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Early Bird Registration Deadline: June 15, 2025
Presented by the Kansas Authors Club, the Author Publishing Bootcamp is bound to provide some fruitful publishing information for every type of author. Whether you’re someone who has struggled to ink a deal with a small press or one of the Big 5, or if you’ve mustered enough courage and determination to try your hand at publishing your own book, this boot camp is for you.
Attendees are invited to attend four zoom sessions which will start with topics pre-recorded by our presenters and end with Q&A time with the presenters. All ticket holders will have access to the pre-recorded workshops and recordings of the Q&A portions of the sessions. Presentations will cover a wide-range of author publishing topics including all of the ins and outs related to preparing a manuscript publication, a breakdown of the design and print processes, marketing and branding post-publication, and much more. Those presenting are considered experts in their respective fields as it relates to the world of publishing in today’s economic and technologically advanced climate. Even better, all panelists are Kansas Authors Club members you can trust and feel free to reach out to for more information. |
Saturdays
July 12 - August 2, 2025 10:00-11:30 a.m CST 4 Sessions Attendance via Zoom Session recordings will be made available to attendees. Cost
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Program Lineup
July 12, 2025 – 10 a.m.
Part I – Getting your manuscript ready for publication.
July 19, 2025 – 10 a.m.
Part II – The Publishing Process
July 26, 2025 – 10 a.m.
Part III –Copyright and Business Logistics (Necessary Things Every Author Needs to Know)
August 2, 2025 – 10 a.m.
Part IV – Marketing and Author Branding
July 12, 2025 – 10 a.m.
Part I – Getting your manuscript ready for publication.
- Funding your book: what could it cost and creative ways to obtain funding
- Initial Marketing: identifying target audiences, writing a first book description, identifying genres, etc.
- Preparing your manuscript: 1) Editing, revising, proofreading, polishing, types of edits (Beta reads, developmental, line, copy, proofreading) & tips. 2) Is your manuscript ready to submit? Format of manuscript, how to handle images.
- Q&A with session presenters
July 19, 2025 – 10 a.m.
Part II – The Publishing Process
- Types of publishers: Print-on-demand vs. traditional publishers; independent presses vs. small presses, other models and advantages of each
- Types of books and why publish one or all– Paperback, hardcover, e-book, audiobook. Platforms and software (KDP, IngramSpark, Draft2Digital, etc.) and local printers. Software - Word, Scrivener, Canva, etc.
- Interior and Exterior formatting
- Covers and Illustrations
- Q&A with session presenters
July 26, 2025 – 10 a.m.
Part III –Copyright and Business Logistics (Necessary Things Every Author Needs to Know)
- Copyright law, including new issues with AI, ISBN numbers, Library of Congress Control Numbers, attributions, interviewing, estate planning for authors, and publishing contracts.
- Formal business structures, accounting and paperwork, reporting and paying sales tax
- Q&A with session presenters
August 2, 2025 – 10 a.m.
Part IV – Marketing and Author Branding
- Branding: This presentation will discuss how authors can create, hone and elevate their brand. Using various internet and in-person tactics, attendees will learn different ways to create a distinct identity, image, and reputation that will remain etched in the minds of readers for years to come. Do you want to learn how to influence readers’ perceptions and associations with your brand and work using an array of elements like writing style, values, genre, and tone of voice? If so, then this presentation is definitely for you.
- Marketing
- Q&A with session presenters
Core Values:
Guidance
Providing mentorship, support, and resources to help participants learn and grow.
Empowerment
Instilling confidence through the application of various publishing tools and tricks of the trade.
Innovation
Encouraging creative thinking, experimentation, and the adoption of new technologies, systems and approaches in the publishing industry.
Access
Making publishing education and resources accessible to a wide range of individuals, regardless of their background or circumstance.
Guidance
Providing mentorship, support, and resources to help participants learn and grow.
Empowerment
Instilling confidence through the application of various publishing tools and tricks of the trade.
Innovation
Encouraging creative thinking, experimentation, and the adoption of new technologies, systems and approaches in the publishing industry.
