Whether you live here or not, there's no arguing that Chicago is a fascinating place. From its ghosts to gangsters, catastrophic fires to world-changing fairs, there is much to learn from the city's past and present. A local publisher recognizes Chicago's appeal, which explains its 100% focus on nonfiction books about the Windy City. Lake Claremont Press, located on Rockwell Street beside the Brown Line station, is a small publisher that specializes in regional histories and guidebooks by locals for the Chicago area that are sold in bookshops nationwide. The press has been a fixture in Lincoln Square since it opened in 1994: first at Lawrence and Claremont, then at its current spot. "I made a deliberate decision to maintain our office in a storefront," explains Sharon Woodhouse, Lake Claremont Press founder. "I wanted people to be able to pop in to buy books or ask us questions."
It all started with one book. Sharon was a grad student at UIC studying philosophy. "I decided that I wanted to publish one book and then I would go back to grad school," says Sharon. "I thought it would be a way for me to pay my student loans." That first book was A Native's Guide to Chicago, which has just recently been released in its fourth edition. She more than broke even on her investment, but more importantly, the experience gave her the bug to try publishing again. Then, a childhood friend approached her with an idea. Sharon and Ursula Bielski grew up in the same North Side neighborhood—Sharon on Claremont Avenue—and went to grade school together at St. Ben's. Ursula had studied the history of people's belief in the paranormal in grad school and was inspired to write about Chicago's own relationship with its ghost stories. They collaborated and published the result, Chicago Haunts: Ghostlore of the Windy City, which was so immediately successful that it forced Sharon to get all the pieces of her business into place. "Until recently, Ursula's books generated 60% of the sales for the company," explains Sharon. "Every publisher has statistics like that. There are almost always one or two books that carry most of the weight for their business."
Chicago Haunts takes readers through haunted forest preserves, churches, schools and restaurants in search of stories from those who tell of their local encounters with the supernatural. "It's really Chicago history told through ghost stories, with scholarly insights on theories of ghosts and the paranormal," describes Sharon. The book is now in the 10th printing of its second edition, with almost 47,000 copies in print, and is still selling strongly in local bookshops like The Book Cellar. "For a small press book to sell 5,000 copies is great," explains Sharon. "You need to print at least 3,000 to get a price break." The initial success of Chicago Haunts had Sharon thinking. As she investigated local interest publishing, she realized that it was a stable and respected market. "I could see that Chicago would have a great market for these kinds of books," says Sharon. "Lots of people all around the country have ties to Chicago that would make them want to read books about the city."
 Ten years after founding Lake Claremont Press and more than 30 titles later, Sharon understands just how wide an appeal books about Chicago have. "The people who read our books can be college professors or people in their 40s who haven't read a book since they were in school," says Sharon. "We hear from parents all the time who say how much their ten year old kid enjoyed reading Chicago Haunts, and how happy they are to see their child reading."
Publishing a book at a small press like Lake Claremont is a slow and careful process. Would-be authors submit more than 500 book pitches a year, which Sharon and her assistant publisher Karen Formanski filter through looking for nonfiction that celebrates Chicago's history, culture, geography and spirit. "We don't do books on crime or the mob," says Sharon, "and we don't ever publish anything except nonfiction. There's a whole different way of marketing and promoting nonfiction, and that's what we do." Once they review the pitches, they will sometimes recommend authors to other appropriate publishers. Full submission guidelines are available on www.lakeclaremont.com. "We prefer to work with people who are really passionate about their subject and can't stop talking about it," says Sharon. "We like the authors who will make a slide show for their readings and who won't ever get sick of answering the same questions at ten readings in a row."
If a pitch is accepted, this begins a typically two year long process from pitch to production of the book. Writers need at least one year to write, then the book's cover and contents need to be designed. Lake Claremont has a full time staff of three people, plus a couple extra part time employees. A pool of expert freelance designers are called on to create covers and lay out the text of the new books. Freelance editors help with the editorial, while everyone is involved in the proofreading process.
 Lake Claremont Press prints the majority of its books at United Graphics in Mattoon, Illinois. For almost ten years, United Graphics has done a fantastic job printing Lake Claremont's books quickly and well. It takes four weeks to produce an original book and only three weeks for a reprint. Once they're printed, the books are warehoused at Lake Claremont Press then shipped to wholesalers and booksellers all over the US, including Amazon.com. Incidentally, Sharon considers Amazon.com an amazing sales tool for small publishers like Lake Claremont. Through Amazon, the press can reach a much wider audience through special tools provided to help market books. "I love Amazon," says Sharon. "I realize that it presents some drawbacks for independent booksellers, but it's a tremendous tool for a small press to market our books. I love that I am able to provide all the content describing the books."
Once Lake Claremont publishes a book, the author then can go out to promote it on the library and bookstore circuit. Through the years, Sharon has built relationships with bookstores and libraries looking for authors to do readings, as well as members of the press. This is just one element of Sharon's impressive book marketing savvy. "Authors like working with us," says Sharon. "It's really the toughest part of the job, too." Lake Claremont's reputation has come from a policy of providing authors customized, individualized attention throughout the production process.
Chicago's media outlets seem to have an endless need for local interest stories, which works out well for Lake Claremont Press and its authors. Programs like Chicago Tonight need Chicago-based information for their shows five nights a week, every week. "Many of our authors have been on Chicago Tonight," says Sharon. "We get great local and national press coverage." Lake Claremont books have been mentioned everywhere from Crain's Chicago Business to CNN, the BBC, NPR, the National Geographic Channel and A&E.
Lake Claremont Press' goal is to continue to release about five to seven new books each year. This month, Finding Your Chicago Ancestors by Grace DuMelle will hit the shelves. Grace is a consultant who specializes in writing histories for people based on the research she does into a particular subject, which may be a house, a business or a great grandparent. Finding Your Chicago Ancestors shares her professional tips for tracing your roots in Chicago. The Streets & San Man's Guide to Chicago Eats is a colorful guidebook written by a City of Chicago worker. Another new book due out in April is Wrigley Field's Last World Series, by Charles N. Billington, just in time for the 60th anniversary of the 1945 season when the Cubs actually won the pennant. "This is our first sports book," explains Sharon. "But it also contains items of historical interest that anyone would enjoy, including some surprising tie-ins with present day events." Chicago subjects tend to strike a chord with many people, who often send Sharon letters with their own memories of the times that were reawakened through reading a Lake Claremont book.
If these titles catch your interest, stop in the Lake Claremont storefront to pick up a copy. You can always buy titles direct from the publisher, and can often score a copy signed by the author. They also have a much loved, free book box that sits outside the door. "We have a free book exchange where people drop off books they've read and trade them for new ones," says Sharon. "People love it. We even have a woman who comes periodically and cleans it, sweeping out all the leaves and dirt." Here's to Lake Claremont's efforts to preserve Chicago's heritage and culture.
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