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Publishing Choices

What are the different ways to get published?

Traditional Publishing

Traditional Publishing is the original publishing model where all the cost associated with the publishing process are borne by the publisher who takes all of the risk and gets the largest reward as a result. The author makes no financial contribution and only receives a royalty. Filament do offer traditional publishing for a small number of hand-picked titles every year. For manuscript submissions that pass the scrutiny of our editorial team, our decision to publish will be based on the following criteria.

• Does the author have an existing track record of sales through bookshops?
• Does the author have a high profile in the media – press and TV?
• Is the author very active online and on social media, with a substantial following on social media?

Partnership Publishing

Partnership Publishing is based on the premise that the author and publisher both play to their individual strengths and achieve something together that neither of them can do on their own. With Partnership Publishing, the author is in charge, and the publisher is there in support of them but sharing their specialist knowledge and expertise; connections; creative, production, supply chain and distribution contacts. The author can purchase what services they require to take the book from the manuscript stage, through editorial, design and layout, proofreading, production, and to launch.

The book carries the publisher’s imprint and is distributed to the book trade worldwide by the publisher. It is not ‘self-published’!

With Partnership Publishing;

  • the author is in charge of their project – the publisher is there for help and advice
  • the author manages their project using a cloud-based project management system and can be as ‘hands-on’ (or not) as they choose
  • the author has direct contact with all the specialists on their project team – such as the editor, layout artist, cover designer, proofreader, PR expert, web designer, videographer etc.
  • the author chooses those tasks they are the best person to do, and outsources the rest
  • all rights remain the property of the author – no rights get signed away. The author licenses the publisher to manage rights on their behalf
  • you have a choice of business models – one size does not fit all
  • you receive training to enable you to be self-sufficient in all the skills and processes you will need to be a successful ‘Author-preneur’
  • Countdown to Launch programme – covering the build-up to publication day
  • Post-publication – media and PR, supply chain management, fulfilment and distribution, and ongoing training and support are provided.

For authors that only want to outsource one or more processes, we offer a ‘pick and mix’ menu of services to choose from on a pay-as-you-go basis.

By packaging a number of services together, it is possible to offer economies of scale. We can quote for a bespoke package with your selection from the menu of services.

Alternatively, you can select from the ready-made packages, based on what the majority of our authors ask for.

Become a Micro-Publisher

For authors who have more than one title and who want to create a business around their books, becoming a micro-publisher may be the answer. Unlike Self-Publishing where the author is primarily focused on bringing a single title  to market, Micro-Publishing is where the author has a knowledge marketing-based business with multiple products, courses, book and online products to sell. As a Micro-Publisher, they will manage all the processes themselves and buy in those services they require on an ad-hoc basis. They may want to create their own imprint or brand to appear on their products and website and would be looking for graphic artists, web designers, editors, proof-readers, PR and distribution solutions.

Filament provide a range of unbranded services to help micro-publisher to create and distribute their own titles through all channels.

Self-Publishing

Technically, self-publishing is where the author does everything themselves and chooses to publish in their own name.  Self-publishing can be risky is you are not completely sure of all the processes involved. Authors have the freedom to make all their choices – both good and bad! Many will successfully get their book laid out and printed – although many seem to forget the necessity of getting a professional proofreader. Supply chain, distribution and promotion often trip up self-published authors and many will take the seemingly easier option of putting all their eggs in the Amazon basket. Always remember that books published through Amazon are invisible to the book trade. If you rely on Amazon to print your books, they may well be shipped from the USA, and these additional costs can eat away at your profit.

For authors who choose to self-publish, Filament is happy to provide individual services such as editorial development, book design, printing and overseas distribution. We do also offer book marketing and publicity services.

Book Genres

Each genre has a different publishing journey, a different market niche, and a different target reader. From an author’s perspective, one size does not fit all. Whether you are a fiction or non-fiction writer, your publishing journey starts with you being linked to a specialist editor who knows your genre inside out. Your editor will guide you to bring your manuscript to a point where it is the best it can be, and ready to share with the world. At the same time, we will recommend a book publicist who has a track record of successfully launching your type of book into the market and has the right media contacts.

No matter what genre you are writing in, what is essential is that, well in advance of publication, you have built up a significant following on social media and have all of the basic communication platforms in place to build and engage with your followers.

Creating a business around your book

Whether they are writing for fun or writing as a profession, every author deserves to get a worthwhile return for their considerable investment in the time it takes to bring their book to market. For an author to make money from their book, this has to be designed in right from the beginning of the project. It can never be an afterthought. To make a business of your book, you need to treat it like a start-up. You need to know about what you need to invest in your business, who to bring it to market and what return it will give you. You need to know about costs and margins. Most importantly, you need a plan. If you don’t plan to succeed, you are planning to fail – and this is too important to allow that to happen.

At Filament, we understand that for the authors to make informed business choices, they need to have facts and options. This is why we have author business coaches to help to build a profitable business from the start.

What can I earn?

Becoming a published author will raise your profile, make you of interest to the media, identify you as an expert and open new doors. It is how you use your new status that will determine the success of your knowledge business. Your income will be derived from a number of different sources apart from your actual book sales. For example, because you are an author, people will pay to come to your speaking events, they will pay for your training programmes or webinars. You can monetise your YouTube channel and have a membership website. All of these become possible once you have the status of a published author.

Don’t forget that the source of a book sale will determine what it is worth to you. The book that you sell on your website, through your email marketing, at the back of the room at your speaking events and all the other routes to market that you control, are worth the most to you – up to 70% profit on each book. However, the books that you sell through third-party retailers, like bookshops or online bookshops, give you only around 10% on a sale. Far less exciting! You need to make sure that you have all of your own channels in place if you are to earn the maximum return.

As with any business, you also need to know your costs and outgoings. Don’t forget to factor in carriage and postage costs, for example, as they can eat away at your profits. Treat your author business as a start-up business, and it will look after you well.

Publishing with AuthorCraft

For authors who want to self-distribute their books and manage their own Amazon and KDP accounts.

This is a service provided by AuthorCraft to its members, and consists of:

  • Book layout, cover design, creating print-ready artwork (based on 60,000 words) and a simple book layout
  • ISBN and full database entry
  • Print project management and sample copy for approval
  • Printing books to be sent to the author for distribution
  • Author sells book on their website, at events and on Amazon
  • The book is published under the AuthorCraft Imprint and is not self-published
  • The author receives 30 copies of the book as part of this package.
  • The author can order unlimited quantities of the book for resale without restriction

Package Costs –  £1,299

Add-Ons

  • Complex book layout (diagrams/illustrations ) add £1 per page
  • Proofreading £20 per 1,000 words
  • Author Website Building – £650
  • Publicity – Book Launch package – £650
  • Expanded Distribution – printing and dispatching in all major continents on a print-to-order basis – £500

For publishing to the international book trade for worldwide distribution, submit your manuscript to the submissions editor at www.filamentpublishing.com

Submit your manuscript

Filament Publishing are one of the few publishers who are pleased to accept unsolicited manuscripts in all genres.

All submissions need to be in an electronic format (ie Word document) and not on paper.  You can attach your manuscript to this form using the links below.

In order for our editorial team to evaluate your manuscript, we will need a Reader’s Report, from an independent editor. If you do not currently have a Reader’s Report, we can arrange this to be done for you.  Depending on the number of words, and the genre, this will cost between £100 to £200. A readers’ Report is invaluable to both the author and the publisher.

Once your manuscript has been accepted by the editorial team, we will contact you with a Proposal for Publishing.

Sample Author Agreement

Terms of Business