One night back in 2014, my children ran out of stories to read, so my son, who was 10 at the time, started to write a little story for his sister, aged 7. He didn’t have time to finish before bedtime, so they begged me to finish the story. Anything to get them to bed, I agreed. I looked at the beautiful, imaginative story he had begun to craft, and I was blown away. Had I lost all this sense of amazement, wonder, and adventure in even the simplest things in life? As I sat at my computer, I faced a dilemma. How could I rise to this challenge and finish the story started?

And so I sat for a while, re-reading what my son wrote, and then I just started writing, without thinking, without stopping.

The next night, I had my first installment for my children, and they loved it. I continued to write and build small life skills and words of wisdom into the stories, and soon I had my first book written but not published, just on my laptop. What now?

Having a book in print and on Kindle was something I was always interested in pursuing, but how?

This was my next challenge. I was getting good at these challenges, so over time, I learned how to format, convert, and set up my book on Amazon.

I found I loved writing, so I continued to write and self-publish. It was only when I was awarded a place in the Greenshoots Emerging Entrepreneur program that I decided to investigate writing/publishing as a business, so Orla Kelly Publishing was born.

Getting published can make some authors feel exposed and vulnerable. Maybe you think your work is not quite there yet or will never see the light of day. I know I waited a while before telling anyone. Would my work be hated? Would I be getting “notions” about myself, too big for my boots? What would people say? I felt so vulnerable and exposed.

Because I have been there every step of the way as an author and publisher, I do things differently. I offer a warm, personal, bespoke professional service for each client who comes my way.

Many of my clients have gone on to win international awards and become bestselling authors. They have also used their book to grow their readership as they continue to write more books. Some have become keynote speakers since their book launched, and others set up online and offline courses and mastermind groups and have been in the media.

I don’t offer the ‘conveyor belt’ type of service but a service where I am just as interested in the author as I am in their work. I work closely with an editor and graphic designer who also love their work.

Knowing that your hard work is being lovingly crafted into a book, whether an eBook, print book, or audiobook, by someone who genuinely cares about you as an author, cares about your work, updates you, and values your input - that makes sense doesn’t it? This is my story!