INTERVIEW: BARRINGTON STOKES PUBLISHERS

SquareOne News Feature

by Karen Combe

Part One

Reading is fun! Not many people would start up a company just to share this particular secret, but founders of Barrington Stoke, specialist publishers for struggling readers did exactly that in 1996. "Teachers, Patience Thomson and her daughter-in-law publisher Lucy Juckes, started the company in Lucy's front room," says Fiona Brown, marketing manager for trade at the company. "Patience's son Ben, married to Lucy, has severe dyslexia and because of their background and experience, they noticed there were few exciting books available for struggling readers, and were inspired to do something about it."

Thomson and Juckes have definitely surpassed their goal to provide, age appropriate, stylishly written books for reluctant readers. One and a half million of their books have been read by readers who may otherwise have had nothing to read, other than some very basic books aimed at younger children.

Nearly ten years later the Edinburgh company is no longer in Juckes' front room, but in the basement of a grand New Town terrace. The small open plan office is jam packed full of books and busy publishers working in close proximity, accentuating the company's family atmosphere. Brown share's the office with assistant editor Lisa Murray and editorial assistant Vicky Rutherford and marketing assistant for schools, Katherine Nish. All of whom are almost obscured from view by vast piles of books on their desks. They are part of an industrious team behind the books and behind the desks, not usually in the limelight.

Murray's enthusiasm and passion in her role is apparent as she explains their publishing process. "We approach writers through their agents and they write the book as they would do any other, then our language editors set to work making the language accessible for our readers and arrange the text to encourage a smooth and easy read. The books are printed on high quality off-white paper which is restful on the eye."

Attention to detail is apparent throughout the process and in a scheme unique to Barrington Stoke, the first people to get their hands on the manuscripts are the readers. Brown explains how writers must run the gauntlet of their reader's careful analysis: "We send them the manuscripts and they mark passages that they particularly like and underline words they have difficulty with. All the reviews are sent to language editors along with the collated marked up sheets. So far we have had pretty much positive feedback. We do this with every single book including adult books."

Brown produces a review, of The Vampire Grange by Terry Deary, from a schoolgirl in Fife. A gentle critique perhaps, but she is only eight: "It was bit scary. I thought Tom and Alice were quite funny when Alice pretended to be bleeding."

Sixteen year olds might find the books in the new adult list, launched in August, too raw. Murray wrinkles her nose in mock horror as she imagines what would happen if crime writer Alan Guthrie's latest novella, Kill Clock, was placed in the children's section in bookshops by mistake:

"She was maybe in her early 30s. Tiny, slim, delicate, pale, dyed blond hair. She wasn't bad looking if you are into the crack whore look," writes Guthrie cheerfully. "We print Barrington Stoke below the title on the spine of the books to ensure that a novel such as Kill Clock is placed in the Scottish fiction section just in case there are any mistakes," says Murray.