Welcome, blog readers! I had the opportunity to interview the two men who started Mundania Press, Daniel J. Reitz, Sr., and Bob Sanders.
I’d like to start out with a little background. Mundania Press has been around for five years.
Mundania Press LLC officially launched on August 1, 2002.
What made you decide to start a small publishing company?
A love of books, both reading and “understanding” them have always been a passion. The publishing company was an opportunity made available because Piers Anthony was upset that his original small press dirty little novel, “Pornucopia,” was being auctioned off at astronomical prices on eBay.
Always a big fan of Piers, I (Dan) created and maintained the largest fan site for Piers, The Compleat Piers Anthony, for several years. I came to meet and know Piers though that.
In late 2001, I discovered that one of the printers that was used by the small press, Tafford, kept the original plates to “Pornucopia” and started to produce and sell pirated editions. Tafford, owned by Steve Gurlik, went out of business back in the early 1990’s. In 1989, Tafford produced 2,000 first edition hardcovers of “Pornucopia” with one printer, then in 1990 had 500 second edition hardcovers and 5,000 trade paperbacks produced by the second printer. This second printer is the one that took the plates for the paperback, printed them, stuck them in a generic hardcover and sold them.
I purchased a couple copies for my collection and then discovered that the interior was the same as the paperbacks. I talked with Piers and he thought it might be existing copies that were rebound, library style. Since he would have already been paid for them, there would be nothing wrong. When I posted information on the website, Phil Gurlik contacted me and gave me the information that it was pirated. I coordinated information with Piers and he went after the printers. Piers shut them down. There were 39 books total, printed and bound; the rest were pulped. The printer sent the few remaining copies to Phil, and I sold them on eBay for him as part of his cut from the piracy.
Piers talked with Phil about reprinting “Pornucopia” and Phil wasn’t interested; but through conversations, Piers offered it to me to publish. Since publishing is something I’ve always been interested in, I took the opportunity, and Mundania Press was born.
What was your plan for the company at that time?
We decided early on that we’d publish with honesty and integrity. We looked at various options of how we wanted to do business and decided to use the new digital printing technology to quickly and efficiently print books, with little waste that huge print runs cause. Digital printing is economically friendly. No need to destroy thousands of unsold books.
Where did the name Mundania come from?
As part of the fan site for Piers, I also had additional domains related to his books. Mundania is the land that borders Xanth, from Pier’s most popular series. Since we had the domain, and thought it was catchy, we made Mundania Press. Likewise, Phaze is from his Apprentice Adept series and that domain name was used for our erotica line, Phaze Books.
Has the direction the company has gone matched what you planned? If not, why?
Yes, to a certain point, but the stigma of digital publishing, perpetrated by larger commercial publishers, causes roadblocks for small presses who choose to utilize this cutting edge technology. It has gained more popularity over the years, and places like Random House now use it for their backlists instead of additional print runs. We have had limited success in book placement for chains. Locally for authors is the best success, and a few of our erotica line are shelved at Borders. Most of our sales come from Amazon until we can full break into store shelves. A re-thinking and acceptance on the part of bookstores must happen first. It should not matter how a book is printed, but the book itself. We have very talented authors and produce extraordinary books, which is what we coined for our tagline.
How has Mundania Press changed since that first vision?
We have grown exponentially, and are much larger than we envisioned we would be at this point. We continue to look for ways to improve benefits to our authors as well as additional avenues for sales such as shelf placement.
What realities have you had to face that perhaps you weren’t prepared for and how did you overcome those challenges?
We got a wake up call when, after the first year, we weren’t making the progress we initially anticipated. We thought that with a winning book by a well known author and moderate demand that it would be enough and it would give us a boost far greater than the reality. We overcame it by constantly learning about this industry. We attended conventions, Book Expo America (BEA), and met authors where they lived by attending as many author centric events as possible. We spoke with them and learned not only what they wanted and expected but also why they thought the way they did. We have put into place a number of tools that other publishers just don’t think about such as our Author’s Handbook and Conference Calling. We still attend as many author events as possible and hope to make better use of the information we learn; we understand that the more we learn the more we need to know. After all, as you know, the publishing world is a constant dynamic, and we have always been trend setters. In order to continue we need to be out there with our authors.
What is your position and what are your duties? What is a typical day for you?
Bob: I’m the Chief Executive Office (CEO), and my duties are to oversee the general direction of Mundania Press, to work with industry leaders to promote Mundania Press, and to be sure all of our titles are in as many formats as possible. Constantly I’m working with Bowkerlink’s Book’s In Print (BIP), Google’s Print Program, and other industry leading forces to correct existing information, acceptance, and general placement of our products that will get them into the hands of anyone who wants to purchase our books. This includes monitoring outlets such as bookstores and online placement to ensure issues such as cover shots are available with the book descriptions, and contacting book stores to ‘warm handoff’ a local author. Additionally I make a number of calls to our authors to coach and mentor Marketing and Promotional efforts or answer general questions. When I see a trend–internal or external–I will try to develop a plan to meet those needs. For example, in the past month I’ve held two brainstorming conference calls on Marketing and Promotions that our authors are invited to attend to share information and learn what is working for others. This helps me in constructing a better Author’s Handbook and helps me to help others when we are meeting with author groups. There is never an end to this work and I find it most rewarding.
