More to Crow About

Frederick G. Yeager, Author

I would not have been able to self-publish my book without the support and assistance of Hen House Publishing. The owner, Karen, was very knowledgeable and expertly assisted me in moving through the process for Kindle Direct Publishing. Karen was very professional and responded quickly to my questions and issues. Without hesitation, I recommend Hen House Publishing if you are considering self-publishing.

Tom Hock, Artist & Author

When I started writing my stories, I didn’t have a lot of confidence. People enjoyed my stories, but my English skills are not the best. A lot of people gave me encouragement and I self-published my first book. While starting my second novel, Iron Embrace, I met Karen who owns Hen House Publishing and learned she had helped edit, ghostwrite, and publish several books. l was comfortable working with her from the beginning. Karen immediately picked up on my writing style and showed genuine interest in the novel. Her ability to share comments in a clear and meaningful way helped me transition the thoughts in my mind onto the pages. She suggested elements to think about like character thoughts and feelings, time and travel distance, and story lines. Iron Embrace is based on a real story and her attention to authenticity and details was crucial in bringing history to life. There was never any pressure to hurry through her edits—I took my time to think on her suggestions. When I was done with a set of revisions, I would send the new draft book back to her. The pace of drafts and revisions was excellent. I highly recommend Karen M. Smith at Hen House Publishing. This process has given me confidence to keep on writing and sharing my stories and I will not hesitate to use Hen House Publishing again.

Kimberly Gilson, Author

As a first-time author, I cannot recommend Karen’s services highly enough. She is professional, dependable, and committed to making your project the best it can be. She did a critique of my work, the editing, and the formatting. Karen was the thought partner I needed. She did more than just correct spelling and grammar. She provided invaluable insight to my Christian non-fiction book that greatly improved the clarity of the ideas I was presenting. I look forward to working with her on my future projects!

Michael Lopez Rios, 0-0-8 Studios

It was an absolute pleasure working with Karen. 10/10, 5/5, 8/8, highly recommended for collaboration. 🙂

I got to see and discuss Karen’s “method-to-madness”‘ firsthand. I enjoyed every word, moment, and lesson to be had. Karen’s writing is quick, efficient, and keeps you locked in, ensuring purpose to every word. She is patient (w/ great communication), detail-oriented, shares opinions and research when needed, and isn’t afraid of questions—helping drive projects in the best direction possible.

Very rarely do we run into individuals who share in mission with us, but Karen was it. Her efforts helped bring a story to life, one word at a time. And we loved it.

0-0-8 Studios looks forward to the next collab.

Dawn Sutherland, Sutherland & Associates, Inc.

We recently hired Karen Smith to write a series of short articles following an online event. She quickly suggested topics and immediately drafted the first article.

Karen is an excellent writer. She effectively captured the tone and style of our organization. We particularly appreciated her subject-matter research which provided an additional depth and breadth to the articles. Karen made appropriate and very savvy strategic decisions regarding the content. We didn’t have to hold her hand and tell her what to write.

Karen works quickly and efficiently. Most articles did not require any revisions. She’s that good!

I would highly recommend Karen. It was a pleasure working with her. We will definitely use her ghostwriting services again.

Arvey Krise, Author

This is my first book to self-publish. It has been a tedious learning process, a template for future publications, so when my editor suggested I hire a professional formatter, I was at a loss. But then she recommended Karen Smith from Henhouse Publishing. I am so happy she did. Karen picked up her phone herself, the first time I called, and patiently answered all of my questions. She is amazing. A seasoned professional who immediately made me feel at ease. If you’ve slaved over writing a book, you understand that it is your baby, a product of the proverbial blood, sweat, and tears, and you are the protective mama. Karen treated my book with respect. When she recommended that I get a professional proofreader, I questioned it. But based on her many impressive years of experience I took her advice. A brilliant suggestion … but one that required Karen to reformat the manuscript to include the corrections. Corrections of errors that would have gone to press without Karen.  She did a wonderful job and is my go-to for future books. Thank you Karen!

