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How to be a book publishing entrepreneur

How to be a book publishing entrepreneur

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What is a book publishing entrepreneur, how do you become one, and how do you know if you already are one? There are benefits to becoming a book publishing entrepreneur if you’re interested in establishing a professional presence in the world of book publishing.

Contents

1. What is an “entrepreneur”?
2. What is a “book publishing entrepreneur”?
3. Are you already a book publishing entrepreneur?
4. More about book publishing risk
5. The book entrepreneur’s toolkit

1. What is an “entrepreneur”?

First, we need to understand what an entrepreneur is before we can fully understand it in the context of book publishing. According to Investopedia, “an entrepreneur is an individual who creates a new business, bearing most of the risks and enjoying most of the rewards. The process of setting up a business is known as entrepreneurship.”

It’s common for entrepreneurs to be disruptive. Whether that’s within an organisation or within a market. They can also be stressed by lack of progress, organisational rigidity, long time frames, lack of results, and lack of stress. Yes, you read right – a lack of stress (or challenge) often stresses entrepreneurs.

I’m an entrepreneur. Starting my career in a government agency was disillusioning. A sagely government employee (who’d started just three years prior to myself), advised me “the way to get ahead is simply keep your head down – don’t rock the boat… It might take 15-20 years, but you’ll end up an executive with a huge pension fund,” and “If its not broken, why fix it?” The problem with that ethos was that I wasn’t interested in a pension and that it was indeed broken! It wasn’t for me.

1.1 Risk and reward

From my experience, entrepreneurs have a distinctive approach to risk and risk-taking. That is, they are comfortable with taking risks. Often, they behave in ways that others see as irrational. This is what I call the “entrepreneur x-factor” (EXF). From the outside, it seems that entrepreneurs are odd – but it’s what the entrepreneurs can ‘see’ that non-entrepreneurs can’t that sets them apart.

What entrepreneurs see is most often the reward for risk taking. The best entrepreneurs can also see the way that a risk can be managed and the steps that can be taken to achieve success. For many entrepreneurs, these steps and processes are like a game – an enjoyable game. They are not at all stressed with challenges or the obstacles between them and success. Great entrepreneurs are essentially creative, not so much in the artistic sense, but in terms of being able to conceive initiatives and solutions to problems. Faced with a obstacle, a good entrepreneur will muse “that’s okay. If it was easy, everybody would be doing it.”

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2. What is a “book publishing entrepreneur”?

A book publishing entrepreneur specifically is someone who see’s an opportunity (a reward) and is happy to embrace risk (money and time) to see a book published. This could be someone else’s book, or it could be their own.

Many self-published authors fit the entrepreneurs profile, but there are self-published authors who do not. Included in that are those who:

  • have purely artistic- or creative-bent agendas;
  • publish just for themselves (keepsakes) or for status reasons; and
  • have altruistic motives;
  • are risk-adverse and spend the lead-up and process to publishing a book constantly crunching numbers.

The rewards of book publishing entrepreneurship can be financial, reputational, or as a lever to promote a business.

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3. Are you already a book publishing entrepreneur?

See if you are entrepreneurial, take the quiz below:

ENTREPRENEUR QUIZ

Alternatively, here’s my very own short-list of qualifying questions:

  • Do you have a strategic or high-level view?
  • Are you good at finding competent people-resources when your expertise isn’t enough – can you let go of personal control?
  • Are you pragmatic, knowing “perfect is the enemy of good”?
  • Do you understand risk? Is taking risks financially or otherwise stress-free?
  • When you fail, do you learn and move on quickly?

Answered yes to those questions? Then you have the makings of an entrepreneur. And if you are an entrepreneur, then you can certainly be a book publishing entrepreneur.

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4. More about book publishing risk

If you don’t understand risk-and-reward, you are either not a book publishing entrepreneur or you are a poor book publishing entrepreneur.

Revisit our blog post, Self-publishing vs traditional publishing, to learn about the financial risk of publishing your book and see if you have what it takes to be a book publishing entrepreneur. The blog covers the risks of publishing your book across three avenues: self-publishing, traditional publishing, and hybrid publishing.

