hut 22 Books

Hut 22 Books is a new venture from local author Jo Bavington-Jones.  Jo has been writing and working in publishing for a number of years.  However, with her experiences and those of other new authors, finding a publisher is incredibly hard.  Now, having been a part of the Folkestone Marketplace at Folkestone Harbour Arm with her partner, photographer Dirk Seyfried, Jo has started up a publishing company for local authors.  It’s named after their hut at Folkestone Marketplace – Hut 22 Books.  Folkelife met with Jo to learn about the business.

“To publish a book you need to have a literary agent, and getting one of them is as rare as hens’ teeth. Very few are taking on new clients, and when they do, only 1% of new fiction gets sold.  I started writing in 2017 and have published 5 books in crime and women’s fiction through a hybrid publisher.  This means that I pay for the publishing, but there is a quality control to the book rather than just vanity publishing, or self-publishing.  You do get higher royalties on your book, but you don’t get the same publicity as if you were with a big name publisher.  It’s jolly hard work for any new author.”

who you know

“Publishing is one of those businesses where it’s about who you know. I have been rejected hundreds, if not thousands, of times and hence the reason for going with a hybrid publisher.  Now, they weren’t cutting the mustard for me so I’ve set up my own hybrid publishing business, named after our hut at the Folkestone Marketplace, where I’ve been selling my books up to now. 

“Hut 22 Books is going to look after authors who, like me, want a beautiful book at the end of the day.  I’m going to proof-read all books before going to publishing, get them typeset, with beautiful cover designs, and the book files ready for e-publishing.  I want all of my authors to be thrilled when holding their first book.  I know how that feels.  It’s the best feeling.  And, you worry and you care about your work being presented in the best way it can.”

the hut 22 empire

“I don’t want a publishing empire.  It’s important to me that I represent a small group of treasured clients.  I’ve published 2 books already – bearing in mind we talked about doing this at the end of December 2024, and it’s now February 2025.  The Bonfire Buddliea came out on 3rd March 2025 and it’s a women’s fiction novel about three sisters.  I’ve used myself as the guinea pig so that I can get the process right.  There was a heart-stopping moment when 350 copies of my book arrived a few weeks before publishing and there was damage to the spine of about 50 books.  It’s my job to open each box and check every single book.  These damaged ones need to go back and be replaced.”

more authors joined

“I spoke to a few contacts when I thought about doing this and they have asked me to publish their books too.  This is why it’s important to get a couple of mine through the process so I can make sure theirs are perfect.  I’m only going to take on new authors if they come to me, rather than going out and seeking people.  My partner, Dirk, is a photographer and he has been interested in publishing a coffee table book of photographs of Folkestone for a while.  That’s coming out later in 2025 and then we will have a few novels after that. 

“What’s really important is this is about making some people’s dreams come true.  It’s never going to be a huge money-making business for me, and that’s not what I want anyway.  This is done out of love of books and love of sharing those stories.  It also needs to be fun!  If this gets too stressful then that’s not the plan. “

hut 22

“The name means something to both of us.  We’ve been selling our books and photographs from Hut 22 for a couple of years now.  It felt right to name it that.  Both Dirk’s and my books will be available from the hut, and in the local area.  We’ve got a good relationship with the Folkestone Bookshop who’ve always stocked my books.  I’ll be working on my socials to reach a wider audience than Kent, and going to some book festivals and so on.  

“The Bonfire Buddleia is about three sisters, historic abuse and a bit of a tear-jerker. I have written two crime novels – The Write Way To Die, and Bang To Rights, and the third is coming out soon called The Wipeout Round.  I’ve thoroughly enjoyed the black humour and gruesome nature of writing these books.  They’re great fun.  I think there’s still some women’s fiction in me too, but there’s plenty of time to write that.  Unfortunately, crime does actually pay (better than women’s fiction!).