The Establishment of Oakwood Press

There comes a point where you either keep complaining about how publishing works – or you build something better.

Oakwood Press is us choosing to build.

Oakwood Press is an independent, volunteer-led publishing collective grounded in mutual aid, reciprocity and creative solidarity. It is not a traditional publisher. It is not a prestige ladder. It is not a gatekeeping machine.

It is a working commons.

Why we’re doing this

The mainstream publishing model is hierarchical, opaque and often exclusionary. Decisions are centralised. Authors are filtered through layers of commercial judgement. Creative work is reduced to market calculations.

We are not interested in that model.

We are interested in:

• Publishing important, thoughtful and courageous work
• Supporting authors through collaborative editing, design and production
• Making publishing accessible, transparent and human
• Building a culture of shared responsibility rather than hierarchy

Oakwood Press exists to do the work properly.

Core principles

Mutual aid

We help one another without competition or status games. Skills, time and knowledge are shared freely wherever possible.

Reciprocity

Everyone contributes what they can – editing, proofreading, layout, publicity, design, logistics, finance, admin. No role is “higher” than another.

Volunteer ethos

Where possible, work is done on a voluntary basis. Where costs arise (printing, ISBNs, design assets, images, indexing, etc.), they are transparent and agreed in advance.

No barriers to entry

If an author’s manuscript does not pass peer review or collective agreement, they are still welcome to publish under Oakwood Press provided production costs are covered. We are not in the business of exclusion.

What this group is for

This is a working group. It is for practical coordination, not debate theatre.

• Deciding what is to be published and by whom
• Assigning editors and agreeing editorial guidelines
• Coordinating proofreaders and final manuscript checks
• Deciding on images, illustrations and production requirements
• Assigning layout and typesetting
• Discussing indexing decisions (non-fiction will usually require one)
• Planning pre-publication publicity and pre-sales
• Coordinating printing and distribution
• Reviewing and improving the process after each publication

Conduct

• Respect for authors and volunteers
• Clear, constructive communication
• No ego battles
• No passive aggression
• No unnecessary bureaucracy
• Decisions recorded clearly
• Tasks assigned clearly

If you are here, you are trusted.

We build books properly.
We support each other properly.
We publish with integrity.

Oakwood Press
Do the work. Publish the book. Repeat.