Hours of Operation
We're a small family business with various health issues and circadian rhythms.
As such, email responses may come at various times of the day or night.
We're closed on the weekends, major US holidays, and on/around the first of the month to handle administrative duties.
About Us
Painted Wings Publishing is run by J. Houser (Jen).
Jen is an indie author with multiple books published. She developed our signature fore-edge printing process and has it on her own YA fantasy omnibus, premium reading journals, and notebooks. She’s a nocturnal hobgoblin and handles graphic design, emails, and formatting, so you might get responses during odd hours…
Melanie is an assistant, primarily working on graphic prep and application of our edge designs and helping with emails. She's learning more at Jen's side and can easily be bribed with chocolate chip cookies.
⬇️Learn more about J. Houser's published books here⬇️
Our Story
In 2020, Jen took a leave of absence from her job at an airline during Covid lockdowns, and like a lot of people, she decided to finally give novel writing a go. She instantly became addicted. After researching both traditional and self-publishing, she decided to self-publish her debut novel.
Once it came time to establish an imprint, she liked the name Painted Wings Publishing. Butterflies have had a special place in her heart, especially after a terribly discouraging day several years ago as she sat on a bench in Wrocław Poland. That was the first day she ever saw the beautiful Northern European Peacock Butterfly (pictured below), giving her something to smile about. Painted Wings Publishing, with our logo including a butterfly, represents beauty and hope.
In 2022, Jen worked as an author full-time, writing nonstop. Jealous of traditional publishing access to digitally sprayed book edges, and inspired by ancient fore-edge painting techniques, she considered whether there was a way to embed edges that indie authors could use for print-on-demand distribution models. While the process has changed by leaps and bounds from how we initially started doing our signature edges, the very first proof copy arrived with evidence that Jen's theory worked!
In 2023, Jen made a TikTok on her author account, letting other indie authors know she was willing to design edges for them, and she was lucky enough to catch the mysterious algorithm, garnering tens of thousands of views and an instant stream of excited clients. Just like that butterfly so many years ago, this break came at a much-needed moment, helping herself and family members with health issues to support themselves.
Having taught herself to format her own books came in handy as well, as authors wanted to hire a formatter, and our services continue to grow! We have plans for expansion over time, and even in publishing other authors under our imprint someday, but we make sure to take the time to do it right, and aren't willing to compromise on quality and what we represent for a quick buck.