Access
Making publishing education and resources accessible to a wide range of individuals, regardless of their background or circumstance.
The Kansas Authors Club Author Publishing Bootcamp is brought to you by the following member publishers.
Micki Carroll – Anamcara Press
Carroll is a writer, educator, photographer, graphic designer, and all around cat herder! Her first book, A Wyoming Cowboy in Hitler’s Germany Combines war era correspondence and 70 year old photographs to depict an age of heroism and innocence. The Tree Who Walked Through Time was published in collaboration with 17 artists, including crop artist Stan Herd. Carroll has also published several children’s books, and many non-fiction articles & training programs, and blogs about consciousness and community at https://maureencarroll.com/.
Carroll founded Anamcara Press LLC (https://anamcara-press.com/) in 2014 in celebration of art, community, and the planet, and in support of authors and artists in their creative endeavors. Born on the banks of the Kansas River in historic Lawrence, Kansas, Anamcara Press publishes poetry, fiction, and non-fiction.
Carroll is a writer, educator, photographer, graphic designer, and all around cat herder! Her first book, A Wyoming Cowboy in Hitler’s Germany Combines war era correspondence and 70 year old photographs to depict an age of heroism and innocence. The Tree Who Walked Through Time was published in collaboration with 17 artists, including crop artist Stan Herd. Carroll has also published several children’s books, and many non-fiction articles & training programs, and blogs about consciousness and community at https://maureencarroll.com/.
Carroll founded Anamcara Press LLC (https://anamcara-press.com/) in 2014 in celebration of art, community, and the planet, and in support of authors and artists in their creative endeavors. Born on the banks of the Kansas River in historic Lawrence, Kansas, Anamcara Press publishes poetry, fiction, and non-fiction.
Gretchen Cassel Eick is a professor of history with a background in foreign and military policy. She wrote prize-winning nonfiction--Dissent in Wichita: The Civil Rights Movement in the Midwest, 1954–1972 (University of Illinois Press, 2001/2007/2023)—which won three awards, is referenced on the wall of the Smithsonian’s Museum of African American History and Culture, and resulted in a PBS documentary and a public park. Since retiring from full-time teaching in 2013, Eick has written six published novels—political/historical fiction, thrillers, and a family saga: The Set Up: 1984, Finding Duncan, Maybe Crossings, Dark Crossings, and Where is Ana Amara?, and Resistance! and the double biography/history They Met at Wounded Knee: The Eastmans’ Story (University of Nevada Press, 2020).
Since 2014, she and Laura Tillem have edited prose manuscripts submitted to Blue Cedar Press and determine what the press will publish.
Since 2014, she and Laura Tillem have edited prose manuscripts submitted to Blue Cedar Press and determine what the press will publish.
Steve Fredrickson – Flint Hills Publishing
Steve Fredrickson is the Chief Financial Officer of Flint Hills Publishing. He is a CPA with nearly forty years of experience, starting his career at Ernst and Young in Minneapolis, Minnesota and subsequently KPMG in Kansas City, Missouri, two of the largest accounting firms in the world. He left public accounting in the 1990s to become the Chief Financial Officer of a statewide legal aid organization and a national service provider to organizations in the health care industry.
Steve Fredrickson is the Chief Financial Officer of Flint Hills Publishing. He is a CPA with nearly forty years of experience, starting his career at Ernst and Young in Minneapolis, Minnesota and subsequently KPMG in Kansas City, Missouri, two of the largest accounting firms in the world. He left public accounting in the 1990s to become the Chief Financial Officer of a statewide legal aid organization and a national service provider to organizations in the health care industry.
Gina Laiso – Integrita Productions
Gina Laiso is a graphic designer and nationally recognized book creator, illustrating from the heart of Kansas and beauty of Southwest Colorado.
Gina Laiso is a graphic designer and nationally recognized book creator, illustrating from the heart of Kansas and beauty of Southwest Colorado.