Dan: I work as Production Manager day-to-day and oversee submission acceptance and final creation of all the books. This includes all aspects of editing in coordination with our Senior Editor, Brenna Lyons, and working with our Art Director, Niki Browning, to coordinate cover artwork. I also coordinate typesetting, galleys, printers, fulfillment, author relations, and various other sundry duties.
What do you foresee for Mundania Press’s future?
In a general sense we will remain true to our original vision to produce quality products and get these products into the hands of as many people as possible to meet demand. We will continually expand our offerings to deliver on this promise while keeping an eye on quality. Additionally, as we grow, we must understand that challenges will be natural and we must strive to meet these challenges. We continue to watch for changes to the industry and remain flexible to meet these changes. This next year we will be keeping a close eye on how Amazon’s “Kindle” will add another layer of acceptance, again proving that this industry always builds upon itself, and we have to be ready to support the customers that we know our products will appeal to.
I took the time to gather some questions from unpublished writers. I appreciate the time you can take to answer their questions.
What does Mundania do to support authors?
I’m very happy to address this question, and let’s face it, we SUPPORT authors to the best of our ability. We do this by being a team with them. We offer warm introductions to book stores in the local areas. We offer static training information and education in general by way of our Author’s Handbook. Additionally we look for ways to help our authors understand this industry to their benefit. The most recent example is our Brainstorming Marketing and Promotion Conference calls. From those calls we provided MP3 files for those authors not able to attend. We also do something that larger publishers are unable to do–we work to be as flexible as possible to support those authors that have solid marketing and promotional ideas. We know what needs to be done by virtue of having spoken to hundreds of authors from all levels to connecting with industry leaders in all areas of publishing, distribution, and sales.
We also encourage our authors to cross-promote material. For example, genre specific authors are encouraged to promote titles from our other genre specific authors. This gives the authors many benefits, some of which are the ability to get used to promoting books apart from their own. Additionally it helps by providing another avenue for growth for our authors. It also improves teamwork and camaraderie among our authors.
When an author places material with us, and when we decide to accept the material, we take it very seriously. At that point we (the author and publisher) have a vested interest in success, and we are a team at Mundania Press.
To whom should writers address in their query?
There is no specific person that should be addressed. Send submissions to submissions@mundania.com, and it is received by a panel of people who review submissions. Any questions should be addressed to inquiry@mundania.com. Submission information is available at www.mundania.com/submissions.html.
“What elements of a submission - cover letter, envelope even - influence your state of mind when you start reading it?”
We believe our requirements are not too complicated. Due to the number of submissions we receive and how we process them in a timely manner to give each author a fair review, we need certain specifications for submissions. We ask that the author send us an email. In the body of the email, we require author information–name, pen name, contact information. We also require a synopsis to tell us quickly what the story is about, including the conclusion. We also ask for a book jacket blurb, a shorter synopsis that would catch a buyer’s attention reading the back of a book. These things give us a good idea about the book even before opening the manuscript. The author should attach the full manuscript in RTF (Rich Text Format) to the email. Most word processing programs will save your file in RTF format. This makes it more universal and eliminates embedded macros and viruses.
Is it more important to sell the work in the query letter or let the work speak for itself?
First, sell the work. If we receive a dull synopsis, we will assume the novel is dull and not bother with it. No one knows the novel like the author. We need to feel the passion that the author has for their own story.
Once we are hooked, then the work must speak for itself and live up to the expectations set by the synopsis.
How important is the synopsis?
Very. It is the first hurdle for a submission. The synopsis is reviewed and must hook our interest before the manuscript is even looked at (see previous question/answer). Someone reviews the synopsis and passes along the manuscripts of those that interest us. A bad synopsis means little chance of review or acceptance.
When an author submits, what process does the submission go through?
The email is checked to see that it conforms with our requirements. Missing information means that we’re not able to process it properly along with other submissions. Next, the manuscript must be attached in RTF format (we accept no other formats).
If all the information is present, and the manuscript is attached in RTF, we review the synopsis and jacket blurb. Someone reads and considers the synopsis and blurb to decide things like, does this novel create excitement? Is there a good story hook here? What appeal does it have? What is the potential audience? Is it a good fit for our catalog, or is it a rehash of stories we already have?
Those that pique our interest have the manuscripts passed onto an editor. The editor will read the first three to five chapters, skip to the middle for a little and usually read the ending. The editor will make a report on several things about the book. Writing style, story hook, entertainment value, good usage of grammar, and many other things as well as the flaws found. Minor flaws can be corrected, while major ones indicate more polishing is needed by the author.
