About
Epigraph Publishing Service is a home for books where authors can find solutions to their many publishing needs. Unlike most self-publishing companies, our roots are in traditional publishing, and we grew from there to embrace and master on-demand technologies that were at the heart of the self-publishing boon. Epigraph is an imprint of Monkfish Book Publishing Company, an award-winning traditional small press founded in 2002, specializing in books that combine literary and spiritual merits.
When Epigraph was launched in 2006, it instantly became a pioneer in the cross-pollination of traditional and self-publishing techniques. Most of the authors attracted to our “boutique” style of self-publishing service were (and still are) sensitive to traditional publishing standards and did not want their books to look or read as self-published. These authors wanted creative control as well as collaboration with seasoned publishing professionals.
Over the years, we have refined our products and services, keeping step with emerging technologies as well as with the shifting cultural status of self-publishing. In 2006, there were no credible review venues for self-published work. We coached our authors on grassroots and low-cost guerilla marketing techniques, and we and they enjoyed some startling successes. Today, self-published authors are routinely covered in mainstream publications from Publishers Weekly to The New York Times. In fact, we like to think that Epigraph and our daring early authors had a small part to play in that reversal. One thing is for sure: important doors have opened, and self-publishing authors today have unparalleled opportunity.
You may have noticed that our company name Epigraph Publishing Service ends with the word “service” rather than the more commonly used “services”. That word choice signifies our basic orientation toward our authors. We’re not in this business simply to turn a profit. We’re here to empower our authors to create great literature. We are as safe—and as smart—a harbor for your books and intellectual property as you are likely to find in this wild, new digital world. We strive to be “good company” in all senses of the phrase. We firmly believe you will find this philosophy reflected in all our products and services.
We wish you every joy and success in your writing and publishing journeys.
Paul Cohen is the president/publisher of Epigraph Publishing Service as well as editor/publisher of Monkfish Book Publishing Company. He founded Monkfish Book Publishing Company in 2002 and established distribution through the highly regarded literary indie press distributor, Consortium. After a few years Cohen realized that traditional book publishing, as he had known it, was about to undergo profound, irreversible changes due to the emergence of digital publishing platforms such as print-on-demand, self-publishing, and eBooks. In 2006, he created Epigraph Publishing Service as a way to immerse himself and his press in publishing’s new technologies. Today, he remains firmly planted in the parallel worlds of traditional and self-publishing.
Colin Rolfe is the primary book designer and production overseer for Monkfish, Red Elixir, and Epigraph Publishing Service. Between the three imprints he has designed and shepherded hundreds of books through publication. He has a BA in English Literature from SUNY New Paltz.
