Who We Are

OakTara was founded in 2006 by two veterans of the publishing world, Jeff Nesbit and Ramona Tucker, to promote and encourage fiction by both new and established authors.

OakTara books are available from www.oaktara.com and through major online retailers (www.amazon.com, www.christianbook.com, www.barnesandnoble.com, www.buy.com, www.booksamillion.com, www.cokesbury.com, www.borders.com, www.target.com), as well as Ingram, the largest book distributor in the world. OakTara books are also available in ebook through www.familyaudiolibrary.com, www.amazonkindle.com, and www.barnesandnoble.com. 

We are seeking a broader spectrum of readers who may not walk through the door of an inspirational or Christian bookstore by focusing our publishing strategies on the ever-growing Web. Authors receive royalties from book sales, and may buy copies of their books, if desired, at a discount. While we do not offer advance royalties, we do not charge fees. We offer a net royalty that is double the industry standard. We cover all publication and marketing costs. Because books are printed as they are purchased (buyers receive their books within several days), there are fewer overhead costs. That’s good news to fiction authors, since they need not fear the “fiscal-year reduction” of stock and being told their book has not sold enough copies to stay in print.

Our Purpose
 
OakTara’s purpose is simple: to create opportunities for new, talented Christian writers and to promote leading-edge fiction by established Christian authors.

With other publishers of Christian books choosing to focus on marketing only a few “top name” authors and primarily on sales in bookstores, OakTara has stepped into the marketplace gap to provide dozens of writers with new opportunities: from first-time publication, to widening the readership for already-published authors who have yet another gem to publish or an out-of-print book or series that they’d love to have available again.
 
What We Publish
 
OakTara publishes inspirational fiction for adults, teens, and children in a wide variety of genres, including: Biblical, Children's & Family Classics, Classic & Allegory, Fantasy, Futuristic, General, Historical, Issues, Legal/Political Thrillers, Mystery & Detective, Romance, Romance-Suspense, Sci-Fi, Suspense, and Young Adult.
 
Printing, Marketing, and Distribution
 
OakTara is all about respecting an author’s hard work and creating a new market for inspirational fiction, especially with readers who may not traditionally enter an inspirational or Christian bookstore but avidly shop the Web.
 
What We Are Looking For
 
OakTara seeks quality writing, original ideas, compelling characters and plots, unique perspectives, books that reach both head and heart, and a Christian worldview (it may be overt or subtle, but it needs to be there to be an OakTara book).

Among the Things OakTara Will Not Accept in a Manuscript

* Gratuitous sex (“sex for sex’s sake”) or lingering sexual scenes

* Excessive violence or violence that is not an integral part of the plot

* Gritty, offensive language; slang; euphemisms for “swear words” (unless an integral part of a non-Christian character’s development and even then sparingly used). Because every reader has a different “grid” in which he/she responds to such words, OakTara is striving to keep a broad readership.

Have a Manuscript you'd like us to consider?

Please see the submitting a manuscript guidelines below for all the necessary information before sending your manuscript. Note that all manuscripts must be sent electronically (an attachment to an e-mail) in a single Microsoft Word file (.doc or .docx) to OakTara's Editorial Director, Ramona Tucker, at: rtucker@oaktara.com.

Note
Because we receive a great quantity of manuscripts each month, please do not query us on the status of your manuscript unless more than 12-16 weeks have passed since your submission date. Then feel free to query Ramona Tucker, at rtucker@oaktara.com for an update on your status.