Every now and then, we hear about a small press damaging their reputation and being selfish or greedy. I know there’s a lot more going on than most folks will ever know or see, but as a publisher, it’s that person’s responsibility to be in charge of their company’s brand and public image.
So, how does Crystal Lake Publishing contribute to the industry?
Crystal Lake Publishing is the main company, launched in 2012, and we publish two to three books per month. That includes paperbacks, hardcovers, eBooks, and audiobooks. It started out as a side gig for me, with the idea that it would eventually become my main career. Yes, I had the work-from-home dream.
Crystal Lake now provides full-time work to 4 people and part-time work for 4 more And since we don’t use AI for copyediting and artwork, we offer a lot of work-for-hire gigs to artists, editors and proofreaders. (We only use AI in some of our social media posts for entertainment purposes and background images through Canva, CapCut, etc.) It will not replace any artist or copy-editing gig on our watch.
Something that seems to give us a bit of a cool factor is the fact that we’re based in South Africa, but our market has always been international. We’re only now becoming more and more involved in the local scene, doing what we can to promote local talent to an international audience. Our Crystal Lake Kids division will bring opportunities to local actors and songwriters/musicians (more on that later).
Crystal Lake Publishing made a name for itself quite early in our run because of the non-fiction books we published. Our On Writing anthologies were packed with knowledge from the greats, including Clive Barker, Wes Craven, and Jack Ketchum. Our first award nominations and wins also came from these books, and we’re still very passionate about giving back to the community and teaching what we can. Those who know me best might remember that I used to be a primary school teacher. Thank goodness those days are over, but it does explain a lot, especially our venture into books for kids. I also wrote two books, titled Shadows & Ink, which include a workbook. The third book, The Psychology of Horror Fiction, is finished and currently being edited. Should be out in a few months.
We acquired Bloodshot Books a few years ago and are in the process of moving all their single-author titles over to Crystal Lake (almost done).
Earlier this year we brought in Sinister Smile Press as a division of Crystal Lake. We’re in the process of relaunching their backlist as well as publishing new books.
In 2023 we launched Torrid Waters, a hardcore/pulp horror imprint, run by Kenneth W. Cain. Torrid Waters will also open for subs in August.
In 2024 we partnered with Lisa Vasquez and launched our Memento Mori Ink Magazine, a dark, underground magazine (online and in print), which publishes three issues per year. With an annual budget from Crystal Lake, the magazine can provide writing opportunities and contests for many editors and journalists, while highlighting several amazing careers, from authors and filmmakers to reviewers, podcasters, influencers, cosplayers, and more.
We started a coalition of publishers quite a few years ago to help authors find a new home in case their press closed. We have quite a few success stories there, thanks to several other small presses.
I’m in the process of training a team who come into the office every day (yes, we finally got an office end of last year, instead of just me sitting in the corner of my living room), with the goal of keeping Crystal Lake and all our imprints going if anything were to happen to me. That’s always been the biggest downfall for other indie presses in the past. Along with miscommunication and misspending.
Our Crystal Lake Kids division just launched, and like all our other imprints, we’ll open for submissions in August. We’re working on a YouTube channel called The Eddie Poe Show, which is a puppet show focused on promoting reading to kids. We’ll also use it to promote our own line of books for kids, and some of the book characters will get their own puppet versions. This supplies work for three local actors/puppeteers and a gig for a local film company (to shoot and edit). I’m personally writing these episodes with the help of another South African author I want you all to meet, Jaco Jacobs.
Our audio division is growing nicely, where we provide gigs to actual narrators.
Our books are also pitched to international presses for translation opportunities. We also have an agency pitching on our behalf for translations and film rights. We truly believe in every book we publish.
Our social media platforms include Facebook, Twitter/X, Bluesky, TikTok, YouTube, and Instagram. I’m personally also over on LinkedIn. A lot of our time goes into these platforms, with the aim of entertaining, informing, and of course to help promote our authors and their work. We try to post videos daily, as well as funny and entertaining posts/memes we know our fans would appreciate.
