December 4, 2023 • 13 mins
Welcome to the second episode of “Raising Rebeca Books, the birth of a publishing house.” This is the audio story of Rebeca Seitz building a traditional, royalty-paying publishing house from the ground up – told to you as it unfolds. You’ll hear from the authors, agents, printers, editors, marketers, salespeople, designers – all the team members needed to take words from an idea in a writer’s mind to a book in a reader’s hand.
It’s the first full week of December. Over the weekend the family went to a Snowfest where, in the balmy 85-degree day of their little beach town, they snagged handfuls of snow from the trucked in supply and threw snowballs at each other. Rebeca seems to live incongruity in all levels of life. Who – in this economy – would think starting a book publishing business is a good idea? And, even if they did, who would limit it to women writers 40 and over, writing business and romance books about women 40 and over? And, even if you were crazy enough to think those were all good ideas, why would you ever consider announcing it right at the start of the holiday season? If you knew Rebeca better, you’d know the 45 years of stories in her life that only make sense in the last chapter, not on page 1. She's someone who just enjoys throwing snowballs in sunshine.
It’s the first full week of December. Over the weekend the family went to a Snowfest where, in the balmy 85-degree day of their little beach town, they snagged handfuls of snow from the trucked in supply and threw snowballs at each other. Rebeca seems to live incongruity in all levels of life. Who – in this economy – would think starting a book publishing business is a good idea? And, even if they did, who would limit it to women writers 40 and over, writing business and romance books about women 40 and over? And, even if you were crazy enough to think those were all good ideas, why would you ever consider announcing it right at the start of the holiday season? If you knew Rebeca better, you’d know the 45 years of stories in her life that only make sense in the last chapter, not on page 1. She's someone who just enjoys throwing snowballs in sunshine.
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Transcript
Episode Transcript
Available transcripts are automatically generated. Complete accuracy is not guaranteed.
(00:07):
Welcome to the second episode of RaisingRebecca Books, The Birth of a publishing
House. This is the audio storyof me, Rebecca Sites, building a
traditional royalty paying publishing house from theground up, told to you as it
unfolds. You'll hear from the authors, agents, printers, editors, marketers,
(00:28):
salespeople, designers, all of theteam members that are needed to take
words from an idea in a writer'smind to a book in a reader's hand.
It's the first full week of Decemberas I record this. Over the
weekend, my family and I wentto a snowfest where, in the balmy
eighty five degree day of our littlebeach town, we snagged handfuls of snow
(00:52):
from the trucked in supply and wethrew snowballs at each other. I seem
to live in congruity in all levelsof my life. I mean, who
in this economy would think that startinga book publishing business is a good idea?
And even if they did, whowould limit it to women writers forty
and over writing business and romance booksabout women forty and over? And even
(01:18):
if you were crazy enough to thinkthat all of those were great ideas,
why would you ever consider announcing itright at the start of the holiday season.
If you knew me better, you'dknow the forty five years of stories
in my life that only makes sensein the last chapter, not on page
one. I suppose I'm just someonewho enjoys throwing snowballs in sunshine. You're
(01:45):
listening to Raising Rebecca Books, thebirth of a publishing house on the One
Sea Story Network. One Seed ismade possible in part by the support of
the following sponsor. When I foundedOne Sea Productions, which is the audio
(02:06):
and visual production arm of the OneSea Story Network, on December thirteenth,
twenty nineteen, I had one guidingthought, let it happen. See before
founding One Sea, I was apusher. Whether it was growing my publicity
firm or leading a film and TVdevelopment company. I made things happen.
(02:30):
I cajoled people into getting on board. I persuaded financiers to participate. I
coaxed media to provide coverage. Ienlisted leaders to join committees and governing boards.
You know what I mean. Ilived in cheerleader mode day in and
day out, sun up to wellbeyond sundown. I reveled in being someone
(02:51):
who made things happen. I hadjust turned forty one when I incorporated One
Sea, and frankly I was tired. Not of storytelling that never tires me,
No, I was exhausted with constantlyworking to make things happen. And
so I sat down. I decidedthat with this new company, I would
(03:16):
go about things in a radically wellokay, well radically for me different way.
