Velocity Press publishes electronic music and club culture non-fiction and fiction. We aim to create a catalogue that feels like a trusted record label in its integrity and vision and deliver exciting stories to serious electronic music fans who enjoy good literature.
Velocity Press publisher Colin Steven previously co-promoted jungle club Ruffneck Ting in Bristol during the 90s, set up award-winning magazine Knowledge in 1994 and published Brian Belle-Fortune’s seminal drum & bass book All Crews in 2004.
Website: velocitypress.uk
Email: info@velocitypress.uk
Mastodon: @velocitypress
Twitter: @PressVelocity
Instagram: @velocitypress
Facebook: www.facebook.com/velocitypressbooks
In their own words…
When did you start publishing?
We’ve been publishing since October 2019.
What made you want to start an independent publisher?
I previously published an award-winning drum & bass magazine called Knowledge for 20 years. During that time I published a book called All Crews: Journeys Through Jungle Drum & Bass Culture by Brian Belle-Fortune. The internet killed off the physical magazine in 2009 but we soldiered on as a website but the book kept on selling. I missed the physical days and rather than launch another magazine I decided to pivot and start a new book publishing company.
What genres do you specialise in?
We specialise in electronic music and club culture. Most are non-fiction but we have published one fiction title so far and I’d like to do more.
Where are you based?
We’re based in London.
Do you have a submission window, if so when?
No, we’re open to submissions the whole year.
What is your submission procedure?
Please send a summary of what you have written, or intend to write to info@velocitypress.uk. A separate breakdown of chapters is useful if you have one.
Who are you?
I run Velocity Press on my own and outsource production like cover design, typesetting proofreading, copyediting, printing, etc. Although he’s a freelancer, I have to pay tribute to Paul Baille-Lance from PBL Publishing as not only does he typeset most of our books, but I also use him for proofing and copy-editing too and he does a great job.
What was your background in the book industry before this venture?
As mentioned above, I published All Crews: Journeys Through Jungle Drum & Bass Culture by Brian Belle-Fortune in 2004. It went out of print in 2020 so I’m looking to publish it again next year with an update on what’s happening now in drum & bass.
Talk about some of your books if possible, upcoming, favourite?
We’ve been really busy the last few years and have published 18 books as of June 2022 so it’s hard choosing favourites. Our first book Join The Future: Bleep Techno & the Birth Of British Bass Music by Matt Anniss was special, it really put us on the map.
Reissuing Trevor Miller’s Trip City in 2021 is worth mentioning too. Not only is it a great book and our only fiction title but we got to work with acid house legend A Guy Called Gerald as we also reissued his soundtrack on vinyl.
More recently, Harry Harrison’s Dreaming In Yellow: The Story of the DiY Sound System has been selling like hot cakes and is shaping up to be our biggest seller.
Most of our books are paperbacks but we’ve done a few beautiful coffee table books like Junior Tomlin Flyer & Cover Art and Who Say Reload: The Stories Behind the Classic Drum & Bass Records of the 90s and the production values of our next book, Members Only: The Iconic Membership Cards and Passes of the Acid House and Rave Generations, will top the lot.
