About the Press

Old Shrimp Road Press is an independent literary publisher based in Key West, Florida—built for writers who care about craft and readers who care about sentences.

Our story

Where the road ends, the stories begin.

Old Shrimp Road Press was founded to give a growing body of work a permanent publishing home—one imprint, one standard—across genres, forms, and voices. It began as a practical decision: build the editorial, design, and production backbone needed to release books consistently, professionally, and at scale.

Before there was a press, there was the work: close reads at dawn, structure talks over coffee, and a commitment to finishing each manuscript without shortcuts. As the catalog expanded, so did the infrastructure around it—editors, proofreaders, designers, and trusted collaborators—until the simplest next step was to formalize what we were already doing.

Today, Old Shrimp Road Press is both a home for our house catalog and a selective publishing partner for other writers whose work meets the same standard: voice, integrity, and earned meaning. We’re building a focused list with intention—growing it decisively while protecting the attention each book requires. Our home is Key West: bright light, hard weather, and a literary history that rewards risk.

Mission

Serious books, delivered simply.

Mission: To publish rigorous, memorable work—literary fiction, creative nonfiction, and contemporary thrillers—that respects readers’ intelligence and authors’ intent.

What we value: clarity, narrative pressure, humane skepticism, and the honest sentence.

Publishing philosophy

Minimalist design. Maximal care.

Editorial focus

We work close to the manuscript—structure, rhythm, and meaning—before polishing surface details.

Reader-first UX

Clear pages, clear calls to action, and review landing pages that make it easy to support authors.

Small list, long tail

Fewer releases means deeper attention over time—so each book can find its right readers.

Key differentiators

Why Old Shrimp Road Press?

  • Intentional curation: We publish for lasting impact, not monthly quotas.
  • Dual expertise: Literary craft meets narrative momentum—we understand both the crafted sentence and the story engine that won't let readers quit.
  • Built-in reader advocacy: Each book gets a dedicated review page, making it effortless for readers to amplify work they love.
  • Author partnership: We're writers publishing writers—no gatekeeping, no opaque processes, just collaborative respect for the work.
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