The Face Behind the Company

Melissa (MJ) Moores began her career life as a teacher.  After obtaining a BFA in Theatre at York University with a BEd and a minor in English, she focused her training on teaching in the high school division. 

Fact: The average reading level of citizens in most 1^st world countries is between grade 8 and grade 10.

After living and breathing character, plot, story, dialogue, grammar, sentence structure, vocabulary and so much more for 10 years, Melissa has decided to concentrate on her love of the written word.  She has removed herself from the politics of teaching to focus instead on writing and publishing.

How the ‘Love Affair’ Began

Melissa’s passion for writing grew from composing adventure stories akin to the Indiana Jones and Goonies movies from the age of 9. When her classmates struggled to complete three page short stories, she worked on the 12^th chapter of her newest middle-grade novel, keeping her teachers entertained for weeks at a time. High school brought writing one act plays for the Sears Drama Festival, and writing as an In-School Reporter for the local newspaper on scholastic events. During a short stint in Broadcasting Journalism at Humber College, she won 2^nd place in a short story competition run by the campus. But after school, out on her own and left to her own devices, she struggled to find writing competitions that weren’t inundated by short-story “lifers”.  The publishing credits of past competition winners was often longer than the author bios. She could not compete against these people but that didn’t mean she couldn’t write an engaging and creative story. Instead, she returned to her novel writing only to later learn that in order to be taken seriously in the industry, she needed those short fiction publication credits.

This is the inspiration behind Infinite Pathways. 

Always Learning

MJ continued to develop her knowledge of creative writing and the world of publishing during her teaching years.  She helped countless students become better writers and editors with an appreciation for a variety of writing styles and genres. During her quest to better herself and her understanding of the writing/publishing profession she edited short stories that went on to be awarded publication, acted as author publicist and editor for Indie Author V. M. Gopaul, and edited a children’s picture book self-published by a University of Toronto Film student. All of this brought her to the inception of Infinite Pathways. Fueled by the belief that new authors can share the spotlight with publishing giants, it is her goal to help bridge the gap and bring respect to new and emerging authors.

Staying Involved

In addition to developing Infinite Pathways, MJ is the Board Chair for the Writers’ Community of York Region, attends regional writers meetings and workshops, instituted and volunteers for The Bookshelf book fair, and has earned Indie Author publication for her crossover science fiction/fantasy series The Chronicles of Xannia, all while raising her young son with her supportive husband.

She has self-published the nonfiction DIY book Publicizing Yourself: A Beginner’s Guide to Author Marketing, traditionally published How to Publish Your Book: A Practical Guide to the Publishing World and Navigating Goodreads: A Comprehensive Author Guide with Authors Publish Press. Her short stories can be found in Unbound II: Changed Worlds (DAOwen Publications), Brave New Girls III: Heroines Who Hack (Daniels & Fan Books), and The Human Condition Anthology (Infinite Pathways Press).

MJ is currently a staff editor for Imajin Books and DAOwen Publications, as well as acquisitions editor for Love Knot Books, an imprint of DAOwen Publications. These days her freelancing efforts revolve around coaching indie authors toward publication, and writing.

You can also connect with MJ on her author website, facebook page, twitter and G+.