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2017 KEY BOOK PUBLISHING PATHS • BY JANE FRIEDMAN--JANEFRIEDMAN.COM
TRADITIONAL PUBLISHING
BIG FIVE MID-SIZE & LARGE SMALL PRESSES
Who They Are
• Penguin Random House, HarperCollins, Hachette, Simon & Schuster, Macmillan (each have dozens of imprints).
Who They Work With
• Authors who write works with
mainstream appeal, deserving of
nationwide print retail distribution in
bookstores and other outlets.
• Celebrity-status or brand-name authors.
• Writers of commercial fiction or genre
fiction, such as romance, mystery/crime,
thriller/suspense, science fiction and
fantasy, young adult, children’s.
• Nonfiction authors with a significant
platform (visibility to a readership).
Value For Author
• Publisher shoulders financial risk.
• Physical bookstore distribution nearly
assured, in addition to other physical
retail opportunities (big-box, specialty).
• Best chance of mainstream media
coverage and reviews.
How To Approach
• Almost always requires an agent.
Novelists should have a finished
manuscript. Nonfiction authors should
have a book proposal.
What To Watch For
• Author receives an advance against
royalties, but most advances do not earn
out.
• Publisher typically holds onto all
publishing rights for all formats for at
least 5-10 years.
• Many decisions are out of the author’s
control, such as cover design and title.
• Authors can find themselves unhappy
with the level of marketing support
received, and find that their title
“disappears” from store shelves within
3-6 months. However, the same is true
for most publishers, regardless of size.
Who They Are
• Not part of the Big Five, but significant in
size, usually with the same capabilities.
• Examples: Houghton Mifflin Harcourt,
Scholastic, Workman, Sourcebooks,
John Wiley & Sons, W.W. Norton,
Kensington, Chronicle, Tyndale, many
university presses (Cambridge, Oxford).
Who They Work With
• Authors who write mainstream works, as
well as those that have a more niche or
special-interest appeal.
• Celebrity-status or brand-name authors.
• Writers of commercial fiction or genre
fiction, such as romance, mystery/crime,
thriller/suspense, science fiction and
fantasy, young adult, children’s.
• Nonfiction authors of all types.
Value For Author
• Identical to Big Five advantages.
How To Approach
• Doesn’t always require an agent; see
submission guidelines for each publisher.
Novelists should have a finished
manuscript. Nonfiction authors should
have a book proposal.
What To Watch For
• Same as Big Five, but advances and
royalties from mid-size publishers may
be lower than Big Five.
• Some mid-size publishers may be more
open to innovative or flexible agreements
that feel more like a collaboration or
partnership (with more author input or
control).
• University or scholarly presses typically
pay a very low advance and have very
small print runs, typically with a focus on
libraries, classrooms, and academic
markets.
Who They Are
• This category is the hardest to
summarize because “small press” is a
catch-all term for very well-known
traditional publishers (e.g., Graywolf) as
well as mom-and-pop operations that
may not have any formal experience in
publishing.
• Given how easy it is in the digital age for
anyone to start a press, authors must
carefully evaluate a small press’s abilities
before signing with one. Legitimate small
presses do not ask authors to pay for
publication.
Who They Work With
• Emerging, first-time authors, as well as
established ones.
• Often more friendly to experimental,
literary, and less commercial types of
work.
Value For Author
• Possibly a more personalized and
collaborative relationship with the
publisher.
• With well-established small presses:
editorial, design, and marketing support
that equals that of a larger house.
How To Approach
• Rarely requires an agent. See the
submission guidelines of each press.
What To Watch For
• You may not receive an advance or you’ll
receive a nominal one. Your royalty rate
may be higher to make up for it. Diversity
of players and changing landscape
means contracts vary widely.
• There may be no physical bookstore
distribution and/or the press may rely on
print-on-demand to fulfill orders. Potential
for media or review coverage declines
when there is no print run.
• Be very protective of your rights if you’re
shouldering most of the risk and effort.
