My Story
Founded by Crystal Heidel, Byzantium Sky Press is a small indie publisher dedicated to sharing the voices of empowering, tenacious, magnetic, women writers and writers of the LGBTQ+ community who are not afraid to be who they are and seek to change lives with the power of their words.
Books and the written word have always been Crystal’s passion. For years she has designed book covers for RBWG members, and, under her press, has won multiple awards from the Delaware Press Association’s Communications Contest. Holding her DPA First Place award-winning novel Still Life in Blood in her hands in 2013, she was inspired to put her years of experience and her creative skills to work helping other writers to experience the joy of being published.
Traditional publishers give the author little to almost no say in the publishing process. Crystal structured Byzantium Sky Press to provide the support of a high-touch publisher while working with her authors to establish the publication date, approval of cover design, and the interior layout (for print and EPUB). BSP strives to smooth the publishing process for an author so they can get back to doing what they love—writing!
Byzantium Sky Press is especially seeking submissions of fiction books that have interesting and quirky plots/people, people of color, and LGBTQ+ characters, along with independent female leads.
The first official book the press published was Wanderlust: A Wartime Search for Hope and Home by Kathleen L. Martens. The novel was published July 28, 2021, and is available at Amazon, Barnes & Noble, Browseabout Books, and other mainstream booksellers. Also available is Rising Women Rising Tides: Stories of Women, Water, & Wisdom by Kathleen L. Martens. Both books placed in the 2022 Delaware Press Association’s Communications Contest.
In 2022, BSP published Kathleen’s second novel, Under a Jungle Moon, Anne Crown’s Evergreen.
In Summer 2023, the second edition of Crystal Heidel’s Still Life in Blood, and the long-awaited sequel, Still Life in Ice, will be featured in the first BSP Kickstarter Campaign to celebrate 10 years of publication!
The next submission period starts on August 15, 2023.
Still in the works: the first BSP Short Story Contest! Witch Most Wild will be a compilation of short stories. I’m looking for stories about feminism, LGBTQ+ communities, and stories by BIPOC. Stories can be written as poetry, fiction, and nonfiction/memoir, as long as it embodies everything to do with the witch. It could be a metaphor, an empowering situation, or even a fictional witch who conquers her/his/their world (details on the contest, editors, and rules coming soon; follow Byzantium Sky Press on Instagram @byzantiumskypress).
For those writers who want to self-publish but they don’t know where to start, BSP’s sister company, Heimat Publishing, can help (website in the works!). The publishing process—correct file types, formatting, daunting platforms, and paperwork—can be overwhelming. Heimat Publishing offers assistance in set-up—creating author email addresses, necessary accounts for publishing (such as ISBN, LCCN), and even uploading properly designed files for printing.
Crystal is grateful for the support she has received through her membership in the Rehoboth Beach Writers Guild which inspired her to establish Byzantium Sky Press. She’s also a member of the Eastern Shore Writers Association.
What my authors and clients are saying . . .
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Being in the hands of a dedicated publisher who is also a gifted designer and writer is a blessing to an author. She gets it!
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— KATHLEEN MARTENS
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Crystal’s coaching style is engaging, insightful, and inspirational. Her valuable written comments and Zoom discussions helped me make informed decisions about the direction of my writing.
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— ELAINE OAKES