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5. The book entrepreneur’s toolkit

5.1 Be book market aware

Book entrepreneurs are book market aware. A good book entrepreneur scans the market to see what sells. This can be done by using industry data like Nielson BookScan (if you can afford it). You’ll be able to find what is selling best in which genres. Amazon is invaluable (nearly free) and by using browser plugins you can find a whole lot of valuable market information. Or as a book entrepreneur you can simply keep an eye on what genres are selling at WH Smith each time you pass through the airport.

5.2 Become a book packager

The one way that you can be assured that your book will sell is by adhering to this simple mantra: only build books for those that want it. One way to be certain whether your book has interest or not is to presell your book in volume while it is still in production. Don’t forget crowdfunding if you are short on capital. Crowdfunding is a legitimate way of pre-selling your book. Pozible – based in Melbourne – is a great Australian crowdfunding platform that you can use to presell your book and gauge the public interest early.

5.3 Use your book as a business lever

Using your book as a business lever (not necessarily for profit from book sales) is a great strategy. This strategy gives you the opportunity of you being recognised as a thought leader or subject expert. You can also use a book as a powerful part of a sales funnel and drive more traffic to your business.

5.4 Use a self-publishing service provider (SSP)

If you want to be assured that you are getting a professional result out of your book publishing process, you need to use a self-publishing service provider (SSP) like Green Hill. The worst thing you can do is to make your book look self-published – that’s the ‘kiss of death’ for any publishing enterprise. Unfortunately, this is almost always the case with projects that have been executed solely by the author. Whether that is the author doing their own editing, cover and typesetting design, and organising their own printing, or if they don’t cut the professionals they hire loose and allow them to properly do their job. Organising your book production through a SSP like Green Hill and allowing industry professionals the space to work their magic, your title if infinitely more likely to sit comfortably on bookshelves next to a Penguin or Hachette title. Do the math – use a SSP.

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Interested in publishing your book but unsure where to start or what is even involved? Tell us about your project and we will post you a copy of our:

 

The Little Book of
Big Publishing Tips.

 

In just a quick 8,000 words, this little book will equip you with the knowledge you need to successfully publish your book.

The Little Book of Big Publishing tips goes into the essentials of self-publishing a book, outlining the business and financial side of publishing, legal issues, design, editing, sales and marketing. There's even a section on how to identify a vanity-publishing scam.

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Self-publishing vs traditional publishing

Self-publishing vs traditional publishing

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Self-publishing and traditional publishing are two similar yet distinct avenues authors can use to get their writing out into the world. While both publishing solutions offer authors the opportunity to share their work, self-publishing and traditional publishing differ significantly in their approach and processes and both can be beneficial in different ways.

Contents

1. What is self-publishing?
2. What is traditional publishing?
3. Another option: hybrid publishing
4. Who shares the financial risk?
5. Which publishing option is best for you?

1. What is self-publishing?

The appeal of self-publishing to authors is that they can maintain control over their book. It is up to the author to manage the whole process, from editing, book cover design, typesetting, printing, marketing, and distribution. The author is able to outsource the work to freelancers or an assisted self-publishing company to help them produce a more professional produce and assist them with a process they may not be familiar with. This is the difference between do-it-yourself self-publishing and assisted self-publishing. Self-published authors also typically maintain all the rights to their project and most of the royalties from the sales.

Some self-publishing endeavours can be nearly completely free for authors. This includes options such as KDP and Ingram Spark Publishing. However, if the author wants assistance with the production process, they will need to finance it themselves.

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2. What is traditional publishing?

The start of a traditional publishing endeavour for most includes the author submitting their manuscript to the “slush-pile” in hopes of gaining a publishing deal. Often authors submit their manuscripts through a literary agent to up their chances of being accepted. Once accepted, the author often receives an advance payment from the publisher that is later taken out of future royalties. The publisher will then put the manuscript through the necessary processes needed to produce a book: editing, book cover design, interior design, and then to marketing, print, and distribution.

With traditional publishing, the author maintains little to no control over the production of their book. To elaborate, the publisher will take over aspects including the editing, design—even the book’s title—to make sure that the book is marketable and appeals to a wide audience. The author also receives a smaller royalty percentage on each sale than the publisher as they have to cover the production costs and turn a profit.