No longer would I make things happen. Instead, I would let them
happen. I did not adhere tothis new philosophy faithfully right away. I
still have to call myself back toit from time to time. See I've
(03:38):
come up in mail created male dominatedspaces, book publishing, film, television.
Conquer and dominate is the name ofthe game. Control, push,
drive, get them in line,make it happen. I went full bore
into that approach without ever stopping tonotice it or consciously choose that way of
(03:59):
being. It is the antithesis ofwho and how I am. Though now
I'm not unique in this. Manywomen operate differently than men naturally, and
there are numerous reasons for it.But I found a particular study from the
University of California at Irvine fascinating.It showed that men's brains have about six
(04:19):
and a half times more gray matterthan women's brains. No, calm down,
Calm down, Women's brains have nearlyten times more white matter than men's.
Now, gray matter in the brainacts like information processing centers, but
white matter that's where the connections betweenthe processing centers happens. We women our
(04:45):
brains are more innately equipped than men'sto see how the threads weave together into
a beautiful tapestry. And as Ithought about this study, I began to
see why the approach of letting thingshappen opposed to making them happen resonated with
me. Because I instinctively know thatelements work together of their own accord.
(05:10):
I know that, so I findit easy to rest and operate in the
expectation of that occurrence. I don'tneed to push things into existence. I
merely need to accept the threads intomy hands and trust that other hands are
doing the same, and that alltogether we end up weaving an exquisite tapestry.
(05:30):
Now, why am I telling youall of this? Because I want
to make sure you don't think thisis an audio diary of making something happen
of me or anyone on this teamdominating and conquering and controlling or pushing this
publishing house or any element of itinto existence. Nope, I'm here to
(05:51):
share with you the incredible journey ofletting a business happen now. I promised
you an audio diary of what's goingon each week at Rebecca Books, and
(06:13):
here it is. I started lastweek by meeting with a woman who nearly
worked herself to death before stepping offthe corporate life treadmill. She realized she
was making career decisions based on whatwould bring her recognition, praise, and
lots of money, and that noneof those guidelines were making space for what
really mattered her own health and wellbeing. Look, making money to pay
(06:40):
the bills and avoid financial stress isa part of health and well being,
yes, But making money purely tobuild a bigger pile than the next person
is a different goal entirely. Youknow, when she stepped off that belt,
she began to evaluate what she trulyenjoyed doing and how she could do
that in service toward her community.She has since built a thriving business that
(07:03):
both pays the bills and meets herpersonal health and relationship needs along the way,
she learned valuable lessons not only aboutbuilding a business based on personal values,
but also how to do it asa paramenopausal and now menopausal woman.
Our meetings are spent honing her ideasfor the books she's writing that I believe
(07:27):
will be of enormous benefit to allof us who are waking up to our
own need to go about work andlife differently than we did the first half
of our years. And then midwaythrough the week, I had a call
with the international printer that we havechosen to use. We have both a
domestic and an international printer lined up. As I went about sourcing these relationships,
(07:49):
though, I found that I neededto pose questions outside the scope of
the typical vendor interview. Yes,it was important that they carry the paper
weights and types that we want,that their turnaround times fall well within our
publishing timelines, that their per bookcosts don't make our budgets and forecasts implode,
and that they have a well establishedhistory of excellent performance. But beyond
(08:13):
that, I posed two big questionsfor every single printer that I interviewed.
First, are your papers and inkssustainably sourced? See? I'd rather not
kill the planet in order to printbooks, and if I didn't ask this
question, I could inadvertently put RebeccaBooks in a position of paying people who
(08:35):
are acting outside the company's ecological values. The second question was what if any
portion of your company is owned andor led by women? One gentleman when
I asked this question, he setquietly for several seconds, and then he
told me that his secretary was awoman and her husband owned a fair portion
(08:58):
of the company company and that experiencereminded me that even though I ask the
questions, it's important to remember thatwhen I say we value female leadership and
ownership here, those terms might havecompletely different definitions for the person with whom
I'm speaking. In the end,I am ridiculously thrilled to have selected both
(09:22):
a domestic and an international printer thatare women led. One is owned by
a woman. The other is amulti generational company founded by a man,
but which now in its third generation, has put that founder's granddaughter in the
CEO spot. These companies were easilyable to show me not only that they
(09:43):
operate in a sustainable, eco friendlyfashion, but how they do so.
