Who We Are
MSI Press is a small, friendly publisher that is dedicated to bringing the public unique books of recognized high quality. We are proud of our authors and the award-s they have won for the quality of their writing and the unique content of their books. We are also proud of our book publication specialists, whose graphics and design are of equally high quality.
We publish books in the following areas:
Foreign Culture & Cross-Cultural Topics
Religion & Spirituality
Self-Help & Inspirational
Memoir
General interest/humor
Our History
MSI Press came into being in 2003 as the publishing arm of Mind Solutions International (MSI), a now-defunct private company dedicated to foreign language study and teaching as well as to general education. MSI, in its day, independently and together with the American Global Studies Institute, provided extensive educational consulting services to the US government as well as to Ministries of Education in 24 countries, dozens of private and public institutions in the US and abroad, and individual students.
The request for publishing capability came to MSI from the Coalition of Distinguished Language Centers (CDLC), an organization founded in 2002 by a group of leading foreign language centers dedicated to helping students achieve near-native levels of foreign langauge proficiency and supporting teachers and programs in learning how to take students to these exceptionally fluent levels. Among the centers were the Center for the Advancement of Distinguished Language Proficiency at San Diego State University, Center for Language Study at Yale University, Institut für Anglistik/Romanistik, Fachbereich Sprach- und Literaturwissenschaften at the University of Kassel in Germany, Distinguished Language Center-Asian Program at the Monterey Institute of International Studies/A Graduate School of Middlebury College, Washington Branch for Instruction at Howard University, Jordan Consortium that included the University of Jordan in Amman and Yarmouk University in Irbid, Specialized Language Training Center, Center for Applied Linguistics, and the Interagency Language Roundtab
Our books are distributed internationally, are available online through our website and through online bookstores in many countries, and can be purchased at many local bookstores, like the Gilroy, California Barnes & Noble store shown here. Not only bookstores in the USA carry our books, but also select bookstores in Europe and the Middle East. Our books can also be ordered through Ingram (wholesaler/distributor) and Bowker.
Our books are also available in many local libraries. We are, in fact, aware of more than 200 libraries that have shelved our books, like the Monterey, California, Public Library shown here. Libraries that shelve our books are located in every state. Some of the events that our authors do include readings and lectures given at public and private libaries, and MSI Press is generous in donating books to libraries for their fundraising events.
Most of our books can also be found at the Library of Congress in its main or subsidiary holdings, where readers can take a look at our books, use them for research, and become acquainted with the talents of our authors. We participate in the LOC's Cataloging-in-Process program, so the MARC records for our books can be found in the LOC card catalogue online and at the Main Reading Room, shown here, considerably in advance of their appearance on the shelves.
Our books can also be ordered direct from us. We accept purchase orders by email, mail, and fax from libraries, bookstores, and some professional organizations anywhere in the world. Please query. We offer consignment options, as well as direct sale discounts, right of return, and free freight on bulk orders.
For more information, contact us.
As a non-profit, the CDLC could not publish and distribute its language learning books and journal as extensively as a for-profit could. Moreover, the CDCL had only volunteer staff who mainly kept the informational website up-to-date, edited the Distinguished Language Journal, and sponsored a highly respected annual conference. Hence, the need to find a publisher to support its needs for information dissemination. Publications included conference proceedings, the journal, and a couple dozen books related to foreign language learning and teaching, which achieved prominence in the the second language acquisition field.
Its goal of getting the foreign language community to focus on near-native levels of foreign language proficiency achieved, the CDLC closed in 2010. In the closure, the CDLC ceded its publiscations to MSI Press, considered today to be the legacy collection of MSI Press.
Meanwhile, MSI Press, having achieved independence from MSI, branched into the cross-cultural field in 2005. In 2008, a foray into religion and spirituality led to the founding of a line of books that has been retained until today. The next year, 2009, MSI Press began publishing memoirs related to any of its lines of publication, including general interest/humor, then branched into the self-help field in 2012.
In 2013, MSI Press made the decision to focus on the five areas in which it currently publishes and to divest itself of its legacy foreign language collection. These books had become well-known (and some had even become beloved), but they now belonged to a publishing house that, with the closing of the CDLC doors, had moved away from its origins. The legacy books were transferred to Virginia Institute Press (VIP), where one by one they are being updated and republished as next editions.
Since the divestiture of its foreign language line, MSI Press has moved forward full steam in the fields in which it currently publishes. We look forward to doubling our publications in these fields in 2015.
Who Are Our Staff and Associates?
As we have grown, we have found the need to bring in additional help, and we are proud of the work that our associates do for our authors. Our associates accomplish a number of very important tasks, including editing, copyediting, proofreading reading (determining for us whether or not a book is worthy of publication), technical advice & assistance, graphics, typesetting, cover design, e-book conversion, and audiobook conversion. We include here those who have an expressed a willingness to share their information with the public. Our associates are free to help others, and we hope that others will contact them if they have publishing projects for which they need help.
Carl Leaver
Carl is the primary typesetter, layout, and cover designer for MSI Press. He has a long history of work as a professional photographer, including teaching photography for the US government and at New York Institute of Technology's campuses in Amman, Jordan and Manama, Bahrain. He has more than three decades of experience in computer graphics. Nearly all our book covers have been designed by Carl; he also oversees the work of other graphic artists and typesetters and finalizes layout and book cover design where others do the actual work.
Contact Carl on email.
Mary Ann Raemisch
Mary Ann has copyedited a number of books for us. Several of the books she has edited have received awards and special professional recognition for the quality of writing and editing.
Recently, Mary Ann has branched into helping one of our authors with developmental editing.
Contact Mary Ann on email.
Keshav Sharma
Keshav has prepared more than 90% of MSI Press's e-books, and recently he has taken on the overflow typesetting requirements for our print books.
For 20 years, Keshav has been involved in electronic publishing: XML, typesetting, e-book conversion, formatting, technical editing, and layout designing for Apple, Amazon, Smash words, Create-space, B&N, KOBO, Google, Sony, lightening source, Ingram, and commercial publishers, including simple/complex/enhanced books and fixed layout books enabled with multimedia features such as Read Aloud, Audio, Video, Animation, JavaScript as well as adding interactive components by using technologies CSS3, HTML5, JavaScript, JSON, JQUERY. For print PDF creation services, he is skilled in using Indesign, XSL-FO,Cover page creation in Photoshop and illustrator.
Contact Keshav on email.
Where Can Our Books Be Found?
Geri Henderson, PhD
Geri is an occasional editor and copyeditor for MSI Press, especially for manuscripts that need the help of a university professor of composition, writing, and literature. In her full-time work, Geri is a professor of English at the University of Maryland's campuses in Asia. She has taught English all over the world, including the University of Balamand in Lebanon, New York Institute of Technology in Amman, Jordan and Manama, Bahrain, Lithuania International University in Klaipeda, and the University of Nebraska. She is open to freelance editing and copyediting assignments.
Contact Geri on email.
Cathy Kodra
Cathy is a developmental editor to whom we refer someone with a good story but in need of more professional writing skills. We encountered Cathy through an author she had helped, and we were impressed with her writing skills.
C. Ann Kodra is an independent editor and writer living in Knoxville, TN. Her poetry and short stories have appeared in journals and anthologies including Now & Then, Prime Mincer, RHINO, Still: The Journal, Yemassee, and others. She is a contributing editor for New Millennium Writings and has won recognition in several contests including Prime Mincer’s Poetry Contest, the Green River Writers Contest, and Glimmer Train's Family Matters Contest.
Contact Cathy on email.
