Kristine Pratt is a wife and Mother - and CEO of Written World Communications, a burgeoning company supporting Christian writers whose efforts are not quite the typical fare. An organizer whose enthusiasm for God and for writing is contagious, Kristine has created several writers’ groups, classes and discussions. Publisher, editor, author, and occasional agent, Kristine’s devotion to Christian literature and her genuine love for people and desire to help are obvious from the moment you meet her. Be warned though, you will walk away with a new friend, a new group, and a new enthusiasm.

A thrilling saga about three young people coming of age on the battlefield during the Children’s Crusade. A horror novel about a vampire puppet who takes control of its masters. What do these books have in common? A faith element that identifies both books firmly as Christian fiction, and a publishing company known as Written World Communications.

While relatively new to the industry, Written World Communications is growing rapidly. The company started with a conversation the CEO had with a friend who was worried that her Christian steampunk manuscript had no place in the current markets. As the author struggled with letting go of the novel she loved, Kristine realized the solution was pretty simple.

For a writer who wanted to publish, there seemed to be two options. She could either change what she writes—or she could change the world.

After a fair amount of thought and prayer, Kristine started sharing her vision with others she knew within the industry. The idea was simple: create a company that actually looked for niche projects. She calls it Gap publishing—books and magazines that were either too specialized to have a large market, or were either too edgy or too secular for the more traditional markets, while being too faith filled for the general markets.

Bringing the idea to reality didn’t happen overnight. It started with the vision of five separate magazines that would be published both in print and electronically, and expanded to four book imprints. In a year’s time the plan solidified with the help of nearly two dozen volunteers, some who came only for a season, and some who stayed and signed on as editors or marketing and design specialists.

Currently a dozen people are working for Written World Communications. Every person employed started out as a writer first, which makes the company fairly unique, though many have experience in the editorial and agenting fields. (Kristine herself started out working for Terry Burns of Hartline Literary Agency as an editorial assistant, and also has worked with Jeff Gerke of Marcher Lord Press, which she used as a model for her own company.)

The vision is simple. Publish quality manuscripts and short pieces, with sales primarily directed at the Internet, though the marketing doesn’t stop there. While Written World is a traditional, royalty-paying publisher, it uses a print-on-demand distribution to cut the costs associated with large print runs and the warehousing of books. For 2010, two books are forthcoming and two magazines are launching. In 2011, the plan is to publish six to ten books and another three magazines.

A quick look at the imprints shows the diversity within the company.

Harpstring is a magazine and book imprint for Stories that Resonate. The magazine is the first of all the magazines to launch, with the first issue available to purchase June 1. You can expect it not only in a print format but also as a download in various formats. Harpstring delivers a variety of fiction and nonfiction articles that will resonate with the reader. The magazine is always looking for short work to include. In books, current needs include romance, suspense, cozy mysteries, lits, and, of course, historicals and light speculative fiction. The first

book to be published under the Harpstring imprint is Caron Guillo’s historical novel Children of Light, which will be out November 1, 2010. Executive editor Rowena Kuo handles both book and magazine divisions, with the assistance of Rachel Davis.

Other Sheep is the magazine and book imprint for the out of the ordinary Christian. Here you’ll find speculative fiction of all kinds, including Christian horror and, yes, even steampunk novels. The first book from this imprint, a horror novel, Ripper Grimm by N. Paul Williams, is due out July 1, 2010. The magazine is currently seeking short work that embraces the unusual, with an expected first-issue release date of January 2011. Dale Hansen is not only the editor of both magazine and book imprint, but also he is the president of the company.

Starsongs magazine is written for young people, by young people. With 95 percent of the content written by those aged ten through nineteen, this is a magazine intended to showcase the short work of today’s youth. It is a general market publication with an expected distribution to libraries, homeschool groups, individuals, and schools. Every issue features a column by a published author who takes the time to mentor the young people in the craft of writing. While the first issue is expected out in fall of 2010, there is right now a real need for short work, be it poetry, short stories, essays, or articles written by kids. So if you know a young writer, they’ll want to contact the editor, Patti Shene. While this is the only magazine without a book imprint, there is instead a contest for young writers that will be announced later this summer!

Untapped is probably the fastest growing of our book and magazine divisions. A Christian imprint aimed at young adults, the magazine’s main focus is teens living the Christian life. Intended to be edgy and dynamic, this is a magazine not afraid to talk about the hard questions in a godly light. Young contributors are encouraged, but adults are free to submit short work as well. The book division is seeing the most activity. They’re not only looking for young adult fiction and nonfiction, but as they move into 2011, Untapped is branching out into children’s books under the keen eye of editor Daneen Padilla. Expect to see the first magazine out in summer of 2011.

Gambatte! enters the publishing arena as kind of an odd choice at first glance. Reflecting the passion of several staff members, this book and magazine imprint concentrates on the world of Japanese anime and manga. While this is a general market publication, the focus is on fan fiction, fan art, and articles on both the Japanese culture and industry, but it also has something to say about America’s answer to the Japanese invasion into our popular culture. The book imprint is seeking original graphic novels, appropriate for either general or Christian markets. You never know, you might just run into the staff of this magazine (including our beloved Michelle Sasaoka) at the next anime convention in your area. The first magazine is expected to release in spring of 2011.

This is an exciting time in publishing. The quick advances in technology require a publisher to be able to turn on a dime when it comes to marketing and distributing the works of authors. The small press is uniquely poised to take on that challenge. And Written World Communications is ready to change the world one story at a time.