I finished out the week on Thursdaywith a long, productive call see.
I've been talking with this woman forquite a few weeks about the possibility of
her coming aboard as an acquisition's editorhere at Rebecca Books. We've needed to
navigate through lots of details, likehow this work meshes with other projects both
(10:07):
in her life and mine, whatthe expectations are from each of our perspectives,
the compensation package, the way Iwant Rebecca Books to operate differently in
terms of work hours and time commitment, prioritizing employee health above all. In
accordance with that last one, Idid not work on Friday. It was
my birthday, and I spent theday as I've done each of my birthdays
(10:30):
for the last decade, with abook, my journal, and a pen
at the beach, followed by somealone time wandering stores and other spaces I
enjoy, and finishing with a homecooked meal with my kiddos and hubs.
It has taken years for my workdriven push her self to have days like
that and not feel guilty about takingthem. I mean, even as I
(10:52):
tell you about it, I wonderhow many people listening to this will roll
their eyes and think of it aslazy or not can to building a true
profitable business entity. But remember Istarted this approach four years ago. This
let it happen. I've now livedinto the truth that rest and relaxation are
(11:13):
necessary and required, not only sothat my own brain is equipped to do
the fabulous things that it does withall that extra white matter, but also
so that space is made to letall those other hands that are holding threads
contribute to the design. See whileI journaled, I read, and I
(11:33):
listened to the waves on Friday,feeling the warm sun upon my skin,
embracing gratitude for all that has beenand is after forty six years on this
spinning rock, twenty of them spentin the storytelling industries. Some woman somewhere
else is putting the finishing touches onher book proposal. Another one is typing
(11:56):
the end on her novel. Anotheris reading through the financial document that allows
her to invest in this venture.Another is going over her notes in preparation
for our upcoming mentoring session later thisweek, and still another is pressing send
on the email containing her print quotefor several thousand copies of a Rebecca book's
(12:16):
title. And yet another is emailingme her availability to discuss helping with promotional
efforts for Rebecca Books. While Ilean back on my hands, dig my
fingers into the sand, and letthe sea breeze lift my graying hair,
other hands are diligently weaving their threadsinto this great tapestry, not because I
(12:37):
pushed them or persuaded them to,but because I wove my thread, and
then I respected and honored them,weaving theirs of their own accord. Does
this sound crazy nuts? Woo oomaybe, but I did warn you I
(12:58):
like to throw snowballs in the Sunshiny. You've been listening to Raising Rebecca Books,
The Birth of a publishing House fromthe One Sea Story Network. Subscribe
(13:20):
to the show wherever you get yourpodcasts and learn more at Rebecca books dot
com. That's r E B Ec A Books dot com The One C
(13:52):
Story Network for the love of stories.
Welcome to the second episode of RaisingRebecca Books, The Birth of a publishing
House. This is the audio storyof me, Rebecca Sites, building a
traditional royalty paying publishing house from theground up, told to you as it
unfolds. You'll hear from the authors, agents, printers, editors, marketers,
(00:28):
salespeople, designers, all of theteam members that are needed to take
words from an idea in a writer'smind to a book in a reader's hand.
It's the first full week of Decemberas I record this. Over the
weekend, my family and I wentto a snowfest where, in the balmy
eighty five degree day of our littlebeach town, we snagged handfuls of snow
(00:52):
from the trucked in supply and wethrew snowballs at each other. I seem
to live in congruity in all levelsof my life. I mean, who
in this economy would think that startinga book publishing business is a good idea?
And even if they did, whowould limit it to women writers forty
and over writing business and romance booksabout women forty and over? And even
(01:18):
if you were crazy enough to thinkthat all of those were great ideas,
why would you ever consider announcing itright at the start of the holiday season.