Thea Rademacher – Flint Hills Publishing
Thea Rademacher is the founder and president of Flint Hills Publishing. A University of Minnesota School of Law honors graduate, and a former social justice attorney, Thea launched FHP in 2015 after co-authoring A Drop in the Night – the Life and Secret Mission of a WWII Airman. Since then, FHP has published over 90 titles—including a Spur Award winner. Thea’s book Authors Beware!, is an easy-to-follow guide designed to help writers avoid legal pitfalls. Disgusted when creative people are taken advantage of, Thea directs a lot of her energy to helping emerging authors. She also dedicates herself to making sure FHP is committed to honesty, hard work, and excellence, while guiding authors through the publishing process in a way that is productive and fun!
Thea Rademacher is the founder and president of Flint Hills Publishing. A University of Minnesota School of Law honors graduate, and a former social justice attorney, Thea launched FHP in 2015 after co-authoring A Drop in the Night – the Life and Secret Mission of a WWII Airman. Since then, FHP has published over 90 titles—including a Spur Award winner. Thea’s book Authors Beware!, is an easy-to-follow guide designed to help writers avoid legal pitfalls. Disgusted when creative people are taken advantage of, Thea directs a lot of her energy to helping emerging authors. She also dedicates herself to making sure FHP is committed to honesty, hard work, and excellence, while guiding authors through the publishing process in a way that is productive and fun!
Danielle Ramirez – Quiet Storm Services
Danielle Ramirez has fifteen years of experience in the nonprofit sector. She has led projects related to substance use, prevention, food insecurity, behavioral health, advocacy, youth empowerment and more. She values equity and believes cultural humility is vital for individual, organizational, and community progress.
Her passion for collaboration has helped build important partnerships locally and across the state. Throughout her life, Danielle has dealt with adversity through reading, writing, and connecting with others. Her passion for growth, community, and the art of writing is what led her to create and build Quiet Storm Services. She wants community members to be empowered to tell their stories boldly and bravely.
In June of 2022 we released, Being Wichita Women, which is a powerful collection from 30 local women exploring trauma, adversity, resilience, and healing. We have distributed over 700 copies of the book at 7 Wichita locations, Topeka Public Library, and online. In September, we received a Wichita Business Journal ‘Diversity and Inclusion’ award for our work.
Danielle Ramirez has fifteen years of experience in the nonprofit sector. She has led projects related to substance use, prevention, food insecurity, behavioral health, advocacy, youth empowerment and more. She values equity and believes cultural humility is vital for individual, organizational, and community progress.
Her passion for collaboration has helped build important partnerships locally and across the state. Throughout her life, Danielle has dealt with adversity through reading, writing, and connecting with others. Her passion for growth, community, and the art of writing is what led her to create and build Quiet Storm Services. She wants community members to be empowered to tell their stories boldly and bravely.
In June of 2022 we released, Being Wichita Women, which is a powerful collection from 30 local women exploring trauma, adversity, resilience, and healing. We have distributed over 700 copies of the book at 7 Wichita locations, Topeka Public Library, and online. In September, we received a Wichita Business Journal ‘Diversity and Inclusion’ award for our work.
Ralvell Rogers II - Ambitious Stories, LLC
Helmed from Kansas City, Missouri, Ralvell Rogers II is an ambitious storyteller who focuses on contemporary fiction and reflective and experimental poetry. His writing has been published and can be found in many literary and artistic journals including River City Poetry, Heartland, Rigorous, Flinthills Review, MockingHeart Review, Genre: Urban Arts, Cathexis Northwest Press, Hawai’i Review and more. In 2016, Rogers was the Youth Reflection Speaker for the Kansas City Chapter's SCLC 47th Rev. Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. Holiday Celebration. And in 2018, he received the Emporia State University Presidential Award for Diversity Equity & Inclusion – the only student to receive the award in its history.
Ralvell is also the Founder and CEO of Ambitious Stories, LLC, where they have collaborated with great artists and organizations. He wrote and published The Kansas City Boys Choir: Providing Hope for Tomorrow, an autobiography of KCBC, which captures the origins of the organization and its founder, Mr. Ah'lee Robinson. Ambitious Stories' second publication is Improvise by Kevin Rabas. Improvise is a collection of poems and flash non-fictions that captures Midwestern life as well as the spirit of our age both during and beyond the pandemic. The publisher's latest installment by Josie Rozell is a collection of American sonnets and collages called Deep Breath.
