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CMU Press celebrates 50 years of publishing
CMU Press, an academic publisher of scholarly, reference, literary, and general interest books at Canadian Mennonite University (CMU), reached its 50th anniversary in 2024. It has produced over 100 books since its inception, a remarkable feat in an industry that can be gruelling for small publishers.
CMU Press began in 1974 as CMBC Publications, an arm of Canadian Mennonite Bible College, one of CMU's founding colleges. The tiny press didn't have goals of making a name for itself or producing bestsellers, says Harry Huebner, Professor Emeritus of Philosophy and Theology and former CMU Press Director. "Our philosophy was that we would publish books that weren't being picked up by other presses." Many of these works interested a smaller audience, but they felt these should be read and preserved in history.
The press's operations went quiet for a couple years due to the Covid pandemic and faculty's full portfolios. Director of CMU Press Sue Sorensen took the helm in 2021 and brought the press out of its slumber with new vigour. "The whole realm of the book is very fraught these days," says Sorensen, Professor of English. "There are so many excellent writers who should be reaching a public and need a boost, and CMU Press tries to be a good collaborator in this reaching up and out."
CMU Press has undergone many changes in five decades, including taking a more literary direction under Sorensen's leadership, but "the philosophy of the Press—a determination to publish worthwhile books which might otherwise not see the light of day—remains very similar 50 years on," she says. "Where things have changed a bit is that the Press now seeks to amplify the voices of our authors even more; we're working harder at promotion and distribution so that many more readers have a chance to find our books."
The press initially specialized in Mennonite studies and theology, printing works like Mennonite memoirs, annual biblical and theological lectures, and proceedings of global Believers Church conferences. "Originally CMBC was the education arm of the Mennonite Conference of Canada, in a sense, commissioned to do the thinking for the church," Huebner explains, saying materials from the press reflected this task. This shifted notably over the years, especially in 2011 with the best-selling picture and story book, On the Zwieback Trail, "but the commitment to creating books that connect well to the mission of CMU remains the same," Sorensen says.
As the author of three books herself, Sorensen knows first-hand what it is like to be on the other side of the process. It is rare that publishers spend much time with their authors, so she sets CMU Press apart by being in frequent contact and collaboration with her authors. She answers their questions, submits their books for awards, and continues to promote them even when they are no longer new releases.
Sorensen is CMU Press's only staff member, editing books, running promotion and communication platforms, applying for grants, and assembling manuscripts. A main focus of her work has been developing relationships within the broader Canadian publishing scene. CMU Press is now a member of the Association of Canadian Publishers, the Literary Press Group of Canada, and the Association of Manitoba Book Publishers.
She hires contract employees for editing, layout, and design, and works with a couple of CMU students per year, and sometimes even high school students. "A special delight for me is having student practicum workers help create books. Every year one or two of them are bitten by the publishing bug and want to make a career of [it]...This warms my heart. Publishing is an exhausting vocation to have, but it's also a beautiful one."
Recent CMU Press titles include the 2024 release, Can Robots Love God and Be Saved? A Journalist Reports on Faith by John Longhurst, recently named a member of the Order of Canada. Wearing a Broken Indigene Heart on the Sleeve of Christian Mission by Dr. Carmen Lansdowne, the first Indigenous woman elected moderator of the United Church of Canada, is forthcoming in 2025.
"I've been particularly thrilled to forge some strong ties on the North American Mennonite literary scene," Sorensen says. "I've been working closely with Nathan Dueck, Robert Zacharias, and Jonathan Dyck lately in the creation of some lovely books about Mennonite literature. The Lyrik Poetry Series will offer 'best of' collections representing our most venerable Mennonite poets in Canada and...[we're] working on a landmark reader of Mennonite literary criticism that will be a mainstay of any discussion of Mennonite culture for years to come." CMU Press has also digitized its backlist titles from early CMBC days and created a free archive for anyone to access online.
To celebrate its 50th birthday, CMU Press is partnering with CommonWord Bookstore and Resource Centre to share the joy of books. When you purchase a CMU Press title at CommonWord from January through March 2025, they will gift a book from another Canadian publisher to new refugee families through Mennonite Central Committee or to a prison library through a Manitoba inmate education initiative.
"Books matter. Books last," Sorensen says. "When the last fad or attention-grabbing online platform has faded from memory, books will still be with us."
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