If you knew me better, you'dknow the forty five years of stories
in my life that only makes sensein the last chapter, not on page
one. I suppose I'm just someonewho enjoys throwing snowballs in sunshine. You're
(01:45):
listening to Raising Rebecca Books, thebirth of a publishing house on the One
Sea Story Network. One Seed ismade possible in part by the support of
the following sponsor. When I foundedOne Sea Productions, which is the audio
(02:06):
and visual production arm of the OneSea Story Network, on December thirteenth,
twenty nineteen, I had one guidingthought, let it happen. See before
founding One Sea, I was apusher. Whether it was growing my publicity
firm or leading a film and TVdevelopment company. I made things happen.
(02:30):
I cajoled people into getting on board. I persuaded financiers to participate. I
coaxed media to provide coverage. Ienlisted leaders to join committees and governing boards.
You know what I mean. Ilived in cheerleader mode day in and
day out, sun up to wellbeyond sundown. I reveled in being someone
(02:51):
who made things happen. I hadjust turned forty one when I incorporated One
Sea, and frankly I was tired. Not of storytelling that never tires me,
No, I was exhausted with constantlyworking to make things happen. And
so I sat down. I decidedthat with this new company, I would
(03:16):
go about things in a radically wellokay, well radically for me different way.
No longer would I make things happen. Instead, I would let them
happen. I did not adhere tothis new philosophy faithfully right away. I
still have to call myself back toit from time to time. See I've
(03:38):
come up in mail created male dominatedspaces, book publishing, film, television.
Conquer and dominate is the name ofthe game. Control, push,
drive, get them in line,make it happen. I went full bore
into that approach without ever stopping tonotice it or consciously choose that way of
(03:59):
being. It is the antithesis ofwho and how I am. Though now
I'm not unique in this. Manywomen operate differently than men naturally, and
there are numerous reasons for it.But I found a particular study from the
University of California at Irvine fascinating.It showed that men's brains have about six
(04:19):
and a half times more gray matterthan women's brains. No, calm down,
Calm down, Women's brains have nearlyten times more white matter than men's.
Now, gray matter in the brainacts like information processing centers, but
white matter that's where the connections betweenthe processing centers happens. We women our
(04:45):
brains are more innately equipped than men'sto see how the threads weave together into
a beautiful tapestry. And as Ithought about this study, I began to
see why the approach of letting thingshappen opposed to making them happen resonated with
me. Because I instinctively know thatelements work together of their own accord.
(05:10):
I know that, so I findit easy to rest and operate in the
expectation of that occurrence. I don'tneed to push things into existence. I
merely need to accept the threads intomy hands and trust that other hands are
doing the same, and that alltogether we end up weaving an exquisite tapestry.
(05:30):
Now, why am I telling youall of this? Because I want
to make sure you don't think thisis an audio diary of making something happen
of me or anyone on this teamdominating and conquering and controlling or pushing this
publishing house or any element of itinto existence. Nope, I'm here to
(05:51):
share with you the incredible journey ofletting a business happen now. I promised
you an audio diary of what's goingon each week at Rebecca Books, and
(06:13):
here it is. I started lastweek by meeting with a woman who nearly
worked herself to death before stepping offthe corporate life treadmill. She realized she
was making career decisions based on whatwould bring her recognition, praise, and
lots of money, and that noneof those guidelines were making space for what
really mattered her own health and wellbeing. Look, making money to pay
(06:40):
the bills and avoid financial stress isa part of health and well being,
yes, But making money purely tobuild a bigger pile than the next person
is a different goal entirely. Youknow, when she stepped off that belt,
she began to evaluate what she trulyenjoyed doing and how she could do
that in service toward her community.She has since built a thriving business that
(07:03):
both pays the bills and meets herpersonal health and relationship needs along the way,
she learned valuable lessons not only aboutbuilding a business based on personal values,
but also how to do it asa paramenopausal and now menopausal woman.
