Interview with Antonia Rachel Ward from Ghost Orchid Press
Antonia Rachel Ward writes horror and Gothic fiction and is editor-in-chief of Ghost Orchid Press, an independent publisher of horror, Gothic and supernatural fiction based in the UK that she founded in 2021. Before becoming an entrepreneur in the book business, Ward worked as a bookseller before training as an accounting technician and later became the accounts director of a small local business. Her short stories and poetry have been published in anthologies by Kandisha Press, Orchid’s Lantern, Blackspot Books, Silver Shamrock Publishing, and others. Ward’s Gothic horror novella, Marionette, will be released by Silver Shamrock Publishing in November 2022.
If you wish to know more about Ghost Orchid Press click here, and for more information on Antonia Rachel Ward visit her site here.
What inspired you to found Ghost Orchid Press?
I’d had a pipe-dream of starting my own publishing house ever since I worked in a bookshop years ago, and was disappointed by the lack of range available from major publishers. I didn’t feel like people were taking a chance on new talent, and I loved the idea of promoting new and diverse authors. Later, when self-publishing and print-on-demand options became more available, I realized the field had really opened up for people like me to make a go of it, so I decided to give it a try!
Can you tell us a little about your erotic Gothic horror novella, Marionette (release date Nov 2022)?
Marionette is the story of a young British artist who arrives in fin-de-siecle Paris and–despite his better judgment–quickly falls in love with an exotic dancer. Unfortunately, his new paramour is under the spell of an enigmatic mesmerist, and during a late-night séance, things get dark very quickly. The novella was inspired by the plots of ballets of the time, such as Swan Lake and Giselle, and I was keen to explore the Madonna / whore duality that can be seen in those stories.
You’ve previously worked as a bookseller, how has that impacted how you run Ghost Orchid Press?
It’s a few years now since I worked in a bookshop, but at the time I felt there was a lot of resistance amongst the publishing world in general to trying anything new, or that was not a guaranteed best-seller. There were a lot of great, open-minded, passionate people working in the industry, but they were so restricted by budgets and the need to make money on everything. There didn’t seem to be much opportunity to develop new talent. I think things have moved on a bit now, but I really want to be in a position to champion new writers and give them the space to develop. The novella is a great format for that, too.
Do you have any retail horror stories from your time working as a bookseller?
Every bookseller has a story about the customers who come in looking for a specific book, but they can’t remember the author or title, only that it’s red. I once suggested we should just shelve our books by colour. Much easier!
What are some of the favorite book covers you’ve designed?
I’m really proud of all the covers I’ve done so far, and I’m learning new skills with each one. Lots of people loved the Chlorophobia cover, but I can’t take a lot of credit for that - the image was a lucky find on Shutterstock! But I’m most proud of the one I did for our first novella, The Devil’s Gift by Joshua Robinson, which at time of writing hasn’t yet been revealed. I really had to stretch my skills with that one to make it as unique and special as I could.
What is your favorite part of running Ghost Orchid Press?
Definitely meeting loads of fantastic people. Authors, reviewers, and fellow editors. There’s an amazing community built around indie horror and it’s great to be a part of that.
What is the hardest part of running Ghost Orchid Press?
Budgeting! Putting together an anthology is really expensive and the returns are small. I think everyone in the industry wants to pay authors a fair rate but for a small press just starting out we have to balance cost with potential sales quite carefully or we wouldn’t survive.
What advice would you give to someone that is considering opening their own publisher?
It’s in some ways a lot easier than you’d expect, and in some ways a lot harder. For example, I worried about getting enough submissions for our first anthology. In the end we had 650! So getting the submissions was a lot easier than I thought, but then I had SO many stories to read through and I just wasn’t expecting the amount of time that would take. There’s a lot of work involved for not much return so you do need to be in a position to be pretty patient about making money. Oh, and take all possible care over contracts. A clear, fair contract is essential.
When and how did your love for horror blossom?
I remember reading Point Horror books back when I was at middle school–I absolutely devoured them! But after that I didn’t really move on to adult horror at all. I read a lot of Gothic classics instead, like Wuthering Heights and Dracula. Actually, I wrote two dissertations on 18th Century Gothic when I was studying for my degrees. It was only in 2020 when I got into reading contemporary adult horror, thanks to a few writer friends who pointed me towards some good recommendations. Since then I’ve been reading as much as I possibly can! Recent favourites include Adam Neville, Stephen Graham Jones, and V. Castro.
