Welcome back to the show, my fellow Extraordinary Americans for today’s guest, we have Bobby Dunaway. Bobby Dunaway is the young and brilliant entrepreneurial publisher and CEO of Indigo River Publishing. 

After starting in the production department, he climbed through the ranks, eventually stepping into the role of publisher and CEO. Under his direction, indigo evolved from a hybrid publisher to a more incorporative publisher, in which authors are seen as partners in the editing, production, marketing, and sales of their books. 

Bobby was also responsible for overseeing the partnership with Simon and Schuster for distribution. And sales Indigo River Publishing has grown year after year and continues to publish books across all genres and for all age groups, including a little me by TLC * Amy Rohloff, who’s in your room by BNI founder Yvanne Messner, and the new release, the winning playbook by former NFL player Jonathan Scott. Indigo River Publishing has worked with authors that have been featured nationally, including on the Boston Globe, Forbes Inc, Entrepreneur Magazine, Good Morning America, NBC News, Yahoo, and Fox News Channel. 

Bobby is deeply committed to expanding leadership, empowering individuals, sharing their stories of wisdom, and growing Indigo River Publishing. He is truly an extraordinary American. And that is why I have him on this show, Bobby, are you there?  

I’m here cosmos. How are you?  

I’m doing well. It is an honor to have you as a guest for the show. Bobby, thank you for being willing to be interviewed.  

Yeah, of course. I know. We’ve been talking back and forth for a little bit. I’m glad we’re able to get on and talk.  

So, Bobby, I know that you’re a publisher. You’re a CEO and you’re an entrepreneur. Can you tell us and the audience a little bit more about your background and how? You got started.  

Yeah, it’s an interesting story. You know, I went to high school and went to college for a four-year degree in business marketing, just like everyone tells you you’re supposed to do. But then I graduated, and I didn’t have any life experience in the business. I wasn’t sure, you know. Should I move back to my hometown and just try to find a job there? Should I move somewhere elaborate for a year or two just? Just to do it and say I did it and then figure out life after that.

So, I ended up moving to a small-town smallish town, Pensacola, FL. I have a few friends here. I decided, you know what? I’m going to move to the beach for a year. If it doesn’t work out, I’ll move back home, I’m from Nashville.  

I love it.  

Figure it out there. You know, I was 22 at the time and I figured I would just try it out. And as soon as I moved here within probably a week, I saw an ad. It was a marketing assistant AD, I believe for a publisher, but it didn’t say much about it. I never knew I wanted to work in publishing, but you know my degrees in marketing, so I figured, you know, what the heck, I can try.

 So, I came in, I applied, came in. I see a gentleman Lee, and as I’m walking in, I’m like, OK, maybe he interviewed for it too. And I sat down. With one of the founders and he, we talked for a minute and he’s like, you know, honestly, the job that you came here for, we actually gave it away to the guy that just left. 

So, I kind of sat there for a second, I’m. OK, well, thank you for seeing me, but he wouldn’t let me leave. You know, we connected really well, and you know, we ended up talking and I ended up starting working as his assistant. He was an entrepreneur, so he owned several businesses in the area. So indigo, of course, is one of those. So, I worked with Indigo and a few other companies, but I kept coming back to Indigo. It was just an interesting business and the type of people you get to meet are just some of the most extraordinary. People you will, you know, you’ll find. 

So, I kept coming back to it and started to work more full-time. Then you know the production department and I started taking on more manager roles and you know under the founder he was also my mentor. I learned a lot about business under him and over the years I took on more and more responsibilities. Eventually the conversation came up where, you know, he has hands in a lot of different things. One of them being indigo. He wanted me to, you know, take a small piece of, you know, earn my dues after a few years. 

So, of course, I accepted that and kept growing with the company and eventually the deal was that he would turn over the keys, so to speak, to the company. Because, you know, it’s something about legacy for him. You know, he wants it to be in the hands of someone that he knows and trusts. And so that’s how I became, you know, Co/partner with my other partner here. Jet we both took over and since then we’ve seen amazing growth and partnered with Simon and Schuster and a lot of other things. 

