How a Book Business Was Born
When COVID-19 hit its stride in 2020 and the world shut down, many folks with time on their hands took up new hobbies. From trying their hand at sourdough bread, to exercise, to fostering dogs, most people found themselves with the gift of time and the need to fill it.
While others toiled with crochet needle, canned strawberry jam and watched tutorials on how to speak Spanish, Cheri Fitch of Poplar, Wis., and her friend decided to write a book, and subsequently launch a publishing company.
It started with their debut shape-shifter novel (one in which the character changes form from human to animal or mythical creature) Silver Creek. The story follows the main character Aria, who, after losing her mother in a tragic accident, follows her father across the country to meet her mother’s mysterious family. As she adjusts to life in the forests and mountains of Montana, she finds herself drawn into a world she never knew existed. She discovers the secret her mother took to the grave and faces enemies she never knew she had. The book was written under the pen name Jackie Bennet.
“My friend and I found we had extra time on our hands when we went into lockdown so we started talking about what we could do that would be productive and fun,” Fitch said. “We have known each other since high school and have been friends and kept in touch, no matter where our lives have taken us.”
And for Fitch “wherever our lives have taken us” has been a long road. After sustaining an injury in the military, she pursued a bachelor’s degree in photojournalism and a Master’s in Religious Theology.
“After I was injured, I was able to continue working with Marines, sailors and their families and I became what they called a Civilian Marine as a Trainer on several different bases,” she said. “Eventually, I was promoted to Headquarters Marine Corps at Quantico, where I then wrote curriculum, some of which is still taught today, and trained the other trainers across the Marine Corps.”
When Fitch’s parents faced health challenges, she and her husband returned to Northern Wisconsin to help.
“If my parents hadn’t needed my help, I would most likely still be working with Marines and their families, since it was the most rewarding and fulfilling thing I’ve done with my life thus far,” Fitch explained.
As fulfilling as her career with the military was, she was delighted to be reconnected geographically with her friend “Jackie Bennett,” who is described in her bio as being originally from a small town in Northern Wisconsin, having moved to the Twin Ports when she was young. In her former life, Jackie was an over-the-road truck driver with her husband. She spent hours traveling all over the United States and Canada listening to audiobooks. Such trips often gave her to the opportunity to reunite with Fitch.
Fitch said working on Silver Creek with her friend was rewarding and fun, but they wondered what they would do with the finished product, so they began looking for a way to self-publish their book. And that journey, as painful as it was, led the pair of friends to eventually launch their own publishing firm, Sasquatch Publishing.
“Our experience with the publishing firm we chose was not only very expensive, but it turned out to be a faceless company,” she explained. “We had no idea who we were actually working with and at times wondered if they were even in this country, like they had advertised. We had paid for everything for our first book, Silver Creek: editing services, formatting, cover design, audiobook, marketing and so forth. We did receive the formatting and cover design, but that was all. It then took me two-ish years to get a refund for all the contract violations, and I did eventually receive those funds back and was able to reinvest those dollars into our firm, Sasquatch Publishing and getting our own audiobooks out and more of our own books published.”
This was particularly disappointing to Fitch as she had used some of her military retirement for the venture. “We could have just been angry and sad, but along the way we really did learn so much about the publishing world that has turned out to be so valuable for launching our business.”
The name Sasquatch Publishing arose from the cover and storyline for a subsequent book, Superior’s Secrets, a novel that follows a character named Indiera, a hard-working and curious University of Wisconsin-Superior student, who ends up with her closest friend, Rebecca, at Wisconsin Point, along the shores of Lake Superior. As flames crackle and shadows dance around their bonfire, the group hears a series of eerie, unidentifiable sounds echoing through the dense forest. When a girl is attacked on the beach right in front of them by an unknown creature, Indiera knows her whole world is about to change and that she must be even more diligent to protect her family secrets.
Today Fitch and her friend have written more than half a dozen books under the Jackie Bennett pen name. Fitch has also written and published How to De-Clutter Your Life under the pen name Clover Bennett – a book about creating peaceful, functional and joyful homes that support overall well-being and family cohesion. While she still has an ambitious collection of more than 100 coffee mugs, Fitch has managed to pare down her equally impressive collection of gowns assembled from attending years of Marine Corp balls. “Sometimes it is just good to look around our homes and ask ourselves if we really need all of these things,” she explained. “Do I need fluffy ball gowns in Northern Wisconsin? The answer is no.”
Most recently Sasquatch published the Irilitia Chronicles by author Evan Meyer – a thriller taking place in a world plagued by warring states and a looming threat known as the Churai, an ancient race intent on killing all humans.
Sasquatch Publishing offers writers an ala-carte of services, from in-depth editing, cover design, formatting, website design and maintenance, audio books, multi-platform publishing and printing.
“You know, I think it really is true that everyone has a story in them,” said Fitch. “And we want to help them tell it. We never want anyone to have the challenging publishing experience we had when we first got started. It just doesn’t have to be that difficult.”
Holly Kelsey-Henry is a freelance writer who lives in northern Wisconsin.
