K-State graduate Cynthia Fails '02 reimagines publishing with her company, LaunchCrate
K-State graduate Cynthia Fails '02, an entrepreneur, businesswoman, writer and founder
of the LaunchCrate Publishing Company, emerged from a lineage of alumni. She was destined
to carry on the Wildcat tradition, being community-focused and graduating with a bachelor’s
degree in psychology.
Initially, Fails attended K-State as a young, thriving mind with an array of promising
interests, selecting an undeclared major. Her fields of interest varied from psychology,
child development, to interior design; her future seemed full of possibilities.
Fails embraced exploring the possibilities and options in her path during a sabbatical
from K-State, using that time to learn more about herself and what she wanted to achieve
in life. She eventually returned to campus feeling refreshed, with a decision to major
in psychology. Her experience as a Wildcat uncovered something special: a community
that lasts a lifetime, and a growth mindset that carried her from a young uncertain
student, into a woman with a focal point and promising career.
Observing how people within her community interacted, Fails used what she learned
while studying psychology to uncover a valuable mindset:
"Every day we get to choose how we show up in the world, what hat we wear, and how we treat others. Our life is our message to the world, in those choices and actions speak louder than any words might choose to say. In every role I get to think holistically about the society we currently live in, and how I’d like to see it morph into something that supports and welcomes all…everyone has the opportunity to regularly encourage others to dream."
Fails’ publishing company, LaunchCrate, grew from a single inspirational experience.
She was on a quest to find a company to publish her work. Fails’s goal was to “retain
as much profit as possible so that I could pour that into my surrounding community.”
However, she discovered the publishing company held a $5-dollar profit margin per
copy, which netted her only 14 cents for every copy sold. She quickly realized the
publishing industry had minimal opportunities for writers to receive fair compensation
for their hard work. Sadly enough, she “realized people were settling for this…I felt
in my gut that there had to be something different done.”
With the ambition to help her surrounding community, she knew writers deserved to
earn higher and fair profit margins on their work. It was this unacceptable status
quo that fully powered her to revolutionize publishing by founding LaunchCrate.
This endeavor has not only revolutionized publishing by giving higher profit margins
to the writers, but it also allowed Fails to connect with individuals while helping
them reach their full potential.
“I love helping people see themselves as an author,” she said. “This is often one
of the largest hurdles we see our writers face. They’ll create phenomenal pieces of
work and be reluctant to share it with the world.”
Using what Fails learned from psychology, she has reframed the publishing experience
and has guided many authors through the publishing process. With LaunchCrate, she
has truly embodied the mindset of doing “something that supports and welcomes all.”
With a lifetime still ahead of her, Cynthia Fails has already made such a large impact
from authors to readers. She dedicates every day to giving opportunities that encourage
everyone to dream.
