Local Lemont Author Starts Business To Help Other Independent Authors

LEMONT, IL — Local Lemont author Jesse Severson has started a business to help independent authors get started with self-publishing their work.

Severson, who has self-published several of his own works, including a recent novella, "Tracks," wanted to make the self-publishing process easier for other writers with his new business, Storyhound Publishing.

"They say a good business is one you wish that you had, and that's the origin of Storyhound," Severson told Patch. "I'm relatively tech-savvy, and even for me, the process made me want to scream during my first two books. It was so frustrating!"

The business specifically helps with manuscript formatting for Amazon Kindle Direct Publishing and book cover design. The company will also help with website development and social media graphics.

Severson said he believes that publishing a manuscript should be an "awesome experience."

"That's why I thought it might be appealing for authors to work with an actual person (and a fellow writer who understands the emotional magnitude of the situation) to be sort of an easy button for them to turn their manuscript into an actual book," he said.

The company serves adult fiction, non-fiction, and poetry authors across all genres and experience levels.

"So much work goes into creating a manuscript and the moment you touch and feel a printed copy of your book is incredibly rewarding – I remember getting a little weepy-eyed seeing my first novel "Cody" on the shelves of the Lemont Library," he said. "I want people to enjoy that experience without falling into the pit of technical formatting."