Anchor and Bee was founded to fill a void in the publishing industry – small, approachable, author-controlled quality content that doesn’t depend on having a minimum number of followers on social media.
You have an idea or maybe even a completed book, we help you through the publication process to bring it to print. We use LightningSource/IngramSpark for print on-demand and distribution to minimise cost and maximise author control.
We took the best elements of traditional publishing (professional standards and bespoke design) and the best of ‘vanity press’ (the author-retained copyright/control) to create our process.
How It Works
You reach out to us and give us an idea of the scope of your project, what stage of completion it is in, and what your vision is for the final book. We then evaluate what is needed to reach the final print stage with what you have and set a plan together.
The plan is entirely dependent upon your work and how ready for print it is. It may include putting you in touch with a freelance editor, knitting tech editor, or illustrator. If your project is complete, it is just a case of in-house proofreading, bespoke layout design and placement, and print set-up. These are done at an hourly rate and agreed upon at the start of the project. It is adjusted prior to invoicing if it takes less time and discussed if it goes over. Throughout the process, you are informed and given control over decisions.
Ultimately, we want to put publishing back in the hands of the authors and creators. Contact us if this sounds like it aligns with your needs.
What’s In a Name?
The name Anchor and Bee comes from founder Evin Bail O’Keeffe’s grandmother. As a child, they would bind books using paper, a hole punch, and spare yarn. Her grandmother explained that you anchor the yarn with a knot through the bottom hole then you weave it around through the other holes like a bee flying around. Then you finish with another knot at the top. It always reminded O’Keeffe of the process of work. When writing a book report as a child, she would start with the outline then the long writing process and the final step is editing which pulls it all together. This always stuck in O’Keeffe’s mind and reassured her that sometimes it takes a bit of flying (i.e., hard work and research) to get something done, but it’s worth it.
O’Keeffe founded Anchor and Bee to meet the needs of an underserved writing community. The number of followers should not define the worth of a book to be published.
About Evin Bail O’Keeffe
She grew up clanking away on her grandfather’s vintage Underwood typewriter at night. At Chestnut Hill College in Philadelphia, O’Keeffe fell in love with publication production while earning her Bachelor’s degree in Fine Art Studio and Communications. During this time, she was editor-in-chief of the campus newspaper for three semesters and a PR interning editor of CHOPtalk at Children’s Hospital of Philadelphia. After years of applying this and learning other skills in the office environment O’Keeffe’s personal blog, EvinOK.com, won Best Personal Arts & Crafts Blog in Ireland twice (2014, 2017), won bronze once (2018), and led the Teamwork content team to win Best Corporate Marketing Blog (2016). In that time, she also published four books through the newly founded Anchor and Bee and continued her involvement with the Cork Non-Fiction Writers’ Group (co-founder 2008). For specifics, you may access O’Keeffe’s resume or writing portfolio. In her spare time, she enjoys time with her family, knitting, sudoku, and silently judging other people’s grammar.
Anchor and Bee 