So, starting from an assistant role intern, you know 7 1/2 years later, CEO of a successful book publishing company, it’s kind of an interesting journey. I think back to it if I decided, you know what, I’m just going to go back home after school and not move down here if I. Didn’t take that chance. Who knows where I’d be? You know. So interesting background, but yeah, I’m glad I made the moves I did and followed my instincts. And got me to where I’m.  

Bobby, what is really interesting about this story of yours is that you were only 22 when you started out on this path. And like you’re still in your 20s and you’re like a really successful businessperson. At this point and a lot of people, I feel like a lot of people in their 20s, just waste away their 20s or their late teens, like when they could be learning about business and education. And trying to start a business or just gathering Knowledge about it like. They just seem like they’re finding themselves. So, what is your advice for people that would want to start a business like a business in their 20s, but don’t know how to go about it?

I would say the first thing is just research. You know, the biggest thing you know, all of you know, one of my mentors told me is, you know, the one percenter of all the fields out there, they’re putting out podcasts, they’re putting out plugs. You know, they’re putting out seminars about what they’re doing, how they’re doing it. You know, find the niche, find the field that you’re interested in, and just start there. You know, it’s not going to hurt to spend $20.00 on a book or an audiobook or, you know, following those people, I think is probably your biggest, at least starting point, to see what they’re doing because you may start reading it and find out. It’s nothing you want to do and. You know you saved a bunch of time versus you looking at something going to a seminar, and you just fall in love. You kind of take it from there, but I think the biggest thing is to do some research, see what the top of each field is, what they’re doing, you know, within the field that you want to be in, and just kind of start your journey.  

There, you know. You know, boy, I totally agree with you. But you see, like, a lot of people in their early 20s, are too busy watching Netflix. Like I was discussing this with a fellow entrepreneur on my show the other week, right?

They’re just wasting their time watching shows like all you’re talking about is research. Doing education, like focusing on education, like that’s what we have to do, you know, to be successful in business and in finance is all together, right? Like the early 20s is the time to do. But it feels like most people waste their 20s by binge-watching shows or doing activities that feel good, but ultimately, they do not contribute to self-improvement altogether.  

You know, I think the big thing with that too is, you know, when you’re in your 20s I’m just 29, I’ll be 30 in a few weeks actually. But I think most 20-year-olds, including you know, have a lot of my friends that I had. They have so much time in their minds, like 20 you’re supposed to live life and kind of do kind of like what I said earlier. You know, when I moved to Pensacola that was, in my mind of, you know, I’m just going to move there for a year. If it doesn’t work out, I’ll move back and figure it out later. You know, thankfully I came into contact with successful people, who kind of took me in and mentored me and showed me like, no, take advantage of your youth and your time now so you can, you know, live the life you want to live later.  

It’s interesting, Bobby. Like one of the common themes that we always get. As we got success like you were like, the five people you hung out with the most. So, like I’m noticing that pattern is that you hung out with successful people at an early age, and then that cautioned you to your thoughts and actions which led you to where you are today.

But yeah, but more to that. You know, like a lot of people in their early training they need a vision or goal when it comes to, like, strategizing, success like, what was your goal and vision, their strategic goal and vision when it came to your career altogether over the period of 6-7 years.  

Yeah, I mean. You know, I started off… A little backstory on you knows where I grew up in a pretty big family. My grandpa was an entrepreneur. He owned his company. My dad owned his own company. A few of my aunts and uncles owned it there. So, I think entrepreneurship was, I understood it like I knew that I didn’t necessarily want to be in a 9 to 5 job for someone else for my entire life, you know, I wanted to have some control, but I didn’t really know what that meant at the time. 

So, I think when I moved here, I started talking to these other entrepreneurs and businesspeople. It just clicked for me. I think being an entrepreneur is definitely; It’s a different lifestyle, you know. You have to find your mentors, you have to read, you have to absorb information, and you have to go against the grain a lot of the time. 

I think for me, I had the entrepreneur seed in my mind. So that kind of helped me grasp it. But you know, if you’re from a family that works in, you know those specialized fields or the 9 to fives and you didn’t, you just don’t know what entrepreneurship is, but I think even then just get out there. Like I said before or see what the other people are doing. You know, you have passions, kind of explore those. See if you know, those passions can help. You know, pave the way for a possible career for you.  

