Whether you’re drafting a novel, short story, nonfiction, or a memoir, writing is a vulnerable experience. No matter your genre, the writing process can often surprise us as we delve into depths of our psyche and our soul to a degree perhaps we’ve never before done…let alone allowed anyone in our lives to see, either.Continue reading “Should I Publish Under a Pseudonym?”
Category Archives: Authors
Release Day: Madly Deeply Wildly
At the risk of utilizing more puns than professionalism, I have to say, my excitement for today’s new release is madly overflowing from deeply within, and I am wildly anticipating the experience our readers will have as they receive their copies of Katherine Turner’s latest book, Madly Deeply Wildly. To all of us at Josha,Continue reading “Release Day: Madly Deeply Wildly”
The Future is Feminist
Guest post by Olivia Castetter I was recently having a conversation with an older gentleman about reading when he asked who my favorite author was. Picking favorites has never been my forte, so I had to think for a moment. While I did, he listed his favorites—Hemingway, Twain, Steinbeck, and Orwell. Of course, I knewContinue reading “The Future is Feminist”
What’s the Difference? Literary Agents vs. Acquisitions Editors
In the world of querying, there can be some confusion about the difference between literary agents—and if an agent is necessary—and acquisitions editors. Ultimately, these professionals have completely different roles. Both may receive a query in some form, though the angle with which they approach, consider, and respond to it will be different. And ifContinue reading “What’s the Difference? Literary Agents vs. Acquisitions Editors”
Ask a Publisher: How Do I Choose The Right Publisher?
Congratulations! You’ve finished your manuscript, it’s been through multiple rounds of self-edits and reviews by editorial professionals, and now you’re ready to begin submitting your manuscript to agents and publishers! But wait…how do you know if a publisher is the right house for your book? Is it possible to know if they’re right for yourContinue reading “Ask a Publisher: How Do I Choose The Right Publisher?”
All About Printed Proofs
After all the developmental editing, copy and line editing, formatting, and digital proofreading is completed, there is yet another step to take: reviewing printed proofs. And while this step is crucial, tedious, and sometimes a bit overwhelming, it’s also incredibly exciting. For many authors, reviewing a printed proof is the first time they’ll get toContinue reading “All About Printed Proofs”
Release Day: Wildflower Promise
If you’ve been a fan of Josha books for any length of time, you may know that I, Olivia Castetter, have a special relationship with author Katherine Turner. We met in late 2019 when Katherine was looking for a proofreader for her first book, Finding Annie, the first in the Life Imperfect series. She contactedContinue reading “Release Day: Wildflower Promise”
From Silent to Speaking: Josha’s Focus on Survivor Stories
April is Sexual Assault Awareness Month, and at Josha, it’s a month that holds significant meaning to us—both because of book anniversaries and new releases, and because of what survivors’ voices mean to us. Our first book, Finding Annie by Katherine Turner,was released on April 10, 2020. In April of 2022, its sequel, Willow Wishes,Continue reading “From Silent to Speaking: Josha’s Focus on Survivor Stories”
What is Autofiction?
If you’ve perused our submissions guidelines or FAQs, you may be aware that Josha considers a wide variety of genres for publication. There’s one sub-genre of fiction, though, that we especially like to read, and it’s the same sub-genre as the very first book we published in 2020, Finding Annie. This sub-genre is known asContinue reading “What is Autofiction?”