Donna Johnson

“I highly recommend Karen. She did a remarkable job editing my first book manuscript. I look forward to working with her in the future.“

Ashley MarChelle

“Karen did an amazing job! She’s professional, thorough and offered constructive criticism. What more can I ask for?“

Mike DiGilio, President, Wallcovering Installers Association

“I just finished the latest Installer and I wanted to compliment you all.  What a great issue. The idea of bringing Karen in to do the writing is brilliant. It looks great and reads great. It makes us look so good.  Keep up the good work. Great job everyone. I can’t wait to read the next one.“

Cindy Draughon, Freelance Editor

“​I’ve edited more than 60 manuscripts in the last several months, as well as prodigious amounts of documents written by senior-level executives over the course of five years. Rarely have I found someone who writes as well as Karen. Her thoughts are lucid and well-organized and, in my opinion, her skills really shine when it comes to fiction flavored with paranormal nuances. She masterfully draws 3-D or even 4-D characters and weaves stories the reader does not want to put down, even to grab a bite to eat. Karen is a prolific writer, and when I asked how she manages that…she said if she didn’t write, her mind would explode. Now that’s the sign of a true writer!”

Greg Laux, Marketing Committee​Wallcovering Installers Association

“I just wanted to say thanks and congratulations for making us appear far more polished than we really are!”That was a pleasure to read and the wordcraft involved made [the newsletter] an easy–and enticing—flow. I am betting our members will find similarly. Thank you for both your skills and the time you have devoted to upholding our professionalism.”

Charles Leveilee

“Wonderful experience to work with Karen, effortless to communicate with her. She’s super knowledgeable how to write an excellent article. Hope to work again with you.”

John Guagliardo, Ph.D., Executive Director​World Library Foundation

“I have had the distinct pleasure of being able to work with Karen for the past several years. During that time, she has done a wonderful job as the World Library Foundation’s monthly newsletter’s senior editor. Karen created the page layouts, wrote articles, and edited the articles of the other four staff writers. We could not have done it without her. She never was late or under preformed. Karen was always a pleasure to work with.”​I wanted to post this recommendation, to express my sincere appreciation for all she had done to help our Foundation.”

Mary Hoy

“Highly recommended writer. High quality work!”

Dominic Brogsdale, Author

“And a very special thank-you to my consultant and editor, Karen M. Smith (Hen House Publishing). She’s extremely professional. She edits your work quickly and gets it back to you fast. She fixed grammar and punctuation, gives top-notch advice, and wants nothing but the best for you and from you. Anything else you can think of in terms of writing she does and she does it well.”I produce 7,000- to 15,000-word stories and Karen gets it back to me within one to three days! If she’s late or working on it because she’s assisting another, she has the courtesy to get back to you and let you know she’s a bit behind: you can’t beat that type of professionalism. Karen also helped me with a public reading of my story, ‘Evil On Top of Evil: Part 2.’ I needed it within 24 hours; she got it back to me with in a couple of hours and sent me three different formats. Again, you can’t beat that type of professionalism. She’s been wonderful.”

Brett Kade, Author

“​It’s always nerve-racking having your work critiqued, especially by a professional. Karen made the process simple and easy. She was able to knock out my manuscript in no time and gave me valuable feedback to make it better. When I get the next one done, I’m definitely heading her way again.”

Dee Owens, CEO​Personalized Marketing Inc.​

“As a marketing manager, it is always nice to have clients where you not only enjoy working with them but also enjoy their material as well. I have had the pleasure of working with her when it comes to writing content for blogs. Not only is Karen efficient when it comes to getting her work done, but she is also thorough on the topics she writes about.​”As a reader, I have had the great pleasure of reading books written by Holly Bargo (aka Karen). Her stories are well told, they provide just enough pace to keep you hooked for more while not rushing ahead leaving you wondering where the story got lost. Her editing skills definitely come into play when you go to read her work, you can tell that she took the time to look over her work before sending it out to the public.”

Bradley Caro Cook, Ed.D., Co-founding Director, Career-Up Now

“I’ve been searching for years to find the right person to work with in publishing my books. Karen came to the rescue … not only is she meticulous in her work, she also has excellent communication skills and gets things done quickly. She’s allowed me to focus on the parts I love to do, and she’s taken care of the rest. If you are exploring someone to work with, look no further than Karen and Hen House Publishing.”