Waukesha-Based Publisher Magnifies Voices Through Print

WAUKESHA, WI— A Waukesha-based independent publisher is never in short supply of authors.

"I don't find them, they find me," Shannon Ishizaki, owner of Orange Hat Publishing, said.

The past year has inspired other budding writers to take a pen to paper with Ishizaki saying she is noticing more inquires during the pandemic.

"That is the silver lining. More people are reading and writing," she said.

Orange Hat started in 2010 and its staff consists of editors, cover designers and illustrators. The missing piece is the writer.

When a writer submits a manuscript to the publisher, the publishing house's staff read and review the writing.

"We decide if we like it, it needs work, or we reject it. Our goal is to accept 25 percent of the submissions we receive," Ishizaki said.

Ishizaki said they give a green, yellow and red light for each submission. If the manuscript is accepted, it is good. Yellow means the writing needs some work and the author is given feedback. A red light means it is rejected but they provide resources for the author to take writing classes.

In 2020, an imprint of Orange Hat Publishing, called Ten16 Press, was launched.

Now the different book types are separated into different houses. Orange Hat publishes children's books and Ten16 publishes fiction, non-fiction, young adult and poetry.

Ishizaki said she has her staff review horror submissions, especially if the material is too gory or too adult.

"I'm always like who wants to read this? It is not my go-to for reading but it may be for someone else," she said.

It is a team effort to decide on what deserves their business logo on it.

"My mission is to magnify other voices or give a voice to people who may not otherwise have that outlet," Ishizaki said.

About authors

Manuscript pitches come from all over the nation but the majority of them come from right here in the dairy state. Wisconsin writers don't just type out their thoughts on beer and campfires but on life.

Some pitches come out of the blue.

For a team building activity, Ishizaki's team went to Escape Waukesha on Silvernail Road. She threw her business card into the fishbowl of cards with hopes of winning a free future escape and told the owner to give her a call.

The owner called her about his son in law, Terrence Lee Talley.

Talley spends his days traveling to schools, camps, and churches, telling people that they matter, are worth and that they are loved. Talley's brother died by suicide and ever since then, it became his mission to make sure others feel loved.

Tally has published two books with Orange Hat. "Secrets Anonymous: OUR Story," where he tells his story of depression and anxiety and offers resources to help others with the same feelings. His second book published in 2020, titled "Secrets Anonymous: YOUR Story," which contains interviews with local students.

Alyssa Meyer, a Waukesha County resident, is another published author through Orange Hat Publishing.

She wrote and illustrated a children's book in 2018 about a little boy who grows up in a world with no color. The main character in "The Boy Who Found His Colors" wants to be bold and different but is discouraged by people.

Meyer said she wrote it right after coming up with the idea.

"I wrote up this in a day or two. That was the easiest part but it took six months to illustrate it," she said.

This is Meyer's first book project as she normally does poetry, photography, and art.

"My main goal was to get it published because I wanted something physical," she said.

Meyer hopes to write another children's book in the future.