CJ Penland, author
CJ Penland, author

Carma Paden

Founder | Publisher | Author

I distinctly remember the first time I read a book and immediately read it all over again. It wasn’t the first time I had reread a fabulous book—heavens, no—but this time I read the final page, closed the cover, sighed happily, and immediately flipped the book open to begin my reread.

For me, saying I love reading is approximately as superfluous as saying I love breathing.

Words themselves have always fascinated me—their history, their precision, and their ability to shape the way we think and learn. I was the worst (best?) kind of language nerd: the one who enjoyed diagramming sentences in high school, the one who took Latin and Advanced English Grammar in college because they would be useful for my vocabulary and writing ... and fun.

That fascination became a career. Over the years I’ve worked as a freelance proofreader and copyeditor, a production editor in educational publishing, and a communications director, helping authors and organizations communicate clearly and effectively. I hold degrees in English and Elementary Education, and I spent many years homeschooling my four children, an experience that deepened—if it were possible—my appreciation for books that educate the imagination as much as the intellect.

Today I’m the founder and publisher of Word in Hand Press, an independent publishing house dedicated to creating books worth living with. The press reflects my conviction that the best books are crafted with care and worthy of returning to again and again.

I write as well, of course. As publisher, I write the essays in the Stacks exploring why story matters and what makes enduring children’s literature. I also write reviews of excellent books and topical essays on writing, editing, reading, and the craft of publishing.

I write nonfiction, mostly for adults but also for children, under my own name, drawing on my experience in education, homeschooling, language, and publishing. I write fiction, mostly for children but also for adults, under the pen name CJ Penland.

And as a professional writer and editor of several decades, em dashes—the long hyphens around this phrase—are a critical part of my writing that I will never give up, no matter what a certain segment of the population may think they may portend. Oxford commas are also non-negotiable.

When I’m not writing or editing, you’ll probably find me browsing the children’s section of the library, studying the construction of a beautifully written picture book, researching obscure word histories, or planning the next project for Word in Hand Press.

Whether you’ve arrived here as a reader, a fellow writer, an educator, or simply someone who loves well-made books, welcome.

From my shelf to yours,
~ Carma

Carma Paden, editor-in-chief
Carma Paden, editor-in-chief

My kids gave me this nameplate for Christmas when I began working to launch Word in Hand Press!

PS: What’s in a Name?

I’ve spent most of my life explaining my name. (Writing books is much simpler.)

Yes, Carma is actually my given name. Yes, I was born in the 1960s. No, my parents were not flower children—not even close!

And Paden is pronounced phonetically, though for some reason almost everyone gets it wrong. Say “paid in full,” but leave off the full.

I write nonfiction under my own name, but is it any wonder I picked a pen name for my fiction writing? CJ Penland is all family. The C is for me, and the J for the middle names of my mother and sister. Penland sounds suspiciously on the nose for a writer, I know ... but it’s truly my grandmother’s maiden name. If you’d like to meet the woman who gave me that name, you’ll find her story in From Tuff to Impossible: A Century in the Texas Hill Country.

Fiction by CJ Penland

Professional Affiliations