After writing the first manuscript, many new authors believe they will soon be among the published authors, but the road to successful publishing is not so plain. There are a lot of things that need to be taken care of before a book is made available to the masses. From choosing a cover to printing and marketing on the right platforms, the checklist is far from short. But here is when the book publishing house comes into play.
Publishing
The process of taking a manuscript from the writer and making it publically available to read is what we call publishing. It includes several steps such as providing editorial services, designing, production, distribution, marketing and promotion. Most of the book publishing houses provide you with all of these services. There are different types of publishing which we will discuss as follow:
Different Types of Publishing
The three most commonly known types of publishing are (i) traditional, (ii) self/Indie and (iii) hybrid publishing.
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Traditional Publishing:
A traditional publishing house does all of the necessary work involved in publishing a book. They take care of the editing, printing, publishing and marketing of the book, without any cost to the author. Once the book is published and the sales are high, the publishing company make its money out of it. The authors also profit from the books and in some cases, they are even paid advance money before the book is published. But this model of publishing has some disadvantages such as; less creative control, low royalties, and little marketing and publicity efforts.
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Self-Publishing:
This is the second widely used publishing model. It is primarily the do-it-yourself publishing process where you do everything on your own. You find an editor, a proofreader, a designer and then pay them from your pocket. You will also take care of all the marketing and distribution for promoting your book. Although there is more profit-earning in self-publishing and more creative freedom, many successful authors will not recommend going through this road as self-publishing is more time-consuming.
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Hybrid Publishing:
If you look up ‘what is hybrid publishing?’ on the internet, you will find out that there is a kind of confusion about it. Many new authors are clueless about this relatively new kind of publishing model. This publishing model is a combination of both, the traditional and the self-publishing models. The hybrid publishing model is similar to self-publishing in a way that it has more control over the production process and desired quality. But unlike the traditional model, there is no financial risk involved for the publisher because the author contributes to the publishing cost. So, it’s a fruitful situation for both; the author and the publisher.
Hybrid Publishing Pros and Cons:
- Hybrid publishing offers more creative freedom to authors.
- They typically offer better royalties than the traditional publishers.
- A professional team works on your book who know about the technicalities involved in the successful launch of a book.
- This type of publishing can be a bit costly.
Why Choose It? What to look for in a hybrid publisher?
According to IBPA (Independent Book Publishers Association), there are nine criteria set up for the publisher to fulfil in order to become a professional hybrid publisher. These are as follows:
- Define the mission and vision for its publishing program.
- Vet submissions.
- Publish under its own imprint(s) and ISBNs.
- Publish to industry standards
- Ensure editorial, design, and production quality.
- Pursue and manage a range of publishing rights.
- Provide distribution services.
- Demonstrate respectable sales.
- Pay authors a higher-than-standard royalty.
How Hybrid Publishing is Your Best Publishing Method?
As we have learnt about publishing and its types, we will now look into which one can be your best publishing method? We know about the pros and cons of hybrid publishing and also know about the other publishing types. So, let’s see why you should choose hybrid publishing for your manuscript.
- If you don’t want to handle the time-consuming publishing tasks on your own, then going up to hybrid book publishers will be your best bet. By doing so, you won’t have to worry about all the editing, designing and marketing required for the successful launch of your book. They’ll do all the hard labour for you with an expert team who will carry out the publishing tasks for you.
- If you want to have a say in every step of the book publishing process, then hybrid publishing is for you. Unlike traditional publishing, you get to have creative control of your book and can give your input.
- They will offer you more royalties on your books than the traditional publishers.
- Mostly, hybrid publishers are a branch of larger presses and thus have connections to people in their marketing areas. This can help you reach a far bigger audience if they make your title appear on the parent company’s catalogue.
We hope this informative piece would help you in clearing out your confusions and making a smart decision regarding your book publishing process.
If you are an aspiring author and want your work to be published, then choose Austin Macauley, as we are one of the top hybrid publishers in the UK, US and UAE. You can submit your manuscript with us by clicking here. You can also send it online by filling our online submission form.
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