Hang Time Press Forges Niche With Mini Cookbooks

Jack Irby, a former technology executive, has announced the formation of Hang Time Press, a new-media publishing company in Napa Valley.

The initial focus of Hang Time Press is 10-recipe ebooks, a niche the company is forging in the cookbook category. Without the logistical and financial limitations of printing, Hang Time Press will create books sized between traditional cookbooks and magazine-like features, appealing to cooks who want a collection of recipes in an easy-to-navigate digital format.

The company's holiday release, "There's a Party in My Pantry!" by Wes Martin, a frequent Rachael Ray guest, is a survival guide for impromptu entertaining just in time for the holidays.


Two cookbooks were released earlier in the year and included "Summer Smoothies" and "Super Burgers," both written by Irby's wife, best-selling cookbook author Lori Lyn Narlock.

The 2012 lineup includes the January release of "Almonds in the Savory Kitchen," by former Sunset magazine food editor Kate Washington, and a spring title, "Sublime Bloody Marys to Start Your Day," by Paul Abercrombie, author of "Organic, Shaken and Stirred: Hip Highballs, Modern Martinis and Other Totally Green Cocktails."

Hang Time Press will publish the works of established and emerging authors, as well as food and wine bloggers. It will also work with wineries and other culinary-related companies to develop custom books of all lengths.

Hang Time Press mini ecookbooks are priced at $2.99 and are available for sale at iTunes, Amazon and Barnes & Noble. More information about the company, including its authors, current book list and submission requirements, is available at hangtimepress.com.

Hang Time Press will begin to release full-length fiction and non-fiction ebooks beginning in spring 2013.