My McNally book has a publisher!
It’s time to share exciting news, which people connected to me on the social networks I frequent (Facebook and LinkedIn) already know, For the sake of those whom I’m not connected with or who missed the posts, here is the non-scoop.
I recently found a publisher for my biography of Dave McNally. A few weeks ago, I signed a contract with Sunbury Press to publish the book. The working title, still subject to change but I hope it stands, is Dave McNally: The Montanan Who Revolutionized Baseball. Sunbury Press is a twenty-year-old independent publishing company based in south central Pennsylvania. The headquarters are near Interstate 83, and they’re a straight shot and a short drive from Baltimore, the scene of McNally’s heroics on the pitching mound for the Orioles from 1962 through 1974.
I’ve learned that the head of Sunbury, founder and chairman Lawrence Knorr, is an avid baseball fan. Further good karma lies in the fact that I became aware of Sunbury Press through a fellow member of the Society for American Baseball Research. This individual, who lives in Florida, was researching a piece for a SABR publication about players who starred for the Billings Mustangs in the late 1970s. Knowing about my past as a Billings Gazette sportswriter at that time, this individual emailed me to get more information. In the course of our messaging I learned that Sunbury has published a couple of his baseball-related books.
This writer spoke highly of the company, and that prompted me to send in a proposal for the McNally book. It didn’t take long before good news arrived: Sunbury wanted to publish the book. I’ve had a couple phone meetings with my primary Sunbury contact, publishing assistant Katie Cressman, and we’re now shooting for a so-called soft launch of the book in September. That means that I hope to have copies available for at least a few author events this fall. I’m planning to arrange one here in Billings, at This House of Books, and my wife and I may travel to Baltimore for an event at one or more bookstores there.
If early sales are promising, we’ll have a major marketing push in 2026. Dave’s most memorable games were against the Los Angeles Dodgers in the 1966 World Series, against the Minnesota Twins in 1969 as well as in several American League playoff games, and against the Cincinnati Reds in the 1970 World Series. So, stops in LA, the Twin Cities and Cincinnati are definite possibilities.
Meanwhile, I’ve taken over rights to my third book, the coming-of-age young adult novel, Sky Dreamer, set in Billings in the first two decades of the 20th Century. When that book came out in 2022, it was under the umbrella of Abuzz Press. Nothing against Angela Hoy’s company except that the discount she offered to bookstores willing to carry the title was so slender that none of them took the bait. Thus, I had to order copies at my author discount price and haul them to stores for sale on consignment.
That gets old after a while, so when my three-year agreement with Abuzz ended last month, I took over publishing rights.
Now, I’m on the verge of placing the book at my go-to POD (Print on Demand) publisher, Ingram Spark, where it will be available to bookstores, libraries and schools at more favorable terms.
The good thing about this process is that I now feel comfortable using the industry standard software for formatting books, Adobe’s InDesign desktop publishing program. So comfortable that I’m contemplating putting up a shingle to say that Treasure State Heritage Press is an independent publisher that can bring your book to print, or to readers as an e-book, or both.
I’m still working out details, but watch this website for a page that will have submission guidelines. And if you have a Montana-based book in the works, keep me in mind.
Interested? Drop me a line to help me gauge the market for this service. Thanks.