Helmed from Kansas City, Missouri, Ralvell Rogers II is an ambitious storyteller who focuses on contemporary fiction and reflective and experimental poetry. His writing has been published and can be found in many literary and artistic journals including River City Poetry, Heartland, Rigorous, Flinthills Review, MockingHeart Review, Genre: Urban Arts, Cathexis Northwest Press, Hawai’i Review and more. In 2016, Rogers was the Youth Reflection Speaker for the Kansas City Chapter's SCLC 47th Rev. Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. Holiday Celebration. And in 2018, he received the Emporia State University Presidential Award for Diversity Equity & Inclusion – the only student to receive the award in its history.
Ralvell is also the Founder and CEO of Ambitious Stories, LLC, where they have collaborated with great artists and organizations. He wrote and published The Kansas City Boys Choir: Providing Hope for Tomorrow, an autobiography of KCBC, which captures the origins of the organization and its founder, Mr. Ah'lee Robinson. Ambitious Stories' second publication is Improvise by Kevin Rabas. Improvise is a collection of poems and flash non-fictions that captures Midwestern life as well as the spirit of our age both during and beyond the pandemic. The publisher's latest installment by Josie Rozell is a collection of American sonnets and collages called Deep Breath.
Tracy Million Simmons – Meadowlark Press
Tracy Million Simmons had a twenty-year freelance career spanning work with entrepreneurs on newsletters, marketing materials, and website design, and published more than 500 articles and essays in niche to national publications. During that time she worked as an editor and on layout and design for assorted small press publishers and book packagers. She is currently the owner/publisher of Meadowlark Press, which celebrated ten years in business in 2024. Meadowlark has published more than 70 titles, including six Kansas Notables. Meadowlark books have been recognized by the High Plains Book Awards, Midwest Book Awards, and every category of Kansas Authors Club book awards.
Tracy is the author of Green Bike (with Kevin Rabas and Michael D. Graves), A Life in Progress and Other Short Stories, and Tiger Hunting, the 2013 J. Donald Coffin Memorial Book Award winner from the Kansas Authors Club. Tracy currently serves as the Executive Director of the Kansas Authors Club.
Tracy Million Simmons had a twenty-year freelance career spanning work with entrepreneurs on newsletters, marketing materials, and website design, and published more than 500 articles and essays in niche to national publications. During that time she worked as an editor and on layout and design for assorted small press publishers and book packagers. She is currently the owner/publisher of Meadowlark Press, which celebrated ten years in business in 2024. Meadowlark has published more than 70 titles, including six Kansas Notables. Meadowlark books have been recognized by the High Plains Book Awards, Midwest Book Awards, and every category of Kansas Authors Club book awards.
Tracy is the author of Green Bike (with Kevin Rabas and Michael D. Graves), A Life in Progress and Other Short Stories, and Tiger Hunting, the 2013 J. Donald Coffin Memorial Book Award winner from the Kansas Authors Club. Tracy currently serves as the Executive Director of the Kansas Authors Club.
Anne Spry – Personal Chapters Publishing
Shortly after she retired as a newspaper publisher and editor, Anne Spry published her first print-on-demand book on a platform called Createspace. That was in 2013 and since then her company, Personal Chapters LLC, has helped clients with formatting, design and publishing of memoirs, children’s books and fiction novels. She has transferred her previous experience with formatting programs like InDesign into assisting clients with a fee-for-service business model and truly enjoys helping them “birth” their books in multiple versions and on several different platforms.
As an author-publisher, Spry has published works of her own and some as a co-author. Finally Noticing: Poems and Photos Prompted by a Pandemic won the 2024 Kansas Authors Club “Looks Like a Million” book award. She co-authored Searching for Summer: A Solved But Unresolved Missing Persons Case in 2019. Early in 2025 she published Riding Rainbows through the Storms: Finding Perspective and Hope by Journaling through a Pandemic and her forthcoming memoir of her service in the Peace Corps will be published this fall by Flint Hills Publishing. In 2024 she collaborated with Dennis Cox, a former editor for the newspaper she owned, to publish Hamilton, Missouri: A Place of Pride and Progress. The community pictorial history book has become Personal Chapters LLC’s best-selling volume to date.
