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Creators of Forever Mountain Publishing offer perspective on crafting their year-old business

Patrick and Lisa Kidder created Forever Mountain Publishing and the Sally Port Magazine to help creatives share their stories.

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Patrick and Lisa Kidder, creators of Forever Mountain Publishing, started their company after working in different fields. Patrick Kidder studied psychology. Lisa Kidder was an educator and taught all age levels. She got her doctorate degree in instructional design.

After feeling burned out, Patrick Kidder decided he wanted to try something new.

“I’ve been a storyteller forever, wanted to be a writer since junior high school, but my family strongly encouraged me to do otherwise, so I got a master’s in psychology, worked in mental health for a while,” Patrick Kidder said. “I got really burned out on that and decided, ‘No I’m just going to do what I want to do, which is tell stories, write books and be in publishing.’”

Before the publishing company, Patrick Kidder worked as a freelance author and became frustrated with magazines due to many focusing on who the author was instead of what the story was about.

“So, I decided, ‘No, I’m not doing that. I want a publication where it’s the story first,’” Patrick Kidder said. “So, all our submissions are blind submission. I read the story, my interns read the story, we like it and then we worry about who the author is and talking with them about it.”

Forever Mountain Publishing will hit its one-year mark in October, and the Kidders agreed that starting the company has been a great opportunity to encourage all sorts of writers who work with different genres.

“Not only did we want to create, but we wanted to create a space to help encourage others to create and give them an opportunity to get into publishing,” Lisa Kidder said. “There are so many easy ways in that you can do, but sometimes you need connection that help, and so we wanted to create that space.”

Patrick Kidder said it is important to practice using individual talents so they can flourish as needed, whether that is for an emotional outlet or to serve Heavenly Father and his children.

“And I think part of that is you take one step at a time. Virtually nobody gets accepted on that first submission,” Patrick Kidder said. “The other part is fair to say, ‘Okay Heavenly Father, what the heck am I supposed to do with this?’ and if you keep at it, He will show you.”

To hear more from The Kidders, listen to the full interview on BYU-Idaho Radio’s podcast on Spotify, YouTube or wherever you get your podcasts.