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3. Another option: hybrid publishing

The lesser-know third option—hybrid publishing—is much like how it sounds. It is a hybrid model that sits somewhere between self-publishing and traditional publishing, combining elements of the two. With a hybrid publisher, the initial process will be very similar to traditional publishing, in that the author has to submit their manuscript for selection and, once approved, the hybrid publisher will undertake a variety of services such as editing, book cover design, interior typesetting, distribution, etc. The difference is that the author maintains more control over the process, like they would in self-publishing.

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4. Who shares the financial risk?

With any publishing endeavour, there is always financial risk involved. This is because no one can accurately predict how a book will act in the market—especially for new authors. Someone has to pay for the manuscript to go through the strenuous process of becoming a book, so who is it? First, you have to identify which type of publishing you’re considering:

Financial risk for publishing options diagram

4.1 Do-it-yourself self-publishing

While many DIY self-publishing platforms themselves offer free or relatively low-cost set-up, this do not mean that the production of the book is also free. Unless you are confident you can do everything by yourself, including editing, illustration, ISBN registration, book cover design, interior typesetting, marketing, and more, you will likely be paying for industry-trained professionals to help you with these tasks. This means that you will have to put in a lot and work and up-front payments while having no guarantee that your book will sell.

4.2 Assisted self-publishing

When employing the services of an assisted self-publisher, like Green Hill, you will need to pay for their services. This usually includes book cover design, interior typesetting, and ISBN registration. Some also offer editing, illustration, print, distribution, and marketing, though these might be extra to the initial package. The benefit of using an assisted self-publisher is that you can off-load much of the work compared to DIY publishing and instead be guided through the process. Be sure to do your research and find the best solution to you.

4.3 Hybrid publishing

In hybrid publishing, both the author and the publisher are financially viable for the production of a book, including the editing, book cover design, interior typesetting, ISBN registration, illustration (if needed), print, distribution, and marketing. In turn, they both also receive royalty payouts; the author will usually get a higher royalty percentage per book than they would with traditional publishing.

4.4 Traditional publishing

With a traditional publishing model, the author doesn’t contribute financially to the production of the book once the publishing house takes over. The publishing houses receive their financial compensation through the sales of the book and receive a higher percentage of the profits than the author does. This means that, while the production of the book is free initially, authors are not given a high royalty for each sale.

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5. Which publishing option is best for you?

There are a few factors to take into account when considering which publishing route is best for you, but some major ones to consider are:

  1. Finances
  2. Timeline
  3. Publishing goals

5.1 Finances

Self-publishing can be done for free, but if you want to hire professionals you may be looking at paying a few thousand dollars. Traditional publishers don’t require any payment from their authors, but your manuscript has to be accepted, which can be a long and arduous process. Then, once your manuscript is selected and published, you may not see any profit return as the publisher, retailer, and wholesaler will take their cut first.

5.2 Timeline

Timeline can be important for a number of reasons. Some wish to publish their book before a loved one passes, others need business publications by a certain date, and some want to publish strategically around major holidays like Christmas.

If you have a strict deadline, self-publishing is the route for you. With DIY self-publishing, you can do everything at your own pace, and the process is often still speedy with assisted self-publishing as long as nothing goes out of scope and there are no setbacks. Traditional publishers, however, can take anywhere from months to years to publish a book.

5.3 Publishing goals

A major factor of choosing your publishing avenue is your intentions for publishing. Below are a few of the most common and which service they suit best:

  • Reaching a wide audience: If your goal is to reach a wider audience, traditional publishing is likely the better avenue as they have strong distribution contacts and are trusted by retailers. Self-publishing on the other hand is often viewed with scepticism by bookshops regardless of the quality of the publication which may limit your audience reach. With solutions like Amazon KDP and Ingram Spark, however, this has made it easier for self-published authors to obtain global reach in the online market.
  • A business “pamphlet”: If you intend to give your book out to customers at your business, then self-publishing is the perfect solution. You won’t need marketing or distribution, just a professional looking product and access to a printer.
  • Financial compensation: If you’re publishing your book with the goal of reaping the financial rewards, the answer is a little more tricky. While self-publishing does boast a much higher royalty pay-off for sales, you have to put a lot of effort into marketing and in making sure your product is of a high quality. This often means hiring professional, and there is no guarantee your book will succeed. With traditional publishing, it’s likely that your book will sell more, but you will receive a very small royalty payment. Some traditionally published authors make virtually nothing from their book.

