The press
Small Light Press is an independent publisher founded by Dr. Michael J. Jabbour — thinker, healer, technologist, and storyteller. The press exists to carry ideas that illuminate: essays on human agency in the age of AI, and picture books that help children understand their own minds and hearts.
The name comes from a simple belief: that a small light, in a dark room, extinguishes an incredible amount of darkness. Whether through a lantern on a dark road or a candle at a bedside, light is how we find each other and make this world a better place.
The press operates under two imprints: Lantern for adult essays and long-form writing, and Candle for picture books. Both share the same conviction — that honest, careful writing changes things.
LanternEssays on AI, agency, and the systems we inhabit. Long-form writing for the reader who wants to think slowly.
CandlePicture books for curious children and the adults who still are. Stories that take small minds seriously.
Dr. Michael J. Jabbour
Dr. Jabbour serves as AI Innovation Officer in the Microsoft Office of the CTO. His writing explores the intersection of technology, identity, and what it means to remain human in a world being rapidly remade.