Photo by MAP Graphic Designer Michelle Hodgdon

Children’s/Young Adult

The Little Leaf

by Kara Denman

Illustrated by Kristen Gorham

"A colorful tale of big feelings! After realizing he is the last to turn red on Miss Maple in autumn, Little Leaf goes through the emotions of feeling sad and different. But, with the help of his friend Crow, Little Leaf learns to love himself just the way he is!"

Kara Denman is a mom, former preschool teacher, and first-time author. Watching her daughter grow, learn, and navigate the world inspired her to begin her writing journey. Through her work, she wishes to educate and support the social-emotional development of young ones in a creative and fun way.

Secrets of the Magic Glass

by Cassie Sano

"As mystery looms around the hereabouts of a father she’s never known, Andie Dreem is comforted by her grandfather, Papa, who has stepped in as a father figure. She loves him more than anyone, but when her world is shaken by a life-threatening diagnosis, Andie puts her scientific skills into action to save the most important person in her life."

Cassie Sano lives in Augusta, Maine, where she enjoys writing, illustrating, and painting. She especially loves exploring and painting the beautiful landscapes and seascapes of Maine.

These titles are available on the Maine Authors Publishing website! Click the titles or cover images above or select the link below to shop now.

Do No Harm: The Youth Worker's Promise by Don Carpenter

Here, There, and Everywhere written by W. John Funk, illustrated by Norah G. Glass

Lakeman's Harbor by Sam Kelley

These titles can be purchased from the Indie Author Books website!

by Kathy Eliscu, author of

Not Even Dark Chocolate Can Fix This Mess and Brain Tumor: A Love Story

1. Visiting Maine Authors Publishing is a great way to discover Maine and find out how to publish your manuscript. In 2014, I drove north from Scarborough to MAP’s lovely “home” in Thomaston, stopping at Moody’s Diner for pie and coffee. Afterwards? Red’s for a lobster roll in Wiscasset, gelato in Brunswick, and L.L.Bean in Freeport to see about returning my summer jacket from 1990 for a larger size. Oh, and I had a great meeting at MAP.
2. The MAP staff feels like family. But in a good way, like in the old TV sitcoms. Not like the stuff you scream about in therapy, apologies to my family.
3. MAP offers free online classes—marketing, media presence, state taxes, and more. It’s my Secret Society of Smartness. My kids marvel at how much I know. And that makes me cool.
4. With MAP, you are not alone. Need extra editorial or graphic design services? Amazon connection? Entering contests? Writer's block? MAP is there to help, unlike your college grad who’s back home, sleeping all day, leaving dirty dishes on the floor for you to trip over.
5. There is a discounted plan—helping at events and such. The coordinator is very kind and answers all your questions, like how to track hours worked. Once, I asked if painting my nails for an upcoming event counts as volunteer hours and she did not hang up on me.
6. When you publish through MAP, there’s no more trudging through dozens of bookstores and gift shops to market your book. That time can better be spent finding the exact perfect hot fudge sundae while enjoying a MAP-published book.
7. MAP people will make your dream a reality. Friends will think you are big stuff—a published author! Colleagues will compliment you. People will swarm around you. Especially if you’re wearing a T-shirt that says, “free cash.”
8. When you see other MAP authors at festivals and signings, you will get hugs. That alone, in this divided and often troubled world, is worth the price of admission. My apologies to the handsome young male author whom I hugged for like 15 minutes because, well, handsome young male author…
9. MAP staff promotes and gets orders for your book. They also teach self-marketing techniques. Last winter, I did an East Coast tour. I made extra sales and exposed some lovely people to my innate weirdness. On Facebook, it looked like I was a big-time author instead of some grandma who finally got permission from the local police to travel.
10. My busy bubble-brain needs help for complex projects like publishing a book or finding socks without holes. I’m glad I chose MAP for my first, second, and—just maybe—third book. 

Nadia Kasparek has been a book rep at Maine Authors Publishing since spring 2022. For her first few seasons, she worked in tandem doing bookstore visits with Molly Larson, library coordinator, who retired from Maine Authors Publishing in 2024.

“Molly had great connections with libraries and bookstores already,” Nadia said. “When Molly retired, I took on the rest of the bookstores, which has been fun.”