ALTERNATIVES TO TRADITIONAL PUBLISHING
HYBRID PUBLISHING SELF-PUBLISHING: ASSISTED SELF-PUBLISHING: DIY
Key Characteristics
• Author funds book publication in
exchange for expertise and assistance of
the publisher; cost is often thousands of
dollars.
• Author receives better royalties than a
traditional publishing contract, but makes
less than if self-publishing on their own.
• Such books will rarely be distributed into
physical retail bookstores, although in
some rare cases, it may happen.
• Each hybrid publisher has its own
distinctive costs and business model;
always secure a clear contract with all
fees explained.
Value For Author
•Get a published book without having to
figure out the service landscape or find
professionals to help. Ideal for an author
who has more money than time.
• Some companies are run by former
traditional publishing professionals, and
offer high-quality results.
What To Watch For
• Some self-publishing (assisted
publishing) services have started calling
themselves “hybrid publishers” because it
sounds more fashionable and savvy, but
such companies may be nothing more
than an assisted self-publishing service.
• Not all hybrid publishers are created
equal. Fees dramatically vary and quality
dramatically varies. Research carefully.
Examples Of Hybrid Publishers
• Curated. These companies are selective
or may have editorial guidelines to follow.
Examples: SheWrites Press, Greenleaf.
• Crowdfunding. Authors must raise money
for the publisher to contract the work.
Example: Inkshares, Unbound.
Key Characteristics
• Similar to hybrid publishing: authors pay
to publish. An older term for this would be
“vanity publishing.”
• Contractual arrangements vary, but the
best services charge an upfront fee, take
absolutely no rights to the work, and pass
on 100% net royalties to the author. They
make money on charging authors for the
services provided (editorial, design,
marketing, and so on), not on copies
sold.
• Such books will almost never be stocked
in physical retail bookstores, although in
some rare cases, it may happen.
• Many assisted publishing services have
different packages or tiers of service,
while others offer customized quotes.
Value For Author
• Get a published book without having to
figure out the service landscape or find
professionals to help you. Ideal for an
author who has more money than time.
• The best and most expensive services
offer a quality experience that is
comparable to working with a traditional
publisher.
What To Watch For
• Most marketing and publicity service
packages, while they can be well-
meaning, are not worth an author’s
investment.
• Avoid companies that take advantage of
author inexperience and use high-
pressure sales tactics, such as
AuthorSolutions imprints (AuthorHouse,
iUniverse, WestBow, Archway).
Examples Of Good Assisted Services
• Matador, Mill City Press, DogEar, Radius
Book Group, Book in a Box, Girl Friday
Productions. To check the reputation of a
service, search for Mick Rooney’s
Independent Publishing Magazine
website.
Key Characteristics
• Authors manage the publishing process
and hire the right people/services to edit,
design, publish, and distribute.
• Each author has to decide which
distributors or retailers they prefer to deal
with.
Value For Author
• Author keeps complete and total control
of all artistic and business decisions.
• Author keeps all profits and rights.
What To Watch For
• Some authors don’t invest enough
money to produce a quality product.
• First-time authors may not have the
knowledge or experience to know what
quality help looks like or what it takes to
produce a quality book in their genre.
• Bricks-and-mortar retailers, professional
reviewers, and mainstream media will
rarely offer help or coverage.
DIY Print And Ebook Services
• Primary ebook retailers that offer direct
access to authors: Amazon KDP, Nook
Press, Apple iBookstore, Kobo. Primary
ebook distributors for authors:
Smashwords, Draft2Digital, Pronoun.
These services offer little or no
assistance.
• Print-on-demand (POD) makes it
affordable to sell and distribute print
books via online retail. Most often used:
CreateSpace, IngramSpark. With printer-
ready PDF files, it costs little or nothing to
start.
• These retailers and distributors operate
primarily on a nonexclusive basis and
take cut of sales; authors can leave
them at will. There is no contract.
• Some authors may hire a printer and
manage inventory, fulfillment, shipping,
etc. and sell via Amazon Advantage.