Stephen Matthews Interview

Congratulations to IngramSpark publisher, Stephen Matthews of Ginninderra Press, who recently received the high honor of the Order of Australia Award. To mark the occasion, Stephen answered a few interview questions:

Stephen, congratulations on your Order of Australia (OAM) medal. Can you tell me about the 'provenance' of this great honour?

Thank you for the congratulations. To receive an OAM, you have to be nominated by someone familiar with your work, and they then have to find four other people to support that nomination. I was nominated for 'service to publishing,' which has a vetting process of up to a year. It wasn't until October 2020 that they asked if I would accept the award if confirmed. Two months later, that's exactly what happened, and it was announced publicly on Australia Day, 26 January. Quite a humbling experience.

This year you are also celebrating 25 years of Ginninderra Press, another great milestone. What inspired you to start a publishing company? And what keeps you going?

I decided to set up Ginninderra Press in 1996 after spending a year working for a company in Canberra that edited and designed documents mainly for government departments. Sometimes, writers contacted the company for help with their manuscripts, but the business wasn't geared to help them. I thought I had the skills (and just enough money) to start a business that would specialize in making it easier for such writers whose work was unlikely to appeal to conventional mainstream publishers. I had no real business plan, just a conviction that there was a niche I could fill. Twenty-five years later, my conviction has proved right!

How would you describe the genre/types of books you attract and support under your imprint?

Ginninderra Press publishes a wide range of books—short fiction (and a few novels), non-fiction (memoirs, history, social issues), and a lot of poetry. Though we're very small—it's just me and my wonderful wife Brenda (herself a very talented writer)—we publish about 50 books a year.

Are there any particular requirements (or words of wisdom and advice) that authors should consider prior to submission?

I'm not hot on particular requirements. I don't like to tie myself down. I'm always looking for the unusual—the kind of books that fall through the cracks of mainstream publishing. We like that Ginninderra is an Aboriginal word that means something like 'throwing out little rays of light.'

How has publishing and bookselling changed since you managed the preeminent 'Uni Coop' bookshop at the Australian National University many years ago?

Publishing and bookselling have changed out of sight since my bookselling days. To see that, look no further than the mergers, closures, and new technology across both parts of the industry.

What do you consider the most significant factors in succeeding as an author and a publisher in the 21st century?

The publishing industry is thriving partly because of the openings created by new technology. For Ginninderra Press, this is exemplified by the opportunities that IngramSpark has offered us in the last six years. When Ginninderra Press started out, print-on-demand and hassle-free access to bookselling markets worldwide weren't much more than dreams. Now, our books can be printed, shipped, and received in just a few days, in quantities as small as a single book. Readers all over the world can find and buy our books, and that gives us a real buzz.