Me, Too: Voicing My Story – A Year in Review
This one is for the silent survivors. Our voices are ours. Our stories are ours. We don’t have to hide what they did, because to hide what they did is to cloak our strength. Those four sentences are the dedication in my first book, Me, Too: Voicing My Story. I chose that dedication because asContinue reading “Me, Too: Voicing My Story – A Year in Review”
Writing A New Reality
I’ve never stopped to count how many classic fairy tales we have here in the US, let alone the rest of the world. The most common ones that come to mind are Cinderella, Snow White, Sleeping Beauty, The Little Mermaid, Beauty and the Beast, and Rapunzel. Do you have a favorite? I don’t. Because IContinue reading “Writing A New Reality”
Healing Through Fiction
As a survivor who is healing while writing, I’ve realized that there is a unique form of healing that comes through my writing itself. While I certainly benefit from therapy and reading self-help books on topics that personally impact me, self-help books have their limits, and no volume will ever be a one-size-fits-all approach. ForContinue reading “Healing Through Fiction”
Culture Matters
The Society for Human Resource Management (SHRM) says that organizational culture is comprised of the “beliefs and values established by leaders and then communicated and reinforced through various methods… [it] sets the context for everything an enterprise does.” In other words, the culture of a company is determined by the way leadership team members treatContinue reading “Culture Matters”
Resilient: Letter From a Reader
As one of Katherine Turner’s editors, I’m honored to be among the very first to read each of her books. This privilege began in November of 2019, when she contacted me to proofread her debut novel, Finding Annie. I’ve often thought how amazing it is that I’ve been alongside Katherine since the very beginning ofContinue reading “Resilient: Letter From a Reader”
A Memoir’s Impact: resilient
When I was first contacted about potentially being an editor for Finding Annie, Katherine Turner’s first novel, I connected to her writing on a soul-deep level. Unfortunately, I was going through some personal hardships and couldn’t be part of that first project, but I also received notes from a book in progress, which would laterContinue reading “A Memoir’s Impact: resilient”
resilient: A Year in Review
As the one-year anniversary of the release of my childhood memoir, resilient, approaches, one of my editors keeps asking me how I feel. But the truth is, I don’t feel any single emotion. And when I look back on the journey that writing, editing, and releasing this memoir into the world has been, I seeContinue reading “resilient: A Year in Review”
Resilient Stories
If I were asked to sum up in only a few words what kinds of books we publish, I’d say stories of resilience. Whether fiction or nonfiction doesn’t matter; every story with our logo on it is relaying a tale of human struggle and resilience. Of course, like Katherine Turner, our definition of resilience doesn’tContinue reading “Resilient Stories”
Books That Inspire, Encourage & Empower
When Josha was first conceptualized, I wanted to create a company that published books with an impact. For fiction, I wanted to publish stories with characters who were relatable, rather than idealized stereotypes or classically flawed; instead, I wanted to help usher stories featuring fictional people with real problems—and raw healing processes—into the world. AndContinue reading “Books That Inspire, Encourage & Empower”
Why I Write What I Write
A question I get a lot is “Why do you write what you write?”—particularly in relation to my fiction. To answer that question, let me tell you a story. When I was in fifth grade, I was writing away with every spare moment I had that wasn’t spent reading. I remember with that vivid clarityContinue reading “Why I Write What I Write”
Don’t Judge an Author by Their Origin
As an editor who works primarily with indie authors—and as an author whose book was produced through an independent publisher—I’ve had many conversations about the stigmas our group faces. Stigmas like whether or not we’re “real” authors and if we really published a book if it doesn’t have a well-known label on the spine. TheContinue reading “Don’t Judge an Author by Their Origin”
Why Publish Fiction & Nonfiction?
In today’s world, we hear a lot about the power and promise of specialization, and that holds true for companies as well. If you look at successful companies, they specialize or ultimately they go under. This is especially important for small businesses where every decision is critical to the success of the company, every expenseContinue reading “Why Publish Fiction & Nonfiction?”
Voicing Our Resilience
Sigmund Freud said that much of what we do in our adult lives can be traced back to our mothers. After all, they’re the ones who give birth to us, and typically the ones who raise us and nurture us. Traditionally, they’re the ones we run to when we’re in trouble, or hurt, or scared,Continue reading “Voicing Our Resilience”
Meet the Author: Olivia Castetter
Olivia Castetter is the author of the Too Much memoir collection, as well as various other fiction and nonfiction pieces. In addition to writing and editing literary works that focus on trauma, abuse, and life as a survivor, she advocates for policy changes for sexual abuse survivors. Drawing on her experience as a survivor ofContinue reading “Meet the Author: Olivia Castetter”
Meet the Author: Katherine Turner
Katherine Turner, Josha’s first author, is an award-winning author, blogger, and life-long reader and writer. She grew up in foster care from the age of eight and is passionate about improving the world through literature, empathy and understanding. She strongly believes we can all benefit from deeper insight into and compassion for the long-term effectsContinue reading “Meet the Author: Katherine Turner”
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