When Nury Castillo Crawford wanted to tell her story about being an immigrant from Peru trying to find her way in her new homeland, her options were limited. A national book publisher found the subject interesting and made a verbal agreement to allow Crawford creative control.
But the written contract said otherwise.
She contacted an attorney who told her it was a standard contract between a new author and a huge company that didn’t have the time or resources to cater to her needs and desires.
“Something told me to go with my gut,” said Crawford. “I didn’t want to see the book turned into something else.”
With a lot of research, toil and time, she created her own publishing company, 1010 Publishing.
Her book, “3,585 Miles to be an American Girl,” is written in both English and Spanish. As as the director of Gwinnett County Public School’s Academic Support department, she’s also written a parent empowerment book, “ Plant the Seeds Well... Expect Wonders” that is available in English and Spanish.
Disseminating literary works in a bilingual format or having it available in at least two languages is a main focus of her company.
“Many authors choose Spanish as the other language -- but not all,” she said.
Crawford has translators for several languages from Spanish to Chinese and just about everything in between.
Along the way, many aspiring authors have sought Crawford’s advice on everything from getting your story from thoughts to words to picking the best publishing format.
“I’m giving advice at least four or five times a week,” she said. “I’m an educator by career choice so it’s in me to help others when they ask. In addition, I’ve always felt that in order to support our community we should help them maneuver new roads and new ambitions.”
Crawford’s already given in-person discussions on the subject and decided it was time to take it to social media.
She’ll host her first Facebook Live Q&A at 7:30 p.m. Friday, March 1. Those interested should connect with 1010 Publishing on Facebook to participate.
About the Author
