Sunday, June 18, 2000

Publishers putting Ohio into print

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2 entrepreneurs turn Buckeye fever into nonfiction book business

By Jenny Callison
Enquirer contributor

        Marcy Hawley and John Baskin hear Ohio calling, and their calling is Ohio.

        The two became Ohiophiles while working at Ohio Magazine in the 1980s. During their tenure on the magazine's staff, they documented the state's physical, historical and cultural landscape, seeking out everything Buckeye.

MARCY HAWLEY SITS AMONG SOME OF HER "OHIOCENTRIC' BOOKS. (Michael E. Keating photo) | ZOOM |

        “We were voracious collectors of Ohio information,” said Ms. Hawley. “We had 48 file drawers — this was before we had computers — and said, "There's no way Ohio Magazine can use all this information.'”

        What to do? The answer seemed clear: Write a book.

        Thus began Orange Frazer Press, a publishing house that revels in contradiction. Since its founding in 1987, it has become Ohio's largest small regional book publisher. In an age of increasing cybersavvy, the partners relish the low-key, personal approach they take in developing and marketing their products.

        And while the company has its ear to the ground for anything happening in Ohio, its headquarters remain in an unmarked building accessible through an obscure Wilmington alley.

        So it's fitting that Ms. Hawley and Mr. Baskin chose to name their publishing company after a man of contradictions.

        Orange Frazer and his brother, John, ran a grocery store in Wilmington for 50 years. When he wasn't selling flour and apples to local residents, Orange Frazer traveled the world, a nonswimmer who canoed down the Nile and the St. Lawrence rivers. He was a self-educated man who clerked for the Ohio Supreme Court and amassed an extensive library.

        The contents of Ms. Hawley and Mr. Baskin's file drawers emerged as Ohio Matters of Fact, the company's first book. For the new partners, the process proved to be a crash course in publishing.

        “We didn't know who book printers were. We didn't know anything about marketing,” Ms. Hawley recalled.

        They secured seed money from Ohio Magazine and from Books & Co. bookstore in Kettering. When the volume was published, the two entrepreneurs marketed it in the only way they knew.

        “We hauled books around in the trunks of our cars. From one bookstore to the next, we peddled our wares,” Ms. Hawley said. Ultimately, the book went through four printings.

        Buoyed by success, the fledgling company next took on a challenge. They published Lonnie Wheeler's The Cincinnati Game, a book that Ms. Hawley terms “The consummate book on the Cincinnati Reds.” Its design was sophisticated and used illustrations and vintage photos. She estimates the project took 10,000 hours of her and Mr. Baskin's time.

        All 5,000 copies of the book sold.

PAGE TURNERS

The current Orange Frazer catalog contains 23 titles of Ohio books for Ohio lovers. The publications range from almanac-like collections of fact to cat tales by Dayton Daily News columnist Roz Young. There are nuggets of state lore for Ohio's youngsters preparing to dazzle their teachers on the state's proficiency tests. There's a book of reverent buzz about coaching legend Woody Hayes, and profiles of Buckeye geniuses, ghosts and greats.     Organizations that have turned to Orange Frazer to chronicle their achievements include the Crown Corp., restaurateur Cameron Mitchell, Cleveland's Holden Arboretum and The Six and Twenty Club, one of Ohio's oldest literary societies.     Orange Frazer Press is at P.O. Box 214, Wilmington, OH 45177, (800) 852-9332, or www.orangefrazer.com.

        “The price was $29.95. Now if you can find one, you could pay up to $250,” she said.

        At this point, the pair were still asking themselves if they should be in publishing. But as they mastered their craft, honed their marketing skills and developed a pool of writers and visual artists, it became evident to them that there was a market for Ohiocentric nonfiction.

        The authors who have worked with Orange Frazer say the firm has created that market by producing consistently excellent books. That quality is attained, they contend, through Ms. Hawley and Mr. Baskin's organic approach to book projects, attention to every detail, and support of writers' and designers' artistic vision.

        “John is a rare editor because he's been there,” said Mr. Wheeler, whose latest book, Blue Yonder, documents the culture of Kentucky basketball. “He approaches things from a writer's perspective. There's a level of care with John that you don't often get from others.”

        Mr. Wheeler said that Orange Frazer involved him at every step in producing both Cincinnati Game and Blue Yonder.

        “That involvement you just don't get at a New York publishing house,” he said. “Obviously, they can't operate with New York budgets, but that doesn't inhibit their quality.”

        Ms. Hawley proudly states that Orange Frazer has never lost money on a book. But the company can lavish attention on its less-profitable trade books because of revenue from publication of private volumes. These special projects include corporate histories as well as histories of corporate hometowns. Ms. Hawley said the company pours the same caliber of effort into these works as those for general sale, but it doesn't have to deal with the headaches of marketing and wholesaling.

        “It's revenue you can count on,” she said.

        With the combined revenue from trade and private publications, Orange Frazer has grown to a firm with five full-time employees and a cadre of specialists: writers, designers, illustrators, photographers, indexers and proofreaders.

        “We're still a pretty traditional company that's figuring out its place in the dot-com world,” said Ms. Hawley.

        That “tradition” means that Orange Frazer measures the worth of its products not only by the quality of the text and images. The publishers are concerned also with the shape and heft of the volume, the sheen of the paper, the feel of the cover.

        Ms. Hawley said, “We put a lot more into our books, because we want to create something beautiful.”

       

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