Nadia prepares for her bookstore visits by reading all the new books in the Maine Authors Publishing catalog, which is released in the spring and fall of each year. She begins her travels to bookstores the week after a new catalog is released. Her visits typically occur in February through April for the spring/summer catalog and August through October for the fall/winter catalog. 

Nadia shared some of her favorite parts about her position as book rep. 

“Getting to work with the finished product of the book, this thing the authors worked so hard to create,” Nadia said. “And seeing it out in the world and interacting with people beyond our authors and our office is really exciting.”

Nadia enjoys speaking with bookstore owners and employees who have met MAP authors and who share their experiences of recent signings and book events. She appreciates seeing the relationship with bookstores build and strengthen over time. 

“Seeing [MAP books] on the ‘Employee Recommended’ shelf or in the displays in front is really cool,” Nadia said. “I feel like MAP books are everywhere now.” 

Nadia shared that she is excited about the upcoming bookstore visits when the Maine Authors Publishing 2026 Spring/Summer Trade Catalog is released.

“One of the things that I am excited for our authors to continue doing is being an active part of the Maine literary community, and I think that connecting with bookstores and libraries is a really good way to do that,” Nadia said. “Part of my goal as book rep is to raise up local authors as valuable and something to celebrate in our community.” 

Nadia promotes Maine authors through her role as a book rep for MAP.

“In Maine specifically, we do a really good job of promoting local artists and local farms and we have all of these makers that are so talented and appreciated, as they should be, and I think sometimes there is a bit of a gap in celebrating local writers,” Nadia said. “I view book rep visits as not only promoting our authors in this particular season, but also promoting Maine authors and their place in the literary community.”

Nadia acknowledges the saturation of the literary market and emphasizes that her position as book rep at Maine Authors Publishing helps put book buyers at ease.

“There is so much out there, and how do you know what is good and how do you know what is worth reading?” Nadia asked. “That is what [Maine Authors Publishing] is trying to do: Say these books have been vetted, these books have been edited [and] designed to be a certain quality, so you know that hopefully it is worth spending your time on…. My job as book rep is helping bookstores and whoever is making the buying decisions feel confident about that.”

Nadia concluded with advice to authors who are considering approaching bookstores.

“Independent bookstores are so important to our local communities,” Nadia said. “Sometimes people are so focused on their own selling journey that they forget about being a member of their community [by] going to their local bookstore when they need a birthday present, or a card, or a sticker for their new water bottle. [Generally supporting your literary community] makes a big difference in your relationship with bookstores.”

written by Amelia Jacobson, publishing coordinator

The Lake Region Kid's Calendar wrote a stellar review for Secrets of the Magic Glass by Cassie Sano.

V. Paul Reynolds of The Piscataquis Observer wrote a phenomenal review of Wolf Runner by Gregory Burr.

Applications for The Millay House Rockland Writers-in-Residence 2026-2027 will open on February 22nd, 2026.

Interested in getting your book published? Join us for our Welcome to Cooperative-Style Publishing with Maine Authors Publishing class, held via Zoom on the first Friday of each month! During the class, attendees meet other emerging authors, get to know some of our staff, and learn about the publishing process.

Upcoming Class Dates

Friday, March 6th at 10:30am until 12:15pm

Friday, April 3rd at 10:30am until 12:15pm

Friday, May 1st at 10:30am until 12:15pm

Friday, June 5th at 10:30am until 12:15pm

You may also request an estimate for printing and design costs at no charge nor obligation via the submission page on our website.



Please reach out to info@maineauthorspublishing.com to sign up for an upcoming class or for more information.

"I want to thank you and your team for bringing such excitement and joy to my dream of publishing a book. The orientation class [on] Friday was fantastic! The whole staff was informative, patient, and kind."

—J. L., 2025 class participant

Write without pause until you have filled a page. Once done, go for a walk, then reread what you wrote. Rewrite what you wrote in a quarter of the space you originally had, making sure you maintain the key points of the original piece. Once done, reread what you wrote. Summarize it in a sentence. Finally, summarize the sentence in one word. Are the word and the original piece still related? If not, how and why has the piece evolved? Has its evolution strengthened the piece, or is another rewrite needed?

Write on, Maine!

MAP authors: If you see your book in a local bookstore, snap a photo, send it to us, and we may include it in our monthly newsletter and on social media.