffield and established in 2020. If you are exhausted by a book market oversaturated with stories of a London-centric Britain or the cozy Cotswolds, look no further. Northodox’s books will be joining the shelves of UoS Library this year as we build a Northern Publishers Bookshelf and Northodox will be at the Northern School of Writing Publishing Fair on The 27th of March.
Finn Armstrong talked to James Keane, one of the three founders of Northodox, to find out more.
Q: If you could save only one book in the world, what would it be?
A: Hitchhiker’s Guide to the Galaxy by Douglas Adams. It was the first series I really read as a child so has a certain space in my reading journey.
Q: Three words to describe what you are looking for in a submission?
A: Confidence, character, and personality
Q: What was your book of 2024, one all must read?
A: From Northodox Press, I’d say The Mare by Angharad Hampshire, it’s a very gutsy novel which asks some very unnerving questions about history and the present. From personal reading, The Ministry of Time by Kaliane Dradley was a great read for fans of historical/speculative fiction.
Q: And final quick-fire question, if you had to say what is the most important quality to have in the world of publishing?
A: Resilience is really important in publishing, not only from a personal perspective, but also from a business perspective. You need to be able to react quickly to situations and find creative solutions to your problems. But also be able to brush criticism off your shoulders, and learn to take it on as feedback.
Q: Okay, let’s get to the in-depth questions- Take me back to 2020, Amy Leacy, Ted O’Connor and yourself had just set up Northodox, what lead to founding the company and what made you three decide to go into business together?
A: The Northodox team met at Derby University while studying Creative Writing. So our interest in publishing was initially from an author’s perspective. During the course we set up a Creative Writing magazine, which was really where our publishing journey started. It gave us the confidence and skills to be able to build a publication from the ground up. We all then went our various ways into the publishing industry across the UK. We’d always had the germ of an idea for a northern focused press, but working in London, we discovered a real need for regionality and the accessibility of publishing to northern authors. So in 2020, during the pandemic, we had time and resources to set up the Press, and here we are 5 years later, lessons learned, and growing year on year.
Q: So, you set up during lockdown. What challenges did that cause? And how did you overcome them?
A: The lockdown had many advantages and disadvantages. The major challenge of a small press is scalability, so we decided to concentrate on a POD/digital first model, and specialise in publishing crime fiction. The model helped us to establish ourselves and to understand our own processes with limited capital at hand, which was a benefit in the long term. We’ve since transitioned away from the digital first model and procured commercial distribution/printing and broadened our specialisation into general and genre fiction. This couldn’t have happened if we hadn’t created the space for us to grow. A young press will always struggle financially if they aren’t conservative with their capital, being so agile in our early years had definitely helped us to be more strategic with our strategies 5 years in.
Q: So, you and your business partners all had quite a grasp on the publishing world already, you yourself having worked for Harper Collins and The Fitch Group. Leading into the question. How had Northodox’s process of selecting a submission to publication changed (or if at all) from your first publication to let’s say The Executioner’s Blade by Andrew Knighton or Valeryia Salt’s Dive Beyond Eternity?
A: The first few years of submissions were purely testing the waters, while we had a certain standard that we were looking out for, it was important for us to take risks and not play too safe in our choices. Five years in, we’re far more selective in our choice and tastes, purely because as the Press has grown, we’ve received twice as many submissions than previous years. We’ve also established a certain quality and standard in our publishing, so it’s important that year on year we’re exceeding expectations. The Press has also moved to a more commercial fiction market, so literary agencies and more established authors have been opened up to us.
Q: Northodox’s mission is to “elevate northern voices and represent the diversity of writing from Northern England.” Can you please build on this and how does northern voices differ to others?
A: Regionality is an incredibly important factor in our mission to represent authors. The North is by no means unique in its literary heritage, but the North has been underserved by the creative arts over the past 30 years. The publishing industry in the UK has awoken to these concerns, but still remains underserved, and presents a publisher like Northodox Press with the opportunity to work with a wide array of authors who would otherwise be passed aside by larger/traditional publishers.
Q: For those looking to get into publication, be that behind the scenes or as a writer what would be your advice?
A: Be confident in your skills and abilities, but understand your weakness, and seek to make them strengths. No matter your starting point, it’s important to sell yourself as an author or a publisher with confidence, be able to utilise your skillset with versatility. And when an opportunity to learn or hone your skills is presented, take it with gusto. Always be vigilant of feedback and learn from mistakes instead of doubling down.
Q: For other creative writing students here at Salford what are you looking for in a successful submission- and how does Northodox help elevate their own path or careers?
A: A successful submission is in the preparation. When querying to agents or submitting to publishers, make sure to take your time, do your research, and prepare to be your own marketing department. You have to sell yourself confidently, but not overconfidently. Someone who sends a well-written email introduction, with a well-crafted synopsis/author bio, and a good understanding of how their book can be marketed will trump anyone who fires off a dozen emails in a single afternoon. Take your time, be strategic, learn from feedback, keep on moving. Publishing is all about timing, so if you’re unsuccessful the first time around, it’s the luck of the draw, rather than the ineffectiveness of your pitch or manuscript. Keep going and luck will land on your side eventually.
Q: Final Question here, what is on the horizon for Northodox, what is the thing to keep your eyes on? The next Northen masterpiece?
A: Our Hero titles for 2024, The Mare by Angharad Hampshire and The Wicked of the Earth by A. D. Bergin are ones to look out for, both now stocked widely in Waterstones and indie booksellers. For 2025, Jamie Jackson’s Adventures in Love, Carolyn Kirby’s Ravenglass, and Emma Whitehall’s Gilded Gear are our front runners, readers should watch out for.