Speaking of passions, a lot of people need a driving motivating factor. This will push them to continue doing business even when there’s highs and lows. And you and. I don’t know that there are all these highs and lows in business. 

So, what was the driving and one main factor that pushed you to succeed in business even if things would go hard?  

Yes, I would assume there are a few things you know. Of course, having financial stability, that’s a small piece and you know, making sure I’m comfortable and living a life that I want to live and growing to where I want to be. But I’d say the biggest thing is, you know, my family. I want to make sure that I’m positioning myself to know if something happens or if just eventually like, you know, my parents or anything like that, if they need help or if you know. I just want to be able to take care of those around me. Think that’s my Biggest “why” So, to speak. I’m young now and I can put in the effort if I can help those around me, that’s great and hopefully, you know long term I can help. People that I don’t know, you know, outside of my inner circles. And kind of nationwide and beyond. 

So I think that’s a big piece because you’re right, it does get hard sometimes you know you. May have a stressful situation or different things that you know. Just everybody goes through, but if you kind of focus on that, why, at least for me, I think that that helps motivate me, you know, going forward and keep going, and then I see the positive results of it of you know pushing through the resistance and then you get rewarded at the end so.  

I mean I think that’s like a common team. I noticed with all entrepreneurs like there is always going to be resistance. It’s just that they are people with an entrepreneurial bug who have a different mindset when it comes to reason. They see the almost like challenge that they need. Overcome, whereas other people, let that bulk them down. But that’s why that normally pushes them. So yeah. 

But Bobby, what is? The biggest lesson you learned in. When it came to. Your career in the publishing industry?  

The biggest lesson? There are probably 1000 lessons I’ve learned, but I think you know one of the big things is just being patient. You know my role now, I not only have to deal with just my team and working with them, making sure I’m patient with them too, you know whether let’s say, a system broke, but we also have to figure out what went wrong or just the day to days of helping them get things checked off their list. You know, being patient with them is good. 

But also, with, you know clients and the organizations or outlets we work with, you know, a lot of times, you know, you’ll talk with a company, but you have to go through, you know, five different people before you get to the person. You need to. Talk to and I’m sure a lot of industries are the same, but publishing it can be, you know, a lot of back and forth. 

It can get irritating, but you just have to be patient and kind of push through it. As we said before, you’ll get the results you need. But as I said, there are probably 1000 different things, but I’d say patience and hard work. It’s definitely good.  

So, can you? Tell the audience a little bit more about what the publishing industry is like. Like is This like a dog-eat-dog world or is it more of a cooperative type of industry?  

I mean, I think in some cases any industry, but publishing, there’s a lot of … could be a friction dog-eat-dog kind of thing, but honestly, I’ve not experienced too much hostility. You know, I think. It’s such a niche industry, you know, there are different sectors. You have the straight tradition. Those are mainly the top five Random House Penguins, Simon Schuster, and others. And then you have, you know, self-publishers, which really just help get the book together. And then the author kind of does their own thing.

And then indigo itself, we’re hybrids. So, we were selected with whom we take one out of the two 300 manuscripts we see. We may only take two or three of them, you know, which I can go into later, but. Yeah. I think it’s the biggest. The biggest thing for the industry is. You know, I think we are cooperative and collaborative with our authors. I think that one thing that kind of sets us apart from other publishers that are maybe more traditional is we’re mid-sized.

So, we’re able to have that really close running relationship with our authors. You know, we don’t have thousands and thousands which I know a lot of the larger publishers. You know if you’re not in the top 5% of their catalog. You may get, you know, left behind a little bit once your book comes out. 

So, I’d say that’s one thing. What helps us stand out is we’re really collaborative. We’re always open to talking with our authors and strategizing different ways to get their books out. And we enjoy it. We love our authors, and I think that’s the big thing too. You gotta love what you do, we really do and have a great team here. He loves working with authors and loves really getting words on a page and putting them out to the world.  

So, so, so, Bobby. Let’s say that there’s somebody in their early 20s. They just got out of university or college, and they want to become an entrepreneur in the publishing industry, and they want to. They want to start up, but they don’t know what to do or where to go about it. They don’t know anything about the industry. What advice would you give this person? How would you mentor this person regarding their next steps?  

