Azure Dragon Press
Azure Dragon Press is owned and operated by Melissa Stone. At present, she is the only human staff member. Our goal is to one day branch out into a small press in conjunction with other authors.
All content is created by a real human being. No AI had any part in the process, nor will it ever.
About the Author
Melissa Stone lives in Cut Knife, Saskatchewan, with her husband, two kids, two dogs, and a cat. When she’s not writing, she enjoys reading, drawing, and a variety of crafts. She volunteers with her local animal shelter as a foster parent for cats.
Staff Members
Bandit
Bandit is a 9-year-old shorthair. As head assistant, his job is to ensure that the other office workers are performing their tasks in a timely manner. Generally, this means yowling at the author for pets. He also takes care of the Intern, making sure they have sufficient training.
Toffee (a.k.a God-emperor Toffington the First)
Toffee is an 8-year-old chocolate point Himalayan. As second oldest, he reports directly to Bandit as to whether or not the author is performing her tasks correctly. It’s also his job to assist in the training of the Intern.
Toffee is also uniquely qualified to assist the author. He served as the local library cat for a year. He makes sure to quality check every book that comes into the office. Thus far, he has approved every book since his date of hire. He prefers paperbacks as they’re not as heavy, but hard backs are better to rub against. That said, he prefers it when the author reads e-books or audiobooks as it leaves her hands free for pets and scritches.
Nikko
As a 4-yer-old bearded dragon, Nikko has few responsibilities around the office. His primary function is comedic relief. He excels at cuddles and head bobs. He is under the (mistaken) impression that he runs the office.
Nikko is sometimes involved in marketing campaigns, making sure people are aware that the author is, in fact, an author.
Nikko makes sure to check all manuscripts for bugs.
Delicious, delicious bugs….
Note: Nikko has an inter-office rivalry with Reshiram. They should be kept apart at all times and thus work different shifts. Overlapping their schedules is not recommended.
Maple
Maple is a 4-year-old red tick coonhound. She ensures that the author takes many play breaks by bringing her toys. She also makes sure the author gets up from her desk regularly to let Maple in and out of the house.
Part of her job is to make sure the author remembers to eat. She also hopes that the author makes fries as she quite enjoys scavenging for any fries left on the tray.
Reshiram (a.k.a. Shram)
Reshi doesn’t take his job very seriously, but he’s still relatively new to the position. The commute from his bedroom residence to the office is somewhat difficult for him. As such, he only works part time.
Reshi is particularly helpful in protecting the author’s head. It’s a position he’s well-suited for as he enjoys nesting in her hair.
Note: Reshi doesn’t seem to care about Nikko one way or the other and seems content to ignore him. It is unknown if this annoys Nikko more or less.
Intern
Azure Dragon Press employs felines from the local Animal Shelter, letting them learn the ropes before they find their furever home. To date, we’ve had 3 interns successfully find a home.
Chili
In December of 2023, our last intern moved on to her permanent office. At that time, we welcomed a new intern. He has yet to sit still for his staff photo. Chili is in charge of playtime, snuggles, and snack breaks.
Visit the Battlefords Humane Society for more information.
Previous Interns
We acknowledge we are on Treaty 6 Territory and the Homeland of the Métis. We pay our respect to the First Nations and Métis ancestors of this place and reaffirm our relationship with one another.