 

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The page you requested could not be found. Try refining your search, or use the navigation above to locate the post.

Interested in publishing your book but unsure where to start or what is even involved? Tell us about your project and we will post you a copy of our:

 

The Little Book of
Big Publishing Tips.

 

In just a quick 8,000 words, this little book will equip you with the knowledge you need to successfully publish your book.

The Little Book of Big Publishing tips goes into the essentials of self-publishing a book, outlining the business and financial side of publishing, legal issues, design, editing, sales and marketing. There's even a section on how to identify a vanity-publishing scam.

submit your project details

Everything you need to know about casebound books

Everything you need to know about casebound books

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There are a few different kinds of printed books available for readers and one is the casebound book. What exactly is involved in the making of a casebound book and is there any benefit to it? Read through this post and find out.

Contents

  1. What are casebound books
  2. How are casebound books made?
  3. What are the benefits?
  4. What are the downfalls?
  5. What kind of books should be casebound?
  6. Is case binding viable for my book?
  7. Do casebound books do well in the book market?
  8. How much do casebound books cost to print?

1. What are casebound books?

Casebound, often referred to as hardcover, is a very common format for a book to be made in. How to identify a casebound book is by its cover, which will be hard and sturdy. This differs from the other common format, paperback (or softcover), as they have soft and flexible covers.

Some casebound books also come with dust jackets, which are made from a higher GSM paper than the interior pages and feature the same cover design as its paperback version. In instances like this, the casebound cover would have a more simplified design or be left almost blank and only have detail on the spine.

In traditional publishing, books are often first released in a casebound version before they transition over to paperback.

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2. How are casebound books made?

Firstly, the book blocks are created. This begins with printing, then moves to guillotining, and then binding. The binding style can differ but is usually limited to one of the standard processes: section sewn or glued. Once bound, cloth spines are added and the book blocks are complete.

Next, the cases are made. The process depends on the style of case (paper- or material-covered), as they require different steps and machines to complete. For paper-covered casebound books, the covers are first printed and cut to shape, then glued to and folded around the three pieces of board (front, spine, and back), before the book blocks are glued in place. For material-covered casebound books, a dedicated machine is used to attach and wrap cloth/imitation cloth around the three pieces of board (front, spine, and back) before they are glued to the book blocks.

Casebound books (either material- or paper-covered) can include the following extras:

  • Endpapers
  • Ribbon
  • Head- and tailbands
  • Dust jacket

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Ribbon in a casebound book

Ribbon in a casebound book

Head- and tailbands in a casebound book

Head- and tailbands in a casebound book

Jacket over a casebound book

Jacket over a casebound book

3. What are the benefits?

There are pros and cons to any book format. Casebound books have some great benefits over the other formats you could print your book in:

  • Strength and durability: Casebound books are capable of withstanding more rough-handling and lasting a lot longer than their paperback counterparts. This means that they are great for archives and for collectors who are wanting their books to last many years.
  • Professional-looking product: Having your book casebound brings an element of sophistication, gravitas, and importance. It makes your book like a higher quality than other binding types, especially if it has some print finishes like foiling, em- and debossing, etc.
  • Stands out to readers: Casebound books have an eye-drawing presence on bookshelves that draw a reader’s eye. This is especially the case as they usually incorporate print finishes (like previously mentioned).
  • Set RRP higher: Because casebound books have a status of being a higher quality book than other formats with more processes put into their production, they retail for a higher price. If you print savvy, this can mean authors turning a better profit from their sales.

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4. What are the downfalls?