I think one of the best things you can do is to be an intern. You know, maybe you can get a starting level position at a publisher that you want to work at, but even like, offer your time for free. Just say I’ll work 10 hours a week just to see what you do. I’ll help as much as I can and just absorb, hopefully leading to a job in the future. We’ve done that several times here just since I’ve been here, you know, offering internships. Because that’s how I got started in it. You know, I kind of worked in several different companies and I kept coming back to, you know, Indigo and publishing. It was just so interesting to me.

And yeah, I think that’s the biggest thing. It’s just trying to get in the door whether it’s, you know, starting level position, maybe it’s not exactly what you want to do, but you can learn while you’re there and move your way up that way Or just intern try to sit, sit at the table so to speak,  with the head honchos of the company as best you can and talk to those above you and get their experience. And kind of learn what they do every day.  You may go in and find that maybe it’s not for you and or maybe you find that you know publishing I like, but editing is really interesting. And then you kind of pivot a little bit to that. So yeah, I’d say just offer your time, even if it’s a few hours a week. You know, if there are no positions open and just get your foot in the door and just start absorbing.  

So, this is one of the things I agree with. The part about mentorship and being like an apprentice or being an intern. You know, one of the teams obviously would be with successful people and have a mentor that can show you early on. Like, I don’t think it’s appreciated how important it is to have the right mentors in our lives who can actually show us the ropes in the Field that we’re interested in. So yeah, I do agree with you. Like we have to like have People that are in our environment that are successful in the field, but also somebody who can be a mentor. So, I think being an intern like you is basically gaining that. 

So, what was the biggest challenge you had during your time in the publishing business and how did you overcome it?  

Well, recently at least, you know before I think it was 2020, beginning of 2020, we signed the deal with Simon and Schuster; essentially, they became our distributors, so our books could be pushed through, you know, their system. 

So, their book buyers were, you know, even further pushing our books to… or their salespeople pushing the books to book buyers. I would say it’s. Kind of twofold. One was, you know 2020, everybody’s been through it kind of affected everybody a little bit differently. But we didn’t know what was going to happen. We had to close our offices and work remotely for a few months like a lot of companies do. 

But I think the biggest takeaway from that is learning how to pivot. Because as an entrepreneur, you know you have to learn like the world’s going to change no matter what you do, no matter what industry you’re in. I’d say the biggest lesson I took from that is, we could stop operations closed for a few months, lay off everyone you know, and then just kind of wait it out and see. 

But instead, we took the other approaches. We’re working from home, but we’re going to, let’s take this time when things are calmer outside to you know, let’s look at our structure. What can we restructure? Are there different, you know aspects of publishing that we want to get into, but we just have in that time too and it really was a blessing in disguise because we just signed with Simon, which is a whole different Type of Way to publish the books we, you know, put our nose down and justice learned everything there was about how to work with them. You know how we can talk to new authors about this new opportunity for them and. It was a challenge, but it turned into a very big opportunity for us, so it was a. It was a good pivot.  

Boy, that is one that is, that is awesome. Because it’s almost like the choice of the fork in the road that you mentioned, right? It’s what the 9% usually do, and then what do the 1% usually do like? That’s the difference. 

Most people would let the environment get better like 2020 was a huge calamity here, you know like. Everybody was depressed like everything was closed. All you had to do was thrown in. The towel and just give up hope. But in your case what you did was you decided to just have a change in mindset as you taught differently. And that’s what led you to push or keep pushing forward you.  

Know. Yeah. Yeah, absolutely.  

So, it’s, I mean I would tell my audience that you, it’s all about mindset like your environment might be really hard, but if you have the right mindset. If you see things in a certain way, you can ultimately push forward and that’s what we need to do as entrepreneurs all together.

But on a different note, Bobby… America is the land of the free and the place where dreams are made, or at least that’s what people say. Do you agree or disagree with that and why?  

I think it goes back to what you said. It’s what you make. Of it, you know you could. You know, take advantage of the opportunities here and the freedoms that you have, but then still mess out because you have a nine-to-five job and you put all your energy into that. It’s about time you get home. You binge on Netflix, you play video games, and you’re kind of just zoned out because the day ground you up so badly that you needed that time at night to reset. And then you go back. And before you know it, twenty 30-40 years go by, you know, and you kind of missed the opportunity. 

