Independent Publishing Trail Blazers

Do you have indie questions? Depending on the indie path that you are considering, you may contact one of the three advisors below that best fits your direction. Indie publishing would include hybrid publishing (combines aspects of traditional and self-publishing), vanity publishing (publishers do it all for a price), self-publishing (the author does it all), and digital. All of these various publishing methods would fall under the indie umbrella. In an effort to provide the most current and accurate information for our members we have two indie advisors: Melissa Bailey – Picture Book, Melanie Hooyenga – Young Adult. You should also consider their particular path to publishing. Who may best answer your individual questions?

Meet the SCBWI-MI INDIE ADVISORS  

Melanie Hooyenga – Young Adult Author Multi-award winning young adult author Melanie Hooyenga writes books about strong girls who learn to navigate life despite its challenges. She first started writing as a teenager and finds she still relates best to that age group. Her award-winning YA sports romance series, the Rules Series, is about girls from Colorado falling in love and learning to stand up on their own. Her YA time travel trilogy, The Flicker Effect, is about a teen who uses sunlight to travel back to yesterday. The first book, FLICKER, won first place for Middle Grade/Young Adult in the Writer’s Digest 2015 Self-Published eBook awards, and the Rules Series has won ten awards, including Finalist for MG/YA in the BookLife Prize. When not at her day job as Communications Director at a local nonprofit, you can find her wrangling her Miniature Schnauzer Owen and playing every sport imaginable with her husband Jeremy.  

Melissa Bailey – Picture Book Author/Illustrator Hi! I’m Melissa, but feel free to call me Mo. I’ve been a member of SCBWI since 2013 and have been illustrating children’s books since 2009, including 2 award winners and a feature in Kirkus Review’s 2019 Fall Preview. In 2018, I reached my goal of becoming an author-illustrator with Pug Is Happy (published by a pygmy indie publisher) and have co-authored and illustrated the upcoming picture book Imara’s Tiara (fall 2020). With the help of SCBWI, research, experiences clients have generously shared with me, and my own insatiable curiosity, I’ve worked hard to learn all I can about the ins and outs of the children’s book publishing industry (both traditional and indie) and try my best to keep current with ever-evolving trends and changes. I’m here to help make your publishing journey less confusing and more successful.