We review the report and if the book is still making high marks, it goes to a different editor who does a full read, and reports back.
If it is a book we are truly interested in, our CEO will arrange time for a personal call to discuss the book, what plans the author has for helping with marketing such as book signings, website, myspace, etc. At that time our CEO can explain more about Mundania Press and what expectations the author and us will have for the book.
If all goes well, we offer a contract.
Do you personally read the manuscripts or do you discuss them with others who read them and make a decision based on their recommendations?
See the answer above. We have editors who read the manuscripts and make recommendations, but the final decision rests with management.
If a manuscript has some flaws but the story is good, would you still accept it?
A qualified yes. People have different definitions of “some flaws.” We will not accept a manuscript that needs reworking regardless of how good the story is. We will return it and talk to the author about the fact that we are interested, but we need them to rework it. Recently we received a very good book, but it was monstrously huge and would not fit well within our catalog. We worked with the author, who was able to split it into a trilogy, and we are publishing all three books.
“What’s more essential: professional prose or fantastic story?”
It may be a cop-out to say both. We absolutely require a fantastic story. We will not take anything that doesn’t match our vision. That said, we also look for good grammar and writing skills. Confusing points of view, continuity violations, and many other things can mar an otherwise great book. The author needs to make sure the story is as polished as possible prior to submitting. We won’t be able to rewrite the book for the author.
“What are some things that writers would really benefit for knowing/doing before they send their work to the publisher [to increase their chances of publication]?”
Read our submission guidelines and follow them. Ask us questions if something is unclear. Don’t rush to submit. Take the time to plan out your synopsis. Make sure you send everything we ask for. Make sure you send us the latest/greatest and most polished version of the manuscript. Too many times we see people rushing to send us their work, only to not include what we need, or send us the wrong version. We get emails all the time where we were sent an earlier backup version of the MS and they want to send a replacement. We allow it, but it means more work on our part because the author didn’t slow down and double check their submission.
“What makes you WANT to publish a certain work?” and (from the same person) “How do you feel about young, mostly teen, writers?”
The story has to be entertaining. We publish fiction. Our stories are escapism for the readers. Take them away from the normal daily living and give them fantastic adventures, interesting characters, and make it extremely hard to stop reading your book at the end of every chapter. How many times have you read a book where you say to yourself that you’ll stop at the end of the next chapter, only to find out that you simply *can’t* put the book down? You have to read a little more. We want those books.
We don’t really pay any attention to the age of our authors. Those that are under 18 will need to have the submission come from the parent or guardian, with all the legalities and permissions included. That’s just for legal purposes though.
What styles of writing do you prefer? (detailed like Robert Jordan, simple, single/multiple POV, etc.)
We are interested in all styles as long as it’s a good story. Some shun first person, but we have no problem with it, if it’s done right. Multiple POV is fine as long as there is a definite break.
“My stories tend to have several major protagonists, and I often use a point of view which switches between characters in different parts of a scene. I’ve read that a lot of publishers only take books with a consistent POV. Would this style harm my chances of being published?”
No. See the answer above.
What length of story do you prefer?
Something that will make a good novel size, preferably 80-100K. We take smaller and larger, but smaller wouldn’t normally be put into print.
How many submissions do you typically receive in a week/month?
Last April, we reached a high of a little over 500 submissions per month. At that time, the review period was slipping past four months into five and six months. Because that is too long, we decided to close submissions to catch up. We reopened the first of December and have received almost 200 in three weeks.
Out of those, how many will you likely publish?
We accept approximately 1/2% to 1% of submissions per month. About 3-5 out of 500 are accepted. For shorts and novellas, the acceptance rate is higher.
Do you try to put out a certain number of books or just publish what you like, regardless of how many or how few stories?
Since we are pretty full up for the next two years, and some beyond that, we only take what we like. We look for reasons to turn a book down–we can’t publish everything. Those books that we cannot find a reason, those we absolutely love, those are the ones we accept, because we know they will have a good audience.
What breakdown of shorts/novelettes/novellas/novels do you publish in a month/year?
We just started to publish shorts and novellas. For novels we have published 527 books in various editions available.
Do you accept unpublished authors?
Yes.
What formats do you publish?
eBook
Trade Paperback
Hardcover
Limited Editions (signed numbered/lettered hardcovers)
Where can readers find your books?
Books may be stocked in bookstores where authors are local. Books may be ordered through any bookstore. Amazon.com and B&N.com, along with several other online bookstores carry our books. Books are also available directly from Mundania’s website.
Last of all, I have to ask this as a bonus:
If you could be any fantasy/mythology creature, what would you be and why?
Dan: A dragon. Don’t need to answer “why” ’cause they are just cool 
Bob: A werewolf…because the idea of letting go and experiencing life on such a powerfully primal level is exciting!
Thank you, gentlemen!
If anyone has any further questions, please post comments.