I think the great thing about America is you can start from negatives, you know, negative net worth, and become a billionaire or more. The opportunities here are just how you view it, how you, what your mindset is, you know what your drive is, and when things get hard, what’s your why? What’s going to push you forward and you know, I think a lot of people have that they just need to tap into it, but. Yeah, I’d say that.  

No, I mean, uh. Yeah, it it’s. It’s basically about, yeah, it’s, it’s an environment, but ultimately, it’s up to us to, it’s up to us to push forward. There have been people that have come from nothing like, in fact, it’s trying. America is about showcasing people that came from nothing in order to become, like, really successful, you know, like they’ve become millionaires’ multimillionaires. 

I know you have achieved a lot of success yourself, and like you, you came from relatively. Humble beginnings, right? And what difference she, you, and the others from, like from like the from. Like for most people it was. Is the way you thought and acted right? You guys had a certain type of way of thinking and that’s why you guys took advantage of the opportunities and that’s What led you all to success.  

Yeah, I agree. Yeah.  

So, Bobby, you know, like there, well, people have different ideas of the American dream, right? Like, what do you do? But a lot of people feel like it’s really hard to achieve the American dream. A world like what do you think is the biggest hurdle that people have to achieve the American dream and how do they come about it from your perspective?  

I think it’s just what you absorb and the people in the room you’re with because 90% of people, if you follow them, they’ll Survive the mindset of you have to go to work every day. You need to make sure there’s enough money in the bank to cover you for retirement, but then you have the other, you know, 10%. That’s why they think differently. Entrepreneurs and businesspeople. 

They thrive. You like, what’s the next move that can get me? You know, higher than where I am in a positive way. I’d say that’s probably the biggest thing you just have to surround yourself with the people that you want to be like and beyond because if you look at your top five list. You know, that’ll kind of tell you where, where your mindset is and the easiest thing to do is just start. Getting in those circles being the dumbest one in the room. You know, where you just feel like if you speak, you’re going to say something crazy because everyone’s so smart and big in the room, but that’s where you need to put yourself. Be a little bit uncomfortable and absorb everything, and eventually, you’ll be the one contributing to those rooms.  

See Bobby, I find that really interesting because our society has become deeply narcissistic and self-centered, and very egoistic. In fact, the entire celebrity culture that we have right now is all about egoism. 

So, I understand what you’re saying because you need to learn. You need to gain all the dollars. Like, that’s how you become better, and you become really good at what you do. But being the dumbest in the room, kind of hits a lot of people who don’t want to be the dumbest in the room. They want to be the smartest in the room because that’s what feeds into the ego. Well, that’s what will make them feel. Better about themselves.  

Yeah, I think the concept and it’s uncomfortable, but that’s what. Going to take it.  

Yeah, I mean, it takes a lot of humility, right to, like, accept that hey. I don’t. I don’t know what I don’t know. I need to learn from people that are better than me in this field that I want to learn. But yeah, it’s easier said than done. There are a lot of people who won’t be able to do that, yeah. 

So, Bobby, you know, there’s a lot of, there’s been a lot of inflation in this current year and then a lot of people are struggling with debt. As an entrepreneur, what is your perspective on inflation and debt that’s happening in the country and in people’s lives altogether?  

Yeah, I mean you. I think you just have to look at it. You know you have the good debts and the bad debts which, you know, I think schooling, you don’t really learn that you got to real-life experience be around those that. Done it. You know you have your assets in your life like Rich Dad, poor dad. You know that book explains it very well. You know you have your assets and then you have your liabilities, your liability is I’m going to buy a house and live in it for 30 years. 

You think it’s an asset, but it’s really a liability because there’s no guarantee your price is going to go up and get your money back on it, but an asset you buy a house and rent it out, so it makes money for you instead of taking money away from you. So, I think, I mean, you know inflation, it is kind of one of those external factors, but people are thriving right now. People are making millions. Because they pivot it, you know, and that’s the biggest thing is you have to be able to move and adjust what you’re doing to the times out there. But you know, successful entrepreneurs know how to thrive, no matter what the situation.  