Crystal Cove, our Young Adult imprint launches this year. Run by Monique Snyman, we’re starting with four books this year and hitting the world hard next year. Crystal Cove will also open for subs in August. Most genres welcome.
We have our Shadows & Ink podcast for authors, hosted by Anita Stewart. Interviews are not just for our authors, though. All industry professionals are welcome.
Our newsletter is 6k strong, and we have a special Community Spotlight section in our newsletter to promote other authors, books, and publishers.
I’m very proud of and quite involved in the Crystal Lake Academy, which features several workshops by other authors/editors (we’ll add more soon), as well as my own courses and workshops. We’re currently busy with our fourth Author’s Journey, which is a three-month workshop with myself, five editors, and almost sixty authors. A few years ago, we also had a poetry Author’s Journey. The Crystal Lake Academy and all our workshops are on the free Heartbeat platform called Shadows & Ink.
It’s on the Heartbeat platform where I also have my Mastermind group. We’re about 50 authors, editors, and publishers who meet online every two weeks. We share expertise and have regular guest presenter sessions.
I have a Shadows & Ink mailing list I run, catering to authors of Horror, Dark Fiction, Speculative Fiction, Supernatural Thrillers, Suspense, etc. If you’re an author, this is the best way to know about everything I/we offer, including free opportunities, blog posts, open subs, etc.
Every month we host a flash fiction contest on our Patreon page. You don’t have to be a paying member to submit, and it’s free to enter. This is a great way for authors to continually test themselves against other authors, and to also get feedback from our patron reader/authors. The winner receives $0.03 per word, publication in an upcoming Hotel Macabre anthology, and an Author Spotlight on our website, newsletter, Patreon, socials, etc. Second place receives $0.02 a word, and third $0.01 per word. The winner also has the option of hosting the next contest for an additional $50, giving them some valuable insight into how things work behind the scenes.
Our Patreon page also has two author tiers, where we try our best to impart knowledge, review work, and offer the opportunity to submit to us a few weeks before we’re actually open for subs.
Our first graphic novel, Joe Ledger and Violin: Hearts and Minds by Jonathan Maberry, will be out within the next few months. We’re also launching a Kickstarter soon for the first in our Darkest Depths series of anthology comic books, featuring new and established comic book writers. If funded, we’ll even open for subs so authors can have the opportunity to write for comic books. This of course also gives work to artists, colorists, and inkers. This division is run by comic book guru and Kickstarter extraordinaire, James Aquilone.
With the help of Jon Cohn and the folks over at Red23, we’re going to launch our first board game this year. Duncan Ralston’s Ghostland novel is now a board game. All the tariff stuff has put a bit of a roadblock in our way, but we’re working around it. This will be the first of many games to come, with more Crystal Lake titles being turned into games, and card games being developed for our Crystal Lake Kids division. Our games will be of high quality, bringing together readers and hardcore tabletop gamers like never before. Instead of just focusing on old intellectual properties (IPs), we’ll be bringing new IPs to the world. Again, more work for artists and opportunities for authors.
We offer opportunities to several interns every year, helping them strengthen their CVs and work experience. Most of them are still students, but we’re happy to say that one intern managed to get a job with us in the end.
We’re opening for subs in August (that includes all our imprints) since we want to give all authors an equal chance. Quality is more important than how famous you are.
Right now we’re focused on ways to best promote our backlist. We’ve got well over 200 titles, and they all deserve an audience. We don’t just want to push out book and forget about them.
What’s next for Crystal Lake? Everything and anything. We are only limited by our imaginations and how hard we’re willing to work. And there’s no lack of either over here. I can’t share all the details, but we’re working on quiz books for fans of horror and sci-fi, and a memoir from one of the most talented creatives in the world. More on that next week.
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All the best,
Joe Mynhardt
Founder & CEO