As with any book, casebound books do have their issues for readers and authors alike. It’s up to you to decide if the pros outweigh the cons:

  • Heavier and bulkier: On average, a casebound version of a book will be weightier and larger than its paperback counterpart. This can effect a couple of different things. The first is that it will bump up the shipping prices during the print phase, in turn effecting the RRP and an author’s profit margin. The second is that some readers—especially the older among us—have trouble holding the book for a long period of time, effecting the reading experience for some. Another is that it makes it harder to travel with a book.
  • More expensive: While a high RRP might be useful for authors, it can be a deterrent for readers who can’t afford to spend $30 – $60 on each of their books. The print cost of casebound books is also higher as the production process is more complicated—especially for books with numerous print finishes.

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5. What kind of books should be casebound?

Having a casebound version of a book is especially useful for publications that need to last a long time or have a high capacity for durability, but really any book can be casebound. It is very common for most genres of fiction and non-fiction to have a casebound version as traditional publishers release a casebound version of their books first to help maximise their profits.

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6. Is case binding viable for my book?

If you are publishing your book traditionally, it’s likely that your book will have a casebound version as it is a standard procedure for these publishers. On the other hand, self-publishing authors need to be aware of the costs of printing casebound books and decided whether it is worth the cost (discussed a little later).

Otherwise, as a general rule, a book can be casebound if it has more than 30-80 pages. If your book doesn’t fit these specifications, check with your publisher or printer to see if your book is able to be casebound or have a think about other strategies, like making your book size smaller or adding more content.

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7. Do casebound books do well in the book market?

As a general rule, paperback books sell more copies than casebound books. Paperback books are almost always cheaper for customers than their casebound counterpart and many readers prefer their lightweight nature. Casebound books, on the other hand, generally do not sell in as large of quantities, but they do generate higher returns on sale. This means that you don’t have to sell as many books to be profitable compared to paperback.

Many readers have their preferences for the kind of book format they like, and there are certainly a lot of them who will opt for a casebound book when given the decision.

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8. How much do casebound books cost to print?

The cost of any printing venture is highly personal and varies from project to project. This is because the cost of printing a book depends on many different variables, such as the quality of the print, the size of the book, and even the printer itself.

8.1 Specialty print finishes

This includes embossing/debossing, foiling, spot-gloss, printed ends, and more. Applying one or more print finish will increase the cost of your book as it adds extra material and processes.

High-end Print finish holographic foil   High-end print finish foiling and debossing   

8.2 Binding

Certain types of binding are cheaper than others. Casebound books are more expensive than other binding types because the materials used in the production costs more to source. There are also additional processes undertaken by printers create casebound books.

8.3 Paper type

The quality of the paper will dictate both how much the paper costs (higher quality = higher cost and vice versa), but it can also have an impact on freight costs as higher GSM paper is thicker and therefore weighs more.

8.4 Page count

Books with a smaller page count require less paper and are lighter, meaning they cost less both in the printing process and when it comes to freight.

Difference in page count between casebound books

8.5 Individual printers

No two printers will give you identical quotes for a print run. This is because printers differ in factory (capacity) size, stock type and availability, and profit margins.

8.6 Printer location

The location of a printer factors into the cost of printing for a few different reasons. Often, printing in countries like China will mean a cheaper price, but you’ll have to print in bulk and then pay for freight, which can also be quote costly. For our Australian authors, printing locally in Australia can cost more per book, but freight is often more affordable, and smaller print runs are available from most printers.

8.7 Number of books printed

Organising a large (or bulk) print run will make the cost of printing a book cheaper per unit than they would be on a small print run. Choosing to print in bulk, however, means committing to a greater up-front cost.

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Featured Blog Posts:

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The page you requested could not be found. Try refining your search, or use the navigation above to locate the post.

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No Results Found

The page you requested could not be found. Try refining your search, or use the navigation above to locate the post.

Interested in publishing your book but unsure where to start or what is even involved? Tell us about your project and we will post you a copy of our:

 

The Little Book of
Big Publishing Tips.

 

In just a quick 8,000 words, this little book will equip you with the knowledge you need to successfully publish your book.

The Little Book of Big Publishing tips goes into the essentials of self-publishing a book, outlining the business and financial side of publishing, legal issues, design, editing, sales and marketing. There's even a section on how to identify a vanity-publishing scam.

submit your project details