So, like right now you know, a lot of people go to colleges and they’re racking up these huge amounts of student debt with degrees that are not actually helping them, they call them financially free, like what is what? What would be your advice to people that are like this? Looking to go into like a four-year college, this thing to get a degree that uh will ultimately not help them succeed financially because they’re racking up like some people get $100,000 in debt like.  

More, yeah. Yeah. I mean, I’m not going to tell anyone not to go to college. I went to college. I think it was, If anything, it bought me time to kind of grow up and mature from when I was 18 and started to 2122. But. I think during that time you could very much like to study and do your work but also take that time. And like I said before, mentors like you have passion, you kind of know what you want to do even if like me like I know I want to you know own my own company at one point I just don’t know just try it out. You’re young and you have plenty of time on your hands. Don’t waste it.

 And don’t you know, get through school, and then go to a job because you have to pay the bills and then you know you’re not excited about it and then you get sucked into the grind. Of nine to five every day. And don’t have the energy to explore your passions and how to get into the career that you really want. 

So I think just start as early as you can and just see what’s out there in turn to study. You know that. You think are, you know, successful or beyond that and you know just try to absorb and make moves. Don’t be afraid to be uncomfortable too, you know, try to intern somewhere, or try to reach out to, you know, successful people and just try to take them to lunch. You know, a lot of people. I feel like a lot of successful entrepreneurs. If a young, you know, person, came into the office and offered to buy him lunch just to talk to him, I think 90% would probably do it or at least scheduled for another time.  

Because nobody does that anymore. They send in a resume, digital, you know, and then they just email back and forth. Nobody comes in person anymore. And in fact, I had two people that came in the office wanting to shake my hand, you know, tell me about what they’re doing. And those people are still with me today. Above all the other people that just send in a resume, you know?  

So what? So, what was the difference between that? They asked to like lunch and like, shake your hand versus sending a resume. If you can tell the audience what is the difference? From your perspective between the two approaches.  

I think for me, I know that it was uncomfortable for them to come in person, you know you don’t know whom you’re going to meet, or you know whom you’re going to ask to go to lunch or, you know, just sit and talk with but, the biggest thing like we’ve been talking about, you know, being an entrepreneur, it can be uncomfortable at times, but your “why” pushes you through it. 

So, the fact that they can come in person, which nobody does. And you know, knowing they’re uncomfortable. But they did it anyway because they’re passionate and they want to learn and grow. I mean that says it all. I don’t even need to see your resume at that point. You know.  

Yeah, interesting like that. And there’s like, there’s, like, arguments on both sides, like regarding whether one should go to college, like from an entrepreneurial perspective, like some believe that it’s an important place to, like, find yourself, know who you are and basically grow as a person. Like, that’s when you find out more about your identity. 

But then there’s The other side of people who are really successful entrepreneurs was like, man, I like college is a waste of time. It’s just like useless degrees. Instead, learn to be like an apprentice or learn the cause at the end of the day, the bottom line is you’re trying to make money. You’re trying to be financially free. You’re going to college to ultimately get a job, to make money, and yeah, and so unless you’re trying to do a stem deal with, like, science, technology, mathematics, and all of that, like, yeah.  

Like a lot of entrepreneurs, they will find it pointless. But yeah, that’s something that I noticed during discussions and all of that.  

Yeah, you have the back and forth and you know if you. Go to college as a safety net, so to speak. OK, but you can still use that time to look at the other side. Find mentors in turn, figure out what you want to do because it’s easy for you know, I was in school. It was hard. I mean it’s.  

I mean that’s Why I’m bringing it up. Because, like, not only did you do college, but at you, but at a relatively young age you found mentors and you found the right circles. And you became successful. In your 20s, it’s lead or not, Bobby. It’s really hard for most people to succeed in their 20s. Like, let alone in my 30s like to achieve a level of success and my 20s. 

Like you have to be in the right fields and all that. And then you did college, and like you finished, like four years and then you found the right circle. 

