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“How Writing a Small-Town History Propelled my Writing Career”
By Cynthia Leal Massey
By 2006, I had published two historical novels when Mark Stepp contacted me by email with a solicitation to write a book about Helotes, the town where I live. He told me that my second novel, The Caballeros of Ruby, Texas (a finalist for a WILLA Literary Award for Best Original Softcover Fiction) and background in journalism, prompted him to contact me. He said that my knowledge of small-town living, as shown through my novel, and the fact that I lived in Helotes, indicated to him that I could write an interesting small-town history.
Mark told me that doing a small-town history would give me ideas for new books. That appealed to me. I was between books at the time and, although I had a few ideas percolating, they were not of anything that I felt could translate into a worthwhile book. I considered his request from that standpoint and accepted.
At the time, I had resided in Helotes for 12 years. I didn’t know much about the history of the town, except that it had been a stagecoach stop in the 19th century. I signed my contract with Old American Publishing in mid-2006, with a target publication date of 2008, and began my research. By the end of just a few weeks, I knew that, while Helotes was indeed a small town (in 2006 its population was approximately 6,600), its history was anything but small. Residents, many descendants of early settlers, wanted a bonafide history, one with endnotes, bibliography, primary sources, pictures, etc. A small, touristy book was out of the question. I conferred with Mark. He said he was willing to publish such a book if I was willing to do the work and thought it would sell. I told him I was willing and that I was sure it would sell enough to make us both a bit of money. Fortunately, I was right.
My comprehensive history, Helotes, Where the Texas Hill Country Begins (2008), has to date, been my highest selling book. And Mark was right about ideas. That book led to my stint for the last sixteen years as the Helotes history columnist for various local newspapers and magazines, the publication of Images of America, Helotes (2010), and Death of a Texas Ranger, A True Story of Murder and Vengeance on the Texas Frontier (2014), which won a Will Rogers Silver Medallion Award and a San Antonio Conservation Society Publication Award.
Another SACS Publication Award came for What Lies Beneath, Texas Pioneer Cemeteries and Graveyards (2021), a nonfiction book fueled by my research for the Helotes book. A historical crime mystery based on a story I wrote about in the Helotes book is in the publication process, and I continue writing monthly history articles about this fascinating town. And, based on my knowledge of our town history, I have worked in collaboration with a local artist on a book about our Old Town district. The ART of Helotes, A whimsical history tour of Old Town through paintings, architecture, and stories, will be released in Fall 2024.
The stories I learned, researched, and wrote about during my two years working on the Helotes book have become the foundation of my literary career. And it all came about because I said yes to Mark Stepp for a small-town history.
My gratitude to Mark for reaching out to me, and for his outstanding work as an editor and publisher, is immeasurable.
For more information about Cynthia and her books, visit cynthialealmassey.com, and her Facebook page, CLM Books.
Thomas Beck
An Honest Publisher
My sincere thanks to Marvin Mark Stepp for all his hard work on this book. He took my hand scrawled story and converted it into the book you see today. I’m not an educated man, unless you call the school of hard knocks an education, I grew up poor and I saw no value in anything school had to offer me. I will always consider him a friend and not just an editor and publisher.
Dozens of so-called publishers contacted me about publishing my book. All of them wanted money to publish the book. The prices varied from about $500 up to $2,000. Their salesmen did not tell me that those would be my upfront charges, that I would have to pay extra for rewriting, editing, layout and design, cover design, marketing and uploading my manuscript to Amazon and other distributors. I know now that to actually see my book in print, I would need to give them $15,000 to $20,000. They all guaranteed to publish my book, provided I paid them, but none of them guaranteed that I would make any sales. They all wanted money from me whether I made any sales or not.
Then I found Old American Publishing. They charged me nothing for any of the many hours they put into publishing my book. They didn’t guarantee that I would sell any books, but they told me the only way they had to recoup their investment was if people bought copies of my book, lots of copies. If God wants my message out, He will see to it that lots of people purchase my book. We shall see.
J.R. Casillas Jimenez
A publisher that cares
Being a writer is a tough road to follow. I tried submitting my novel, The Bald Nobbers, to a dozen publishers. The big, well-known publishers either did not respond or let me know that my work was not suitable for their needs. I am not a member of an ethnic minority. I am not gay, and I am not a female. Consequently, my work is not worth their time and effort.
Old American Publishing did not ask me what my ethnic background is. They did not suggest I publish my work under my wife’s name. Nor did they question my religious or sexual preferences. They did not tell me my book was too short or too long. They simply read my story and decided it was worth publishing, a bit of historical fiction that people would enjoy reading.
Thank you to Marvin Mark Stepp and his staff.
S.L. McKissicks