Ink & Imprint Studio is a boutique, full-service custom communications and publishing agency that offers writing, editing, and publishing services for businesses, organizations, and individuals. Whether you’re a small business trying to identify the right way to reach your target audience, a nonprofit organization seeking support with grant writing, a scholar finishing a research project, or an author trying to make your publishing dreams a reality, Ink & Imprint Studio can help bring your stories to life.
Learn more about our writing, editing, and publishing services or contact us to set up your no-cost 20-minute consultation call.
Ink & Imprint Studio Services
At Ink & Imprint Studio, we recognize that every individual, business, and organization has a distinctive story to tell. A one-size-fits-all approach won’t work when you want truly customized content creation, editing assistance, or publishing support. That’s why we always begin with a conversation—so we get to know you and your goals at the same time you learn more about how we can collaborate to make your vision a reality.
Below, we offer an overview of the services we offer. Together, we’ll work to build a package that ensures we’re providing exactly what you need. Don’t see something on the list you were hoping we’d offer? We’re open to ideas beyond what’s included here, so just ask!
About Ink & Imprint Studio
Ink & Imprint Studio was founded in 2026 by Julie Collins Bates, PhD, a professional writer, editor, and bookstore owner with more than 20 years of publishing experience. Julie spent nearly a decade as an assistant and then associate professor of professional writing, publishing, and editing at Millikin University before creating Ink & Imprint Studio and returning to a full-time practitioner role. Even while working full-time at Millikin, she regularly took on freelance writing, editing, and consulting clients. After opening Ink & Imprint Books, an independently owned bookstore in downtown Lincoln, Illinois, in November 2024, Julie came to realize just how many independent authors had the passion to write books but were looking for editing, design, and publishing assistance to ensure their books stood out in a crowded publishing marketplace. She realized she could bring together the bookstore and publishing parts of her life—and Ink & Imprint Studio was born.
Julie's publishing career began after she earned an undergraduate degree in magazine journalism and English writing from Drake University, when she was hired as an assistant editor and then became managing editor for Lexicon Custom Media in Des Moines, Iowa. With Lexicon, she created custom book and magazine projects for local and national brands. She then started her own writing and editing business, which she continued to run while obtaining a master’s degree in communication and environmental studies at the University of Illinois-Springfield; working as Green Center manager at Lincoln Land Community College; teaching as an adjunct faculty member at multiple central Illinois colleges; and then obtaining a doctorate in rhetoric, composition, and technical communication from Illinois State University. View our client list to learn more.
