Small independent publishing houses have always and will always, struggle to find their niche in the marketplace. And if you’ve fallen in love with a good book lately, one of those you wish would never end, then you know that finding well-written, entertaining and ‘worth the time’ reads is a fabulous feeling.
Question is – did you listen to the story while driving to work on audio book? Or perhaps dip in and out of the reading escape on a long flight on a tablet? Or did you per chance, read an actual ‘hold it in your hands’ book?
Indie publishers like Horse in a Kilt Media are bucking the trends and avoiding the AI heap of ‘literary masterpieces’ on sites like Amazon and going back to basics. And success is following, along with better profit margins.
The most recent Horse in a Kilt Media title hits close to home. The Dutchess of Chadwick, is authored by the founder of the company, Nikki Alvin-Smith. The title has seen stellar sales numbers since its release in March 2025. And remarkably all those sales have been in print copy with not a dollar spent on advertising.
Many of you are familiar with Nikki’s non-fiction works. But her stable of fiction works is gaining popularity. But it has been a game of patience and persistence, as Nikki explains:
“The Dutchess of Chadwick story is a Gilded Age transatlantic romance and is ironically very topical right now, with the popularity of the TV show, The Gilded Age, enjoying great viewership. It’s ironic, because I wrote this book back in 1996 and it was very close to contract with one of the ‘big five’ houses in 1997. But then as happens, my Editor moved on and The Dutchess of Chadwick fell through the cracks. It sat in its varietal manuscript forms in storage and moved from our Hudson Valley farm to our Catskill Mountain farm, ending up along with three other of my earlier works in the loft of the house once we eventually finished building that. Reviving it, updating and rewriting parts of it and then painting the actual cover for it by my own hand has been an engaging experience. But as all writers know. Writing it isn’t the tough part. Getting it sold and in the hands of readers is – and I’ve been so thrilled with the response to it.”
Horse in a Kilt Media makes bulk sales to various booksellers plus directly filling sales online too. Direct fill allows them to keep track of the readership as they go allowing for continued interaction after the sale. Important, as new titles are in the pipeline. A formula that judging by the sales numbers is working well.
Nikki, as always, is happy to share notes to help others – and in this case on what she believes has driven the upward trending popularity of the title.
“Of course a good website is a must, and we have two as mentioned above. Plus our Booksmith Club, which is gaining momentum. Although frankly we haven’t had a lot of time to push that. Surprisingly perhaps, social media engagement isn’t something we’ve especially focused on – though that is planned in a later marketing step. What we have done in phase one is pushed the title through private contacts and networks.”
Nikki considers herself very fortunate to have a wide circle of equestrian colleagues and friends built through her career in dressage. Additionally as a seasoned writer in the non-fiction world has many contacts worldwide such as magazine editors and marketeers and PR folks across a few genres. Utilizing these contacts plus the media channels that belong to Horse in a Kilt Media, the publisher has been able to promote the book to and through folks worldwide. Nikki admits she hasn’t been shy to ask for help with word-of-mouth input to boost sales and spread the word.
“I am so grateful to all my fellow writers, past and present clientele and editors, students and equestrian colleagues. My book has a backdrop of horses and High Society, but the main focus is certainly a feel-good historical romance where the heroine shines as an independent and steadfast woman overcoming obstacles thrown her way in male dominated society. I hope readers find it inspirational as well as a great escape.”
While good access to media channels and hitting a targeted audience will always help book sales, at the end of the day a good book goes far for a much simpler reason. Good writing. But the public’s engagement with print copy is a welcome surprise, but not one without foresight. Horse in a Kilt Media’s enterprise and trust in following a new path to publishing in today’s littered streets of online press has the team feeling equally refreshed and optimistic. Nikki’s insight was a gamble:
“The biggest surprise for me has been the shift from e-book and Amazon style shopping to the print. I think readers are figuring out that sifting through e-book titles that may be cheap but are also often poorly written, is not worth their time. This is something I’ve been watching a while. So it was a gamble. And a gamble I was only willing to take with my own work, not something we were producing for a client. As yet Horse in a Kilt Media hasn’t offered an e-book or audio book of The Dutchess of Chadwick so there is no option to get it in anything but print. People love the cover too. That helps of course. But the print market is turning around I think. A bit like everyone wanted prepackaged foods and ended up with 3D manufactured foodstuffs, then went for local provenance produce farm to fork – people want authenticity and good quality.”
What drives the company and what lessons does Horse in a Kilt Media and its founder Nikki Alvin-Smith take to heart as a small indie publishing house and PR/Marketing company enjoying this success?
