An Interview with Jamie McGarry

Valley Press is a rare find in the publishing world: The voices it's giving a platform to are as fresh and new as the publishing house itself. Founded just three years ago, in 2008, it came into being as a result of a budding poet's desire to self-publish his first book of poetry--as well as his first work of fiction--and is now already home to a small group of naturally-gifted writers and artists, with room to grow. In an effort to get to know Valley Press' history and heart better, I sent Jamie McGarry, the aforementioned founder and current executive, a few questions, and he has been so kind as to share a few of his honest insights into the world of literature, publishing, and Valley Press.



Cora Charis: First and foremost, Jamie—favorite book?

Jamie McGarry: That is an interesting question...there's book as in a particular work of art, and there's a book as in an object. In the future, when books are all just beamed into our heads from passing vans (thus removing the 'object' bit), I imagine my favourite book will be Ted Hughes' Collected Poems - I am always surprised by how divisive he is, that half of all poetry fans I encounter seem to really dislike him and his work. But it is of course impossible to be truly great and infinitely popular. I think he was an incredibly creative man, an outstanding writer, and I am forever turning to the Collected Poems and trying to figure out the process behind whatever poem it falls open on. I love the introduction as well, especially the bit about how he used to run a small press! I find it an inexhaustible literary mine - it would be my 'desert island book', the one I would want to be stranded with.

But as an object, my favourite 'book' is my copy of Tony Harrison's Collected Poems (signed!) - or at least, that's the one I am most attached to. When I first got into serious poetry, I would continually return to my local bookshop and read a few more pages of this volume - it was expensive, and not in any of the local libraries, so this was my only recourse. Something about this experience really altered the direction of my life...I got a feeling from it that I'd never had before. Now my feelings towards the text are a bit different; I wrote my dissertation on Tony Harrison, I bought the book and have been formally introduced to him in person - they say you should never meet your idols. Now, I can put him neatly in his place in the English literary timeline/leaderboard, I can take the poems apart to see how they tick, but I can't recapture that initial feeling I got in the bookshop...which was something like standing in front of an enormous obelisk, and wanting to understand how it came to be there.

Short question, long answer!


CC: Have you always been interested in writing and publishing? When did your love for the written word begin?

JM: I can't remember a time when I wasn't excited by a book, even those pointless little volumes you are given in the very earliest years of school. There's a certain promise that comes with books...like a new bit of life for you to devour, and I don't think that feeling will go away even with the van-to-brain scenario I described earlier.

I think I've mentioned before that at the age of 7, maybe even earlier, I would spend my spare time writing stories in excercise books and then adding a list of contents, copyright page, barcode ect. which is a strange past-time for a young lad - was I writing so I'd have something to publish, or was I publishing to make my writing look respectable? Still a valid question! I still have some of these books, actually...one has a version of the 'Gingerbread Man' story, except in mine a turtle made of jelly comes to life, runs amok, and eventually gets eaten by a fox. In an epilogue, the fox's teeth drop out and he has to attend the dentist. Fully illustrated of course.


CC: How did your metamorphosis from hopeful poet to proud publisher unfold, exactly?

JM: 'As Jamie McGarry awoke one morning from uneasy dreams he found himself transformed in his bed into a gigantic publisher...' No hang on, I'm getting mixed up.

I like the adjectives in your question, 'hopeful' to 'proud!' Pride has a lot to do with it, definitely. I was at a dinner party last year, telling some nice lady about VP, when the bloke sat between us said: 'well, it's just a vanity press really, isn't it.' My first instinct was to punch him (emotions run high in the world of publishing), but it was probably because he cut close to the nerve. I taught myself the process of publishing in 2007 because I personally had a lot of unpublished writing, and though it wasn't really suitable for traditional publication, it annoyed me that it wasn't out there for people to buy (if they so wished.) After doing two books of my own, I realised it could possibly be more rewarding (in every sense) to publish other people, and so I gently pushed my friend Nigel Gerrans into letting me release a book of his poems.

Nigel had been writing poetry for seventy years...which is a very long time...and it turned out he had built up a vast list of contacts and fans. I printed 150 copies of Tenebrae in all, and I only have a couple of copies left in the 'warehouse' (actually a large box under my desk) so it could be considered a success (studies show the average sales for a volume of poetry are 98 copies...sad isn't it.) And I guess at that point, I was a publisher, whatever they might say at the dinner parties of this world!


CC: What are a few of your writing/publishing inspirations?