Anne currently serves as the state president of Kansas Authors Club.
Shortly after she retired as a newspaper publisher and editor, Anne Spry published her first print-on-demand book on a platform called Createspace. That was in 2013 and since then her company, Personal Chapters LLC, has helped clients with formatting, design and publishing of memoirs, children’s books and fiction novels. She has transferred her previous experience with formatting programs like InDesign into assisting clients with a fee-for-service business model and truly enjoys helping them “birth” their books in multiple versions and on several different platforms.
As an author-publisher, Spry has published works of her own and some as a co-author. Finally Noticing: Poems and Photos Prompted by a Pandemic won the 2024 Kansas Authors Club “Looks Like a Million” book award. She co-authored Searching for Summer: A Solved But Unresolved Missing Persons Case in 2019. Early in 2025 she published Riding Rainbows through the Storms: Finding Perspective and Hope by Journaling through a Pandemic and her forthcoming memoir of her service in the Peace Corps will be published this fall by Flint Hills Publishing. In 2024 she collaborated with Dennis Cox, a former editor for the newspaper she owned, to publish Hamilton, Missouri: A Place of Pride and Progress. The community pictorial history book has become Personal Chapters LLC’s best-selling volume to date.
Anne currently serves as the state president of Kansas Authors Club.
Barbara Waterman-Peters, (BFA, Washburn University, MFA, Kansas State University, Honorary Doctor of Fine Arts, Washburn University) whose award-winning work is in museum, corporate and private collections, is represented by several galleries. She has shown regionally, nationally and internationally in more than 350 solo, invitational and juried exhibitions.
Waterman-Peters taught at Washburn and Kansas State Universities as well as for Lassen Community College in California. She has received a Certificate of Recognition for Outstanding Achievement from the State of Kansas and the Monroe Award from the Washburn University Alumni Association. In 2011 she was awarded the ARTY for Distinguished Visual Artist from Arts Connect in Topeka. In 2023 she received the NOTO Master Artist Award and in 2025 a Certificate of Recognition from the Mayor of Topeka.
She is the co-founder of Pen & Brush Press with author Glendyn Buckley. She and Glendyn each received a Children’s Book Award from Kansas Authors Club for their work on their second book, Bird. Their first book, The Fish’s Wishes, was placed on the KNEA’s Recommended Reading List. Their third book is Ting & the Caterbury Tales. Recently, she worked with poet Dennis Etzel, Jr on the exhibit and illustrations for the Two Ponders: A Collaboration project.
Working with other authors she has created cover art and illustrations for several books, including A Packrat Named Orange with author, Cathy Callen, which is also on the KNEA Recommended Reading List.
Barbara currently serves as the president of the Topeka Area Chapter of Kansas Authors Club.
Waterman-Peters taught at Washburn and Kansas State Universities as well as for Lassen Community College in California. She has received a Certificate of Recognition for Outstanding Achievement from the State of Kansas and the Monroe Award from the Washburn University Alumni Association. In 2011 she was awarded the ARTY for Distinguished Visual Artist from Arts Connect in Topeka. In 2023 she received the NOTO Master Artist Award and in 2025 a Certificate of Recognition from the Mayor of Topeka.
She is the co-founder of Pen & Brush Press with author Glendyn Buckley. She and Glendyn each received a Children’s Book Award from Kansas Authors Club for their work on their second book, Bird. Their first book, The Fish’s Wishes, was placed on the KNEA’s Recommended Reading List. Their third book is Ting & the Caterbury Tales. Recently, she worked with poet Dennis Etzel, Jr on the exhibit and illustrations for the Two Ponders: A Collaboration project.
Working with other authors she has created cover art and illustrations for several books, including A Packrat Named Orange with author, Cathy Callen, which is also on the KNEA Recommended Reading List.
Barbara currently serves as the president of the Topeka Area Chapter of Kansas Authors Club.