We seem to be asked that quite a bit recently: why so many divisions on Five Rivers’ website? Some people seem to think it looks unprofessional to have several seemingly unrelated businesses lumped into one website. Others think it displays a lack of commitment. Allow us to illuminate the subject. Five Rivers is a family owned and operated business dedicated to the pursuit of excellence and individualism. Our partners, Gary and Lorina Stephens, each pursue…

There was a time, when legacy publishing houses decided what the public read, that legacy review periodicals ruled the publishing marketplace. Then print on demand technologies happened and vanity press took a back seat when indie authors sought economic and environmental options for their publications. Lulu, CreateSpace, BookSurge and others burgeoned. Last year in the US over 500,000 new titles were released, of which over half of those were from indie-authors. Quite staggering statistics. And…

If you haven’t already heard, you shortly will that Indigo has flipped its digital book identity as of midnight December 14, now branding itself Kobo (an anagram of book) instead of Shortcovers. In the very short year Indigo’s digital book service has been in operation, it’s been plagued with mismanagement, lack of vision and poor communication with its publishing partners, particularly indie publishers. Five Rivers signed up for Shortcovers within weeks of Shortcovers launch, and…