JM: Besides the aforementioned Hughes and Harrison, I am inspired by the plethora of successful publishers that start with the dream of just one or two people - in the North of England alone, there's Jean Hartley and the Marvell Press, Ann and Peter Sansom at Smith/Doorstop, and Neil Astley with Bloodaxe. I have yet to meet any of them (besides Jean), but their stories and successes inspire me no end. Honourable mention to Kate Atkinson, who inspires the (usually buried) novel-writing Jamie, and John Hegley who is serious yet silly, successful yet underrated...very nice people and great writers.


CC: As a publisher, who do you consider your audience to be?

JM: At the moment, the majority of my impersonal sales come from people who are already interested in literature...book snobs, you might say! But every time we run an event, I get at least one person come up to me and say: 'I've never been interested in poetry/literature before, but now I really want to find out more'...so I'm growing my audience one person at a time. Some of the titles coming up later in the year, particularly a travel book by Steve Rudd (coincidentally, the last person to interview me, in 2008!) are attempts to put that situation to rights; to let the whole world know about Valley Press.


CC: What do you look for in manuscript submissions from writers?

JM: First, it's amazing how many submissions I'm already receiving...you put the words 'accepting submissions' with the words 'publishing house' on the internet, and people turn up in their hordes! The way I've got things set up at the moment is to not publicise any email address, but offer a simple contact form on the webpage. People are then effectively judged before I even see a manuscript - it's amazing how many people don't take the time to use punctuation, or even string a decent sentence together. 'I writer have written many poems and stories you publish me plz' is a strangely typical opening message.

However, if you write a nice couple of paragraphs, explaining who you are and what you're up to, I will usually send an email asking for samples of work and start a conversation. At this point, I'm looking for writers who have something to say, who show evidence of a god-given talent (not that I'm religious...that's another interview!) and who are able to present themselves well over a series of emails. If you've got all this, I am definitely going to give you something to do, even if you don't have enough material for a solo release, or if you're still working on your big project. There are quite a few of these people now (possibly including yourself, Cora!), and most of them are still off working on whatever VP-related task I assigned to them...hopefully these side-projects will bear fruit in the months to come. I just want to get a community going, really - that's essential.


CC: What would you say is the most difficult part of the publishing process?

JM: Without a doubt, it is managing the finances, the risk, cashflow ect....I ran things quite happily as a hobby for several years, but since the full-time self-employment in January, I feel financial pressure hanging over me like an enormous anvil, waiting to come down and crush me any second! I'm sure readers don't want to hear about this unglamorous side to the industry, but it is the most honest answer I can give.

The second most difficult part is marketing, but it just needs time and persistence. Sylvan Rose, who edited Patterns of Hope, has sold 900 copies (or thereabouts) of that book without spending a penny on marketing...she has just put herself out there, book in hand, and got cracking. In my defense, it does help that it's a charity book, and she only had to worry about that one - I am currently responsible for fifteen books in print or post-production! Yes, if I won the lottery, and bought a VP office, the first person I'd hire would be an experienced head of marketing. Every other part of publishing is too much fun to be difficult.


CC: Any advice you’d give to someone interested in getting into the publishing world?

JM: In all seriousness, the most direct route into publishing is to get an internship or work experience role at an established company...I'm sure there are people who'd disagree, but I've never known anyone do this and not get a job within six months. The trouble with this is, you have to be in a position to a) live somewhere where publishing happens and b) work for free, which I never have. I applied for many salaried publishing roles in 2010, but at the moment, the competition with experienced publishers who've been made redundant is too intense for a newbie to get a look-in...most of the posts I applied for received 200 or 300 other applications, which made my meagre publishing achievements look rather insignificant.

However, walking round the streets of Yorkshire with my publisher's hat on, I feel slightly more important! There's no reason for people wanting to get into this world not to try and start-up themselves - I did it, after all, and I'm not a genius, not wealthy, no more special than the next man. Just go out and do it. Or better still, be my head of marketing, and work on commission! Any takers?


CC: Where do you see Valley Press in ten years? What are your hopes and dreams for it?

JM: I hope I will still be doing it, for a start - that it will have grown enough to support me comfortably (truth be told, at the moment I have to count up my coppers before heading to the supermarket.) I'd like to have a little office for VP, a brass plaque on the wall outside, a friendly secretary to greet me when I stroll in on sunny mornings... I am someone who spends a lot of time imagining happy versions of the future. 'Good morning, head of marketing!' 'Good morning Jamie.' ect. I'd like to be putting out two books a month - but more than anything, I'd like to be the publishing house talented young writers dream about being published by, and at the same time, one where there's a genuine chance of that dream coming true.