Our meetings are spent honing her ideasfor the books she's writing that I believe
(07:27):
will be of enormous benefit to allof us who are waking up to our
own need to go about work andlife differently than we did the first half
of our years. And then midwaythrough the week, I had a call
with the international printer that we havechosen to use. We have both a
domestic and an international printer lined up. As I went about sourcing these relationships,
(07:49):
though, I found that I neededto pose questions outside the scope of
the typical vendor interview. Yes,it was important that they carry the paper
weights and types that we want,that their turnaround times fall well within our
publishing timelines, that their per bookcosts don't make our budgets and forecasts implode,
and that they have a well establishedhistory of excellent performance. But beyond
(08:13):
that, I posed two big questionsfor every single printer that I interviewed.
First, are your papers and inkssustainably sourced? See? I'd rather not
kill the planet in order to printbooks, and if I didn't ask this
question, I could inadvertently put RebeccaBooks in a position of paying people who
(08:35):
are acting outside the company's ecological values. The second question was what if any
portion of your company is owned andor led by women? One gentleman when
I asked this question, he setquietly for several seconds, and then he
told me that his secretary was awoman and her husband owned a fair portion
(08:58):
of the company company and that experiencereminded me that even though I ask the
questions, it's important to remember thatwhen I say we value female leadership and
ownership here, those terms might havecompletely different definitions for the person with whom
I'm speaking. In the end,I am ridiculously thrilled to have selected both
(09:22):
a domestic and an international printer thatare women led. One is owned by
a woman. The other is amulti generational company founded by a man,
but which now in its third generation, has put that founder's granddaughter in the
CEO spot. These companies were easilyable to show me not only that they
(09:43):
operate in a sustainable, eco friendlyfashion, but how they do so.
I finished out the week on Thursdaywith a long, productive call see.
I've been talking with this woman forquite a few weeks about the possibility of
her coming aboard as an acquisition's editorhere at Rebecca Books. We've needed to
navigate through lots of details, likehow this work meshes with other projects both
(10:07):
in her life and mine, whatthe expectations are from each of our perspectives,
the compensation package, the way Iwant Rebecca Books to operate differently in
terms of work hours and time commitment, prioritizing employee health above all. In
accordance with that last one, Idid not work on Friday. It was
my birthday, and I spent theday as I've done each of my birthdays
(10:30):
for the last decade, with abook, my journal, and a pen
at the beach, followed by somealone time wandering stores and other spaces I
enjoy, and finishing with a homecooked meal with my kiddos and hubs.
It has taken years for my workdriven push her self to have days like
that and not feel guilty about takingthem. I mean, even as I
(10:52):
tell you about it, I wonderhow many people listening to this will roll
their eyes and think of it aslazy or not can to building a true
profitable business entity. But remember Istarted this approach four years ago. This
let it happen. I've now livedinto the truth that rest and relaxation are
(11:13):
necessary and required, not only sothat my own brain is equipped to do
the fabulous things that it does withall that extra white matter, but also
so that space is made to letall those other hands that are holding threads
contribute to the design. See whileI journaled, I read, and I
(11:33):
listened to the waves on Friday,feeling the warm sun upon my skin,
embracing gratitude for all that has beenand is after forty six years on this
spinning rock, twenty of them spentin the storytelling industries. Some woman somewhere
else is putting the finishing touches onher book proposal. Another one is typing
(11:56):
the end on her novel. Anotheris reading through the financial document that allows
her to invest in this venture.Another is going over her notes in preparation
for our upcoming mentoring session later thisweek, and still another is pressing send
on the email containing her print quotefor several thousand copies of a Rebecca book's
(12:16):
title. And yet another is emailingme her availability to discuss helping with promotional
efforts for Rebecca Books. While Ilean back on my hands, dig my
fingers into the sand, and letthe sea breeze lift my graying hair,
other hands are diligently weaving their threadsinto this great tapestry, not because I
(12:37):
pushed them or persuaded them to,but because I wove my thread, and
then I respected and honored them,weaving theirs of their own accord. Does
this sound crazy nuts? Woo oomaybe, but I did warn you I
(12:58):
like to throw snowballs in the Sunshiny. You've been listening to Raising Rebecca Books,
The Birth of a publishing House fromthe One Sea Story Network. Subscribe
(13:20):
to the show wherever you get yourpodcasts and learn more at Rebecca books dot
com. That's r E B Ec A Books dot com The One C
(13:52):
Story Network for the love of stories.
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