Whisper House Press

Notes from the desk of the editor are offered in the interests of personal posterity and transparency for writers and other potential editors who wish to learn from my experience.

the editor

Greetings from nearly 9,000 feet in Silverthorne, Colorado! I’m traveling this week (thank you, PTO, for sacrificing three of your precious ten days for the publishing cause) to attend the Mountains and Plains Independent Bookseller Association FallCon in Denver. I’ve been planning for this event for many months, as you know if you read all these posts.

I’ve got my car packed with cases of Costs of Living and Dread Mondays and signage and a laminator (huh?) and stickers and all kinds of other goodies… and I drove 465 miles today to get most of the way to my destination. I love this drive, really.

So tonight I’ve sent out an email to MPIBA attendees (I checked to see that this was acceptable per Association norms, first!) introducing Whisper House Press to the booksellers and purchasing librarians who’ll be in attendance (looks like about 85 or so bookstore owners are among the bunch).

Here’s the email I sent out:

Hello MPIBA attendees!

My name is Steve, and I run Whisper House Press—a small horror publisher based in Salt Lake City, Utah. I’m a one-man act, and I’m thrilled to be exhibiting for the first time at FallCon. In a way, I’d suggest my entire life has been building up to this very email. I’m reaching out to introduce myself and invite you to drop by my table Monday or Tuesday. (Word is we may be one of the few horror-focused vendors at the con!)

What We Offer You (Beyond the Usual):

• Niche Content & Diverse Voices: We specialize in unique horror that captures life’s mundane absurdities, actively seeking and promoting diverse voices. Our latest 35-story anthology released last month, and our next one drops on October 25th—perfect timing for stocking Halloween and holiday readers!
• Simple Terms: I am prepared to offer books to you on guaranteed, no-risk returnable terms (net-90) directly. We can bypass complicated distribution chains and set up a simple agreement or get the broad outlines set out at the convention. We are committed to radical transparency and fairness with our authors and bookstore partners alike.
• Event Opportunities: With over 100 published authors (and a list of three new novellas and another anthology—with more to come!—signed for 2026), we are actively booking author visits, signings, and programming events to bring foot traffic to indie bookstores across the MPIBA region.

I’d love to pick your brain on collaboration and help you meet the hopes and nightmares of horror readers in your store. Please stop by Booth 71 during the con, and email back with any questions.

Yours,

Steve

Whaddya think? I like it. Direct, short, competent-sounding (I hope), and playful.