In today’s competitive search for publication, it can be tough enough to find an agent, never mind a publisher. There may come a point when you decide that you have had enough with snooty rejections from agents, or the year long waits for a rejection slip from a publishing house. There are, after all, other routes. Search the Internet, and you will quickly discover a host of publishers offering to publish your book your way with no rejection slips and no agent needed.

Wonderful! But wait! There seems to be a fee involved. Sometimes it’s called a ‘set up fee’, or a ‘processing fee’. Other times it is disguised as a fee for editing services or cover production. But you are going to pay to have your book published. Often, the publisher will advise you that you will surely recoup that fee when your wonderful book sells out. It will be available on Amazon.com, after all, and may even be listed in the catalog of the major book distributors like Ingrams.

So, is this the way to go?

Well, it depends on several factors. It may be. Self-publishing has always been an option, and it may be the right option for you. If your book appeals to a small audience – it’s a memoir, perhaps, or a family history that will interest few people beyond your relatives, or it’s a local or community cookbook, then yes, it makes a lot of sense to publish it yourself. If you simply want to see your book in a professional format, then go ahead. But if you are hoping to begin your career as a professional writer, then you might want to think about this step a bit more before you sign that check. Let’s look at what is out there.

Fee-based publishing companies, such as iUnivers and Xlibris, are not publishers in the traditional sense, but rather they offer publishing services for a price that can be quite reasonable, as low as $99.00. They do not screen books in general, and may offer editing or proofreading services only for a fee. Your book will be published. They may be available to order from some bookstores. For example, Barnes and Noble has an interest in iUniverse and makes the books available to order in their stores. They will also be available at Amazon.com, but again, these are for order only. You will miss the whimsical purchases as browsing bookstore shoppers pick up your book because it is there and the cover catches their eye in some small bookstore on Main Street. You do not own your book once they are published. The company owns them, and you receive a royalty – usually on the net cost of the book. This means that the royalty is calculated on the profit made on each copy, rather than the cover price. You are also limited to the package of services that the publisher provides. You will also grant that publisher specific rights, such as the exclusive right to publish your book for a period of time.

These may also call themselves a joint-venture publisher, partner publisher, co -op publisher. This is similar to POD publishing, in that it is a fee-based publisher, but a specific print-run of books is produced at one time, as little as 500 copies up to several thousand. As with POD publishers, there is usually little or no screening of work for quality, and the books remain the property of the publisher. The author is paid a royalty for sales, and sometimes may be required to sell a certain number of books before payment is made. Do not forget that these publishers make their money from selling publishing services to you, the author. Promotion and marketing are going to be minimal if any. Some publishers sell only from their website, and others offer promotion packages at a substantial cost to you.

Self-publishing is simply a matter of publishing your own book. You, the author, controls the entire process, contracting such services as binding, printing, and cover production to the lowest bidder of good quality services. There is no pretense that the company is ‘publishing’ your book in the traditional sense of the word. That company is simply printing and producing it for you. You are publishing your own book. There are several benefits to this form of publishing as opposed to the Subsidy or POD houses. You retain all rights. You collect every cent of profit from books sold. You are going to have to do all your own promotion, but you are going to have to do that with subsidy and POD publishing, too. And you may be able to produce a book with a lower cover price if you do some careful shopping.

So how do we protect ourselves, once we’ve decided to publish our own work? There are reputable POD and Subsidy presses, who will produce your book for a fee, and don’t try to mislead you in any way. The iUniverse POD is one example. But in general, this is indeed a realm of caveat emptor – buyer beware! Here is a checklist of steps to take in order to make sure you are not getting taken. Too many hopeful new writers have been shocked by that final bill and have lost thousands of dollars.

1. Look at other books the publisher has produced. Are they of good quality? Do they look professional?
2. Talk to people who have used the publisher’s services, and do not limit yourself to references that your publisher provides.
3. Choose a publisher who has an arrangement with a wholesale distributor such as Ingrams or Baker and Taylor and verify that arrangement by querying the distributor. That way, bookstores can at least order your books.
4. All promises made verbally should be written down in the contract. If your publisher promises you huge sales and profits, is that profit guaranteed in the contract? Are those promotional services listed in detail there? If your publisher evades your questions or gives you confusing answers, go find another publisher.
5. Is the price clearly stated? Your obligation for payment should be clearly stated in your contract. There should be no additional hidden costs for ‘editing’, ‘production’, or any other unmentioned service. Read that fine print carefully.
6. There is no free lunch. If your publisher promises you wonderful promotional services such as a lengthy booking tour, or an appearance on Oprah, use your head. Not even the big publishing houses offer this kind of service to anyone but their best selling authors. Get it in legal writing or don’t believe it.
7. Make sure that you know if you will be expected to pay before you sign anything. Some unethical publishers represent themselves as a traditional small press publisher (who publish your work in small numbers but DO NOT require you to pay). You may only learn that you will be required to pay after you are well into the publication process. Ask questions. If you don’t get a clear answer about fees, go somewhere else.
8. If the publisher pressures you, that publisher is probably looking for a quick decision before you can ask all those questions. Believe me, no legitimate publisher is desperate for submissions! If they tell you that this is a sure blockbuster, how nice. Will that publisher give you a guarantee in writing? And if it is a sure blockbuster, why hasn’t an agent snapped it up? Don’t let your ego think for you. We all want to believe that praise for our masterpiece, but don’t end up paying for the privilege.

There are some good links out there to help you decide on a publisher for your book.

There’s nothing wrong with publishing your own book. Many wonderful writers have had their work rejected by publishers. If you really want to see your work in print, if control over the editing is vital to you, if you are publishing something with a limited audience, then Print on Demand or Subsidy publishing might be the right road for you. But don’t let somebody take your money for no reason. Do the homework, check out the publisher, and make the right decision for you!