Karen McDermott – AusMumpreneur Expert

Hello, my name is Karen and I am the founder of Serenity Press, a boutique publishing business based in Perth. We are a publisher with heart. Although we have transitioned towards the more traditional publishing module we do adhere to the principles that we were founded on by offering publishing packages to aspiring authors and businesses.

My life is amazing; however I have experienced my fair share of challenges also. I am grateful for everything and I have always been resilient so I always pick myself up and build upon my new found knowledge and wisdom. This is why I find myself where I am today.

I am a 38 year old mum of 6 beautiful children aged 19,9,7,5,2 and a baby. I moved to Australia in 2008 35 weeks pregnant with my 3^rd child, we knew no-one. When we arrived we had 2 boys and our lives have turned pink since as we have added 4 girls to our family since. We are very blessed with healthy children, this is something I never take for granted. Our choice to move here was instigated due to a traumatic incident in my home that occurred in 2006. We chose to apply for visas and give it a go. In 2008 we moved to Perth and my life and healing has reached new heights since.

In November 2010 I wrote and my first novel The Visitor. This book was a catalyst to many amazing opportunities coming my way. I healed so much when I wrote this book. It wasn’t until the enlightening moment occurred that provided me with a spiritual reasoning as to why I had a miscarriage in 2007 that I could begin to understand deeper why this had to happen to me. Although the book is fictional it has my story weaved through it. The Visitor has connected with many women who are seeking a why and I have made some very deep and meaningful connections through writing this story.

When I published this book in 2011 I did not even consider seeking a publisher as I wanted to self publish it. I had a very negative publishing experience with my chosen publishing house and the whole process was geared towards how much money the company could get from me. I was so disappointed as it had taken a lot of goodness away from my dream of seeing this book in print. I did not understand then that it would be a catalyst towards me establishing my own publishing press.

‘When Time and Circumstance align, magic happens’

In 2013 I was asked if I thought that I could start my own publishing business and my heart screamed yes. Every step has been amazing and that is how I have built my business to where it is now, by taking small steps towards the bigger picture. The one thing that is always the same though is that that I publish as an author, I understand how much a book means to someone. It is important that the final product is something that every author is proud of and that the process in achieving this dream is as smooth as possible. For business owners, authoring a book can skyrocket your credibility. People often want to bottle up and take home all of your knowledge when they meet you or hear about you. When you publish a book you give readers/clients the opportunity to allow that to happen, you can reach more people and most importantly you can maximize profits at events. It is also a wonderful tool in time management as we are time poor so to be able to refer someone to a book you have written is a gift to them and an avenue for future connections to source you.

I look forward to inspiring you as an Ausmumpreneur expert and if there is ever anything I can assist you with feel free to connect.