About Us
Stories worth telling. Moments worth remembering.
Open Spaces Publishing is an independent publishing imprint founded by author David Shaw with a simple belief: meaningful stories do not have to be loud to matter.
Some of the stories that stay with us longest are found in ordinary places—in small towns, around kitchen tables, between generations, in difficult seasons, and in the quiet moments we often do not recognize as important until much later.
That belief is at the heart of Open Spaces Publishing.
What began as a home for character-driven fiction has grown to include novels, reflective nonfiction, children's literature, and other works centered on connection, memory, belonging, family, resilience, and the experiences that shape who we become.
Our books may tell very different stories, but they share a common purpose: to notice what matters, give voice to experiences that are easily overlooked, and create books readers can carry with them long after the final page.
About David Shaw
David Shaw is an author originally from rural Ohio who now lives in Northeast Tennessee.
His writing is drawn to ordinary people and places—the small towns, familiar homes, complicated families, unexpected friendships, moments of humor, seasons of loss, and everyday experiences that quietly become part of our lives.
His work ranges from character-driven fiction to reflective essays and children's literature, but across genres his approach remains the same: tell honest stories, find meaning in the details, and never underestimate the importance of an ordinary moment.
Open Spaces Publishing was created as a home for those stories and has continued to grow alongside them.
From Writing Books to Helping Authors
Publishing a book independently involves much more than writing the final sentence.
There are manuscripts to review, pages to format, covers to prepare, publishing platforms to navigate, and promotional materials to create. Learning that process firsthand became an important part of the Open Spaces Publishing story.
It also led to something new.
Through Open Spaces Publishing Author Services, that experience is now being used to help other independent authors navigate the journey from manuscript to finished book.
The goal is not to take control of an author's work or turn every manuscript into something that looks and sounds the same. It is to provide practical assistance, personal attention, and another set of experienced eyes when an author needs help figuring out what comes next.
Because writing the book is a tremendous accomplishment.
You shouldn't have to figure out everything else alone.
Open Spaces Publishing
Stories worth telling. Moments worth remembering.
From manuscript to marketplace.