“It is validating for me as I have always been a big believer in traditional business building approaches, good quality services/products and honesty. These values were imparted to me by my late father and have always steered me and have consistently produced good results with enviable brand loyalty. These values are good ethics to follow not just to build my bottom line but most importantly the profits for my clientele. They are factors that apply to whatever you are selling, or buying for that matter. If people trust you in business then loyalty follows. And an author needs brand loyalty the same as any other business, so nurturing that is important.”
The heart of the writing process is different for every writer, and Nikki employs a few rules she has learned along the way:
“I have never forgotten the message about writing that I heard many years back. It’s not about how many words you write a day; it’s about the quality of the writing. In fiction writing I employ Hemmingway’s so called, Iceberg Theory or Theory of Omission, to a degree. Not knowing what’s coming next when writing fiction is my writing process, allowing me as a writer and the reading audience to discover the characters and the plot together with surprising twists and turns. Readers are intelligent people and I know they will read between the lines and figure stuff out. That discovery process in fiction is so important. This is of course, is the complete opposite of how I create my wordsmith works when wearing my professional PR/marketing hat. The dichotomy of which is perhaps what fuels my inspiration and energy and the type of content I produce. It keeps my fiction writing honest and my non-fiction writing creative.
Talking of energy, the impressive sales of The Dutchess of Chadwick historical romance book has inspired much activity to build Horse in a Kilt Media published portfolio of fiction works. Coming this Fall: The Bonkers English Village, the working title for a parody of iconic British rural lifestyle; coming Spring 2026 is The Dilemma of Being Emma, the second in The Dutchess of Chadwick historical saga; and late in the 2026 Touch Your Heart, an exquisite book of poems for mindful reflection.
Horse in a Kilt Media welcomes writers to contact them for reviews through their imprint Catskill Horse magazine (currently reaching 126,000 views per month), another of their media channels that helps distribute news on everything equine, as the “The Complete Source for Everything Horse” (a slogan coined at inception of the magazine back in 2012). Horse in a Kilt Media also offers publishing and marketing help for authors seeking an empathetic experience.
“On our forward-thinking mission we have also crafted a new VIP menu of services for business owners seeking to utilize our marketing strategy experience and expertise as a specialist PR/Marketing company. Another Hemmingway quote to remember is, “If you can’t write. Don’t.” AI, which we human authors jokingly refer to as ‘Artificial Information’, is not going to make engaging content. According to Bill Gates we have about another 100 years to go to perfect AI. At Horse in a Kilt we provide our clients with consistently creative assets. Fresh material, accurate and educational and always on point. Thought leadership is still highly significant in producing meaningful content that sells products. Don’t be afraid to reach out to me directly if you’d like to learn more about how to build your own bottom line.”
Email Nikki@HorseinaKiltMedia.com direct or visit Horse in a Kilt Media Inc., to learn more about Nikki’s stable full of marketing skills as an artful content writer, equestrian blogger, columnist, marketing specialist and strategist.
As a British/American professional Grand Prix competitor/coach/clinician Nikki brings unique angles, experiences and thought leadership/authority to her wordsmith wizardry with a proven successful track record in boosting brand visibility and viability and a willingness to interject some much-needed human intelligence into your marketing content.
About Nikki:
Internationally published author/writer, content creator, PR/Marketing specialist, photographer and equestrian Nikki Alvin-Smith offers “Engaging Content that Engages Riders to Read,” with unique and fresh material for your horse or pet related business, magazine, website, newsletter, blog, and email blast sales machine. Her portfolio of works is extensive and includes equestrian and pet features that have been published worldwide in over 260 different magazine titles. Her clients include/have included: equestrian and “B” list movie celebrities for whom she regularly ghostwrites and provides PR services; manufacturers of equine and pet related medical devices, feedstuffs, supplements, grooming supplies, fencing and barn equipment, horse transport, horse structures and professional equine service providers; profit and non-profit initiatives and organizations; and non-equestrian related businesses/publications in the pet industry, investment, real estate and international travel and rural lifestyle.
Nikki Alvin-Smith is a British international level Grand Prix dressage competitor/trainer/coach/clinician. Together with her husband Paul, who is also a Grand Prix dressage rider, Nikki operates Willowview Hill Farm , a private dressage yard and organic hay farm in the Catskill Mountains of New York. The duo provides ‘team’ clinician services to clients worldwide to riders of all levels and many riding disciplines.
Media Contact:
Contact: Nikki Alvin-Smith: Content Writer; PR/Marketing Specialist
Email: Nikki@NikkiAlvinSmithStudio.com
Website: https://www.horseinakiltmedia.com/
Cell: 607 434 4470