About Grey Oak

grey (or gray) – adjective - of a color between white and black; having a neutral hue. Grey is a neutral, balanced color. We like it because it is a cool, conservative color, and it brings across a sense of balance and neutrality which we want to personify in everything we do. oak – noun - any tree or shrub belonging to the genus Quercus, of the Beech family, bearing the acorn as fruit. Why do we exist?

18 publishers thought a book about a seagull was ridiculous before Richard Bach's Jonathan Livingston Seagull was picked up.

John Grisham's A Time to Kill was rejected by 16 publishers before finding an agent who eventually rejected him as well.

Robert Pirsig, the author of Zen and the Art of Motorcycle Maintenance faced an amazing 121 rejections before becoming beloved by millions of readers. Zen has given millions of readers an accessible, enjoyable book for seeking insight into their own lives.

J.K. Rowling submitted Harry Potter to 12 publishing houses, all of which rejected it.

One of the most famous people to live in an attic, Anne Frank's Diary had 15 rejections.

Margret Mitchell's Gone with the Wind was faced rejection 38 times. She won a Pulitzer Prize in 1937 for this book.

Carrie by Stephen King was rejected over 30 times before being published. The novel became a classic in the horror genre and has enjoyed film and TV adaptations as well.

Dune by Frank Herbert, the epic science-fiction story was rejected by 23 publishers before being accepted by Chilton, a small Philadelphia publisher. Source: Don’s blog and Nina Alvarez’s blog What differentiates us from the rest?

1. We are an Indian Publisher, and are proud to be so;
2. We hold a strong focus on writing and stories about India and/ or by Indian writers;
3. We view and evaluate manuscripts in a neutral and balanced manner. Manuscripts are judged on literary merits and commercial value and not based on who the writer is and whom they happen to know;
4. We are committed to developing and nurturing (incl. marketing) Indian talent;
5. We have a transparent approach in dealing with writers, trade and associates. Common principles/ rates will be applied (where possible) in dealing with different entities within a category. E.g. standard rates of % royalty on sales for all authors;
6. We aim for a short lead time from accepting a manuscript and releasing the book. Our target – less than 12 months;
7. We don’t believe in working in silos. There is a collaborative effort to bridge the gap between writing, editing, distribution and retail. We aim to ensure that all our stakeholders work closely towards common objectives;
8. We want to give back to our country - by developing new talent, supporting and nurturing reading and contributing to worthy social causes. We aren't a charity, nor are these CSR initiatives. This is an important part of who we are and why we exist.
9. We are dedicated to publishing: it’s all we do. We aren't distributors, retailers, printers or literary agents; and
10. We won't be cutting corners and compromising on quality. A low priced book does not mean using cheap paper, unreadable font and compromised quality of content.

What do we seek to publish? Being trade publishers, focused on Indian writing, our primary focus is to publish mass-market paperback Indian fiction aimed at a general audience under our flagship – ‘Grey Oak’ imprint. Besides this, we also aim to publish a limited list of titles under the 'Silverfish' imprint, targeted at young adults (12-17 age group) and a limited list of contemporary writing on travel, self-help, inspirational stories and biographies under our 'Chiron' imprint. Grey Oak also has another imprint called ‘Plan D’. Plan D focuses on a limited number of co-publishing assignments with authors in the same categories and genres as Grey Oak’s other imprints. This is managed independently from Grey Oak as a separate division. It will, however, draw upon resources and talent from the Grey Oak family where needed. Who is the team behind Grey Oak? Popular Authors, Ahmed Faiyaz and Deepak Dalal are among the founders of Grey Oak. Ali Mohammed Faiyaz, General Manager along with Jaya Nair our Publishing Director, head the management team. The Management Team works closely with a group of freelance editors, illustrators, publicists and designers based in Mumbai and Bangalore on our various publishing projects. We also count on the support of our group of advisors.