So, you had like the full breadth of experience, so yeah. Like, that’s the ultimate thing, right? Like you found you had a like, as most people do. One or the other, right? From an entrepreneurial business perspective, you had a thing like seeing. It is from both sides, so it’s pretty interesting.  

Yeah, definitely.  

So, Bobby, can you tell me and the audience a little bit more about Indigo River publishing and the premise of how it got started? And just like the overall journey and books that you’re that. You published in.  

You know, Indigo was started about 10 years ago. We just hit our 10-year anniversary this year. You know, we published all genres, cookbooks, children’s nonfiction, fiction, and the nonfiction lane business self-help. Well, I’d say 70% of the authors we end up publishing are in that nonfiction and self-help business lane just because that’s, you know, we’re entrepreneurs, we get it.

So we connect really well with those types of authors, but we do publish all and we love our children’s books and you know our motto. Here is, you know, a take on books that are words worth reading. You know what’s going to have a lasting impact on that, even a cookbook. You know, it’s going to make an impact on somebody if you do it the right way. And you promote certain things that you know are not just a fad or going to, you know, there’s a quick fad right now. You know, maybe in a year or two, nobody even knows what it is anymore. 

So, we try to put out books that are, you know, they’re going to have a lasting impact. And, you know, I think that’s done really well for us and our authors.  

Yeah, I’m sure that my audience would all be more biased toward business self-help books because we all we’re always looking to self-improve altogether.  

Oh yeah. Yeah, we have some. Some of the top authors, I mean just some of the most gracious but successful people. So yeah, our catalog is pretty big with the nonfiction side of things and growing, you know every month. 

So, you should definitely check out our catalog on our website. We have a lot of good books for young and old entrepreneurs.  

Yeah, yeah, I would definitely like if anybody wants to write a book or they want to, they want to be an author to definitely reach out to you because.  

Yeah, we, you know, accept all submissions. We may not publish, or maybe the manuscript isn’t something that really fits within our catalog, but we do accept submissions worldwide, so we’re always happy to look over the submissions that come in and, you know, feel free to send Whatever you have our way, we’ll take a look at it. 

Yeah, and you’d be surprised. You know, some we publish authors that have published 25 books, and we’re doing their 26th. But we do publish a lot of authors, it’s their first book. Maybe they’re businesspeople, maybe there, you know, in a niche field like a doctor or engineer, and they just want to put this book. Out to help either grow their business or to try to make an impact on those. And it’s their first book and they don’t know how to get started. We’ve helped many authors in that boat too. So don’t be afraid to, you know, take a chance, and submit it.  

That is awesome, Bobby. So, Bobby, is there any other work or project that you’re currently working on that you’d like the audience to get a glimpse of?  

I mean, I think right now my main focus has been, you know, since I took over about two years ago really systemizing and growing and to go and you know, part of my role here is just connecting with others that you know, maybe I could find a JV with some distributors or some other entity could help grow not only indigo but can help them as well. 

So yeah, right now anybody that maybe you’re in publishing, maybe you’re in some other field that you think could be you know a good connection for us to collaborate. You know that’s kind of why I’m here. Feel free to reach out if You have Those thoughts too. No, no, no idea is too crazy. In my book. 

Hey, I’ll definitely keep that in mind. So how can our audience get to connect with you and get to know more about what you’re doing and your website?  

Yeah, well, our website is indigoriverpublishing.com you can email me directly, Bobby at indigoriverpublishing.com and if you have a manuscript, you can submit it directly through the website. Just make a note that you know, you heard. From this podcast that I told you to submit, I’ll have a note and I’ll talk with my team about it so we can push it to the top of the pile. But I’m on LinkedIn. All the socials, so the best way to get a hold of me is probably by e-mail or on LinkedIn and I’m looking forward to connecting with anyone that wants to, you know, keep the conversation.  

Bobby, it’s really an honor to have you on the show. Like you’re an actual, like, an extra American that in his 20s, succeeded against all odds. You had a certain way of thinking and acting, and I hope that my audience got some value and some insights into how to become successful as well.  

You know, thanks for having me, and hopefully we can do it again soon.  

And I want to conclude this episode by telling my fellow extraordinary Americans that, hey, there is an extraordinary within each and every one of us. It is our duty to empower and unleash them until next time. Bye for now.