We were lucky to catch up with Judy Penz Sheluk recently and have shared our conversation below.
Judy, thanks for taking the time to share your stories with us today Can you open up about a risk you’ve taken – what it was like taking that risk, why you took the risk and how it turned out?
It was 2003, and the firm I worked for was struggling. In an effort to stay afloat, several positions, mine included, were eliminated. I had an impressive record in the corporate world, but instead of looking for another job, I used my severance package to fund my journey into something I’d always wanted to try: journalism. It was a risk, but I’ve never looked back. Within a year, I’d sold several articles to magazines and newspapers. Within two years, I was hired as the editor of an antiques magazine, and had signed freelance contracts with the publishers of multiple trade publications. What followed was a successful career as a journalist and magazine editor, specializing in art, antiques, and the residential housing industry. Honing my writing, interviewing, and research skills, as well as being on perpetual deadline, was instrumental in helping me to write and complete my first, and subsequent, novels. In 2018, I took another risk, walked away from world of journalism and magazine editing, and started my own publishing imprint: Superior Shores Press, and once again, I’ve never looked back.
Judy, before we move on to more of these sorts of questions, can you take some time to bring our readers up to speed on you and what you do?
I’m the author of two mystery series. There are three books in the Glass Dolphin Mysteries, which I classify as “cozy without the cats, crafts or cookie recipes.” There are four books in the Marketville Mysteries, which I classify as “cold case cozy.” I’m currently working on a Glass Dolphin/Marketville “mashup.” The concept happened organically as the main character in Glass has a small role in Marketville, and one of the secondary characters also makes an appearance in book 3. In addition to those novels, I’ve had a few short fiction pieces published, and as the owner of Superior Shores Press, I’ve published three (with the fourth in progress for June 2024) multi-author anthologies of mystery & suspense. It was my way of giving back while lending the press legitimacy. In 2022, following a request from my then-local library, I presented two publications: Finding YOUR Path to Publication and Self-publishing: The Ins & Outs of Going Indie. They were well received (I’ve since presented to several associations and other libraries) and realized that there was a niche that needing more filling. In 2023, I wrote and published two step-by-step guides expanded from those presentations. Path takes an unbiased look at five publishing paths (Big 5, Traditional Independent, Hybrid/Assisted, Self-publishing, and Social, e.g. Wattpad), and Self-publishing offers solid, no-nonsense advice without any rose-colored glasses.
I’m also a firm believer in supporting writing associations and understand the benefits they can bring to an author or aspiring author. I’m a member of Sisters in Crime, International Thriller Writers, the Short Mystery Fiction Society, and Crime Writers of Canada, where I served on the Board of Directors for five years, the final two as Chair.
We’d love to hear a story of resilience from your journey.
I was careful when it came to selecting a publisher for my debut novel, and in 2014, it was accepted by a Mystery Writer of America-approved independent press (Publisher A) based out of Oregon, for release in 2015. While my experience there was positive, when it came time (in 2016) to find a publisher for Skeletons in the Attic, the first book in my Marketville series, I opted to sign with another publisher (Publisher B) that had been highly recommended by authors I knew and respected. I’d heard too many horror stories of authors who had been “orphaned” (the industry term for authors who are prematurely released from their publishing contracts) and that wasn’t going to happen to me. Except it did. Twice. First in 2017 by Publisher B, and then in 2018 by Publisher A (though the warning signs were blatant by mid-2017). Rather than look for another publisher, I set up my own imprint, Superior Shores Press, and set about republishing my books (and adding others) employing the same editor I’d worked with at Publisher A.
In addition to the trade paperback, e-book, and audiobooks under the SSP umbrella, I’ve since signed deals (without an agent) for the North American mass market paperback rights with WWL Mystery (a division of of Harlequin, which is a division of HarperCollins), as well as a Chinese-language version of Skeletons with a Taiwanese publisher.
For you, what’s the most rewarding aspect of being a creative?
I did well in the corporate world, rising up the ladder from file clerk to manager, but I always hated the 9-5 life. Where is it written that the best work can only be done during those hours? I probably work harder, and put in a lot more hours, now than I did when I was corporate, but it’s on my schedule. In the summer, I golf a lot, and so I might work at night, or spend 12 hours on my computer on a rainy day (with time out to walk my dog!). Even during all the years (2003-2018) that I worked as a journalist/editor, I would never take any job that required a 9-5 world. You cannot put a price on freedom and creativity can’t be pigeonholed into a set timeline.
Contact Info:
- Website: http://www.judypenzsheluk.com
- Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/judypenzsheluk/
- Facebook: https://business.facebook.com/JudyPenzSheluk/
- Twitter: https://twitter.com/JudyPenzSheluk
- Other: BookBub: https://www.bookbub.com/profile/judy-penz-sheluk Amazon: https://www.amazon.com/Judy-Penz-Sheluk/e/B00O74NX04 BlueSky: https://bsky.app/profile/judypenzsheluk.bsky.social Threads: https://www.threads.net/@judypenzsheluk