We’re excited to introduce you to the always interesting and insightful Rashmi Menon. We hope you’ll enjoy our conversation with Rashmi below.

Alright, Rashmi thanks for taking the time to share your stories and insights with us today. So let’s jump to your mission – what’s the backstory behind how you developed the mission that drives your brand?

Ravens & Roses Publishing’s mission is to revolutionize the independent publishing industry by supporting and uplifting the marginalized and underrepresented authors through creativity, ingenuity, and innovation.

I will have to tell you a little story to explain why this is our mission!

I have been a voracious reader from the time I can remember—a habit I inherited from my father. Ever since I graduated to reading chapter books and novels, I have been hoping for strong female characters in books that look like me or have similar background as mine. I wanted to see a character description that did not start with pale. In short, I was always looking to read diversely. As I became an adult, a working woman, I realized that dream of mine was still far away. Yes, there were a few books with Asian characters, but very few with South Asian characters and if they did exist, it was always in supporting or one line roles. Having been brought up with the rich Indian culture, I was fascinated by the ancient Indian stories from the various epics and folklores. I wanted to read books set in these worlds. Unfortunately, there were very very few options. When I started writing short stories and fiction, I knew that this is what I wanted to do. My initial writing adventure began as a scribe for the Greek Goddess Artemis in an online literary magazine. In this role, I was able to write a wide range of stories that supported women empowerment and how every woman can be a hunter and a leader like Artemis.

I started writing more stories with main characters set in worlds from ancient India, and retellings of stories from the famous epics. Of course, that was not enough for me. As I looked more into the book world, I realized there was a huge gap for stories from minority groups such as BIPOC, LGBTQIA+, Neurodivergent, differently abled people, and others who would also like to see themselves represented in books they read. As an author, I was lucky to meet and befriend authors from all backgrounds, and they all had similar stories like mine.

To be honest, that’s what inspired me to do something about it myself. The publishing industry has failed to bridge the huge gap of diversity, inclusion, and representation. While it may not be possible to bring about a change overnight, every little step counts. And my publishing house (a small indie publisher) is that small step towards change. I believe in the saying “Be the Change You Want to See in the World!” It was time I applied it.

Rashmi, love having you share your insights with us. Before we ask you more questions, maybe you can take a moment to introduce yourself to our readers who might have missed our earlier conversations?

I have been reading and writing from a young age. While I loved writing, I never considered it as a career option. I am a person who had a complete career change at the age of 30! It was a time of re-invention for me. I was a newly single mother with a toddler and had just moved halfway across the world from Dubai to settle down in the east coast of the United States. I knew this was the opportunity I had been waiting for all my life and decided to pursue a career in the creative industry, while also pursuing my writing dream. I started working in the IT industry to support myself and while also writing for an online magazine. I grew in my 9 – 5 job and landed with a good role in one of the biggest Studio/Movie/Streaming giants, and absolutely love my job. My writing journey did, however, take a hit with everything on my plate at the time, and it slowed down significantly.

I did want to pursue my passion of contributing positively to the publishing world, and started a small independent publishing company—Ravens & Roses Publishing. My goal was to find those rare and hidden gems in the large ocean of manuscripts that spoke to me and my companies mission and vision. Being a small company, we knew that we wouldn’t be able to churn out multiple books every year. We wanted the books we published to make an impact in people’s lives. We started with a small goal of 2 books a year. Now in our 3rd year, we have published 5 books and are on our way to publishing the 6th and 7th books this year. The reason for keeping a limit on the number of books we publish is to put the team’s entire focus on the 1-2 books that we select from the submissions received. That way, we are able to give our authors and their books the attention and love they deserve.

Our first book (The Blade of Truth by author Lali A. Love) featured a diverse set of characters and went on to receive multiple awards including Readers Favorite and Queer Indie awards for diversity and representation. The Ravens & Roses brand is one that produces quality books with a focus on diversity, inclusion, and representation. We want all voices heard, especially those of the marginalized communities.

Any stories or insights that might help us understand how you’ve built such a strong reputation?

When I decided to start a small, independent publishing company, I was sure it had to be one that authors and creatives were not scared of approaching. The reason I say this is because there are many small publishers out there that claim to support authors but not only take advantage of them but also steal their work and not pay them for their work. Being an author myself I have heard many horror stories and even experienced some of it myself.

I knew that was not what I wanted for Ravens & Roses Publishing. I wanted it to be a company that put its authors first. And that began with the publishing contracts. My team and I researched publishing contracts to learn exactly what NOT to do. And I was surprised with the result of our research! There were so many types of publishing contracts out there that put the authors in very bad situations once they signed it. Most contracts put the publishers interests ahead of the authors or the book itself. While I understand that every business has a goal and income is rather a large part of that goal, I do not believe in income that comes by hurting creatives and/or your employees.

We built our publishing contracts keeping the authors position in mind. Be it royalty structures, copyright of the creative work, authors say in book covers and/or other publishing decisions. We want the creative who put out the work to be as involved as they’d like. I believe this is one of the biggest reasons, we have authors approaching us by recommendation from our published authors. We receive more and more submissions for the same reason.

What’s the most rewarding aspect of being a creative in your experience?

The most rewarding aspect of being a creative for me is to have the power to change or alter someone’s day for the better even if that may be only a few people. The ability to positively contribute to the creative world and that making a young girl or boy from a background similar to mine or the other authors of Ravens & Roses Publishing, a little brighter because they see themselves in our books is unparalleled. Every little change is like a drop that adds up to become a lake, a river, and then an ocean. That one drop definitely adds value to the change we are hoping to bring out in the publishing industry.

Contact Info:

• Website: https://ravensandrosespublishing.com/
• Instagram: https://instagram.com/ravensandrosespublishing
• Facebook: https://facebook.com/ravensandrosespublishing
• Twitter: https://twitter.com/ravensnrosespub
• Other: TikTok – https://tiktok.com/ravensandrosespublishing

Image Credits
Rashmi P. Menon – Photographer Kristina Yazmin (Instagram @Kristinayazmin) Remaining Images – Ravens & Roses Publishing – Lead Graphics Designer MN Kee (Instagram @mnkeethewriter)