Accidental Publisher

I have mentioned in a past article that I have never really considered myself a writer. I guess I am going to start though as my name is on more than one book now. But a publisher? This just happened. And I will share a short story.

I was fortunate enough to write for a big Australian publishing company. Though unfortunately my book went out of print in late 2016 for focus on STEM subjects.

This came in a very busy week, and out of the blue. A little disheartened, I composed an email, with my story, and a plea to publish my book, to every publishing company I could find, learning a lot along the way about publishing! I scoured the books at work and noted all publishers and added them to the list to make sure I covered most.

I got a bite with one large publishing company, and thrilled to meet a contact that worked in the UK for a music publisher, and also had many contacts with music publishing in Australia. I got really excited and sent through a hardcopy of my text; completed much research for the company, only to be told that this was not the direction they were after.

Back to square one. Well, I wasn’t there for long, before I decided to self-publish. Having had the copyright reversed to me, with a lot of research, I decided to give it a go. Not for ego, not for an extra component to my life, but because I wanted to keep the text alive.

I began researching and attending many workshops on self-publishing, though not a lot for educational resources. I know all there is about self-publishing a novel, and although the same field, quite different. I dived into the extremely complicated world of copyright and became a pseudo investigator.

When I first wrote my text as a young writer, I was anxious. Not part of the time, but the entire time I wrote it. And then I got a lot of positive comments from students and teachers about how my book helped them. The Mind Maps are my methodical, scientific mind at play. When asked how I came up with it, I say that it’s my brain on a page, it’s how I think. And also from teaching boys with the buzz word being….scaffolding!

So I am a novice again, and like any teacher, we are always learning. I have learnt some things about publishing, and know there is so much more to learn. I have had a mentor in a lead publisher from a large publishing company, and much assistance along the way. Booksellers, and people in the area of books are my kind of people, and always willing to help.

What field have you accidently fallen into?

It was so refreshing back in 2009 on the release of ‘Musical Concepts’. Over the last 8 years or so I have noticed an increase in quality of Aural responses across the board and I strongly believe Helene’s book has played a major role in this. On it’s release, Music teachers and students finally had a departure point and scaffold to guide and support the unpacking of the 6 Concepts of music. The mind maps are an amazing tool for visual learners and in our school, it is great for our students with non-English speaking backgrounds. The analysis and terminology explanations are great for those that want more definition and detail. We have nicknamed it the ‘Bible of Concepts’. Greg Thwaites Head Teacher Performing Arts FAIRVALE HIGH SCHOOL

The Music text by Helene Galettis is the most in depth and in detail textbook available for preparation for the NSW Music 1 Aural examination. The students found that the musical example sound bites and concepts mind maps to be particularly useful. Stella Levinsky - Music Teacher Chatswood High School

This is a fantastic resource for students and staff. Each musical concept is explained in detail with clear examples of all features presented. Listening examples are provided, as well as past HSC questions and tips for sitting exams. And don’t think that this book is only for Music 1 students, it will quickly become an indispensable part of your departments programs. David Gresham Director of Music St Catherine’s School, Waverley

Helene Galettis text is our main HSC text for Music 1. The teachers and students have found it well-organised and thorough. The book has great audio samples in soundbites highlighting musical terms, as well as chapter listening activities Dev Gopalasamy Head of Performing Arts Saint Ignatius' College, Riverview

The workshop was highly informative and inspirational for the students. It provided the students with a variety of approaches for structuring a written response in the aural exam. Additionally it provided an extra opportunity for students to practice their aural skills. Stella Levinsky - Music Teacher Chatswood High School

The Aural workshop our teacher organised was very helpful. I left feeling much more confident about the concepts of Music. The workshop was highly informative and engaging, with many different activities to help us understand each part of the concept. We even had a chance to ask about specific parts that we found difficult. Eg. Polyphonic, I now understand! Chatswood High School Year 12 Music 1 Student