Should I go with this publisher?

[namechange1032]

I've had a contract sent to me by a publisher. I should be delighted but feel really down as the publisher has tacky book covers and seems to sell a lot of romance and erotica.

My book is a crime novella. I have a writer friend who told me to pass on the publisher. I'm still waiting to hear back from 40 publishers, or thereabouts so it's early days. I'm really concerned that if I turn down this publisher, that I won't get another offer. My writer friend says, you've got one offer so should get another and to take the gamble. I really don't know what to do.

The publisher has already reformatted my book. I told them to stop work on the book until I've signed the contract. They said ok. If I accept I'd speak to the society of authors to check over the contract.

What would you do?

Have you got an agent? If so, what do they say? Is it a good deal? How much do they do to market their books? Can you talk to someone else who's published with them?
If it's all bad, I'd let this one go. If you don't get another offer, you can consider self-publishing, where you can choose your own cover.

First, congratulations on completing your novella and taking it to market.

To answer your question, it depends. Are they an established, reputable publisher? Are they offering you royalties? Or is it more of a self-publishing type of company? Do their titles sell well, and are the in the major bookstores and online shops?

Did you market your book to them specifically?

The publisher has already reformatted my book. I told them to stop work on the book until I've signed the contract. They said ok.

This is a red flag. Why would they format anything before the text has been edited and proofread?!

No I don't have an agent. I've just submitted my novella to a load of publishers using their submission process. I've scouted around and they've got largely good feedback from their authors. I want to traditionally publish, not self publish.

Thanks! I actually have two books doing the rounds. A collection of short stories and a novella, which is the first in a trilogy.

I don't know if they're reputable but they've been going for twenty years. Royalties are 60/40 to them. They're not a self publishing company, they do everything.

Their books are on Amazon. I'm not sure if they're in bookshops as they're American. I can ask them though.

Yes I must have submitted to them! I have no idea why once I saw their covers.

I know they're pretty speedy. They have a four month turnaround on their books. They have given me stuff to change. I thought the red flag was them working on the book before the contract has been signed.

They're not called Publish America by any chance?

Now know as America Star Books?

No

Sounds a bit suspicious to me. Firstly, novellas and short stories are a notoriously hard sell for a debut writer. Secondly, I'm surprised they accepted you directly without an agent. Are you absolutely sure they're not asking for any form of payment, if not now then further down the line?

They are not taking on my short story collection, just my novella. I've read the contract and there's no request for money at any stage. They actually publish novellas and take 15k and above. I will get the contract checked by the SoA anyway, if I decided to accept. I'm just against the tacky covers of their books and the erotica.

That's an unusual sounding royalty rate. Is it a royalty rate based on net receipts or recommended retail price? Some things you may want to look for in the contract: Are they paying an advance? What rights are they buying from you? At what point do rights revert to you? Which territories are they buying rights for?

Might be worth asking about their sales and distribution set up.

Proceed with caution.

As mentioned above, it's not unheard of but it is incredibly rare for a traditional publisher to buy short stories/novellas.

What do they even mean by formatting?? Editing? Typesetting? Highly unusual behaviour from a genuine publisher.

All of that aside. Great that you're a member of the SoA and you're seeking out advice OP. Good luck with it all.

Talk to their authors. Find out how they’re getting paid. Is it on time, consistent, how transparent is their accounting?

I’m leery of a publisher that starts formatting without a contract. Doesn’t sit well with me. There should be editing, etc.

I'd also grab a book or two, and check the quality of the editing and writing.

Get an agent. Usually when you have one offer they then go to all the other interests leads for you and flush them out.
You shouldn't sign any contract without an agent.

This doesn’t sound legit, particularly the royalties scheme. Are they paying you an advance? If you want to be traditionally published, why not go the traditional route and get an agent?

They may have their books on Amazon as print on demand – so no copies exist until someone orders one – and you’ll never see your book in an actual book shop. If their list is mostly erotica, it’s odd that they’d accept crime – unless they simply accept everything as they’re a print-on-demand model and they’re not bothered that your book doesn’t fit their usual remit because they haven’t really looked at it.

Hi, I’ve NC for this.

I’m a published novelist with one of the big publishers.

Honestly, I have found the approach of the publisher you mention really concerning.

key questions:

They shouldn’t have formatted anything yet - not just because you haven’t signed a contract - but where are the editing/copywriting processes?

If their main market is erotica and romance, why do you want to go with them? And why do they want you? Can they properly bring you to market? Get you into the hands of readers of crime?

Would you not prefer to go through an agent, who can properly advise and represent you?

I realise you want to be published - but at what cost? There are lots of pretty crap publishers out there - and I’m not convinced by this one, to be honest.

it’s hard enough to get read by people, please don’t just take an offer because you’re worried it will be the only one. Take it because it feels right. It’s your work, your words and once a publisher has them, you can’t get them back!

Check they don't appear on this list: www.sfwa.org/other-resources/for-authors/writer-beware/thumbs-down-publishers/

And the Alliance of Indie Authors has put together this list, with ratings: selfpublishingadvice.org/best-self-publishing-services/

I'd like to know what they will do to distribute and market your book. If they're just going to throw it at Amazon, you're much better off self-publishing (which is close to free) and keeping all the royalties.

I agree that distribution and marketing is incredibly important.

However, self publishing being ‘close to free’ isn’t really accurate, depending on your goals.

If you’re intending to publish as a career building move, you want as professional a novel as possible, then there are several expenses involved: cover art (ensuring that there’s no AI involved, MAJOR backlash on that), developmental editing, line editing, and formatting, plus printing costs, so you can hand sell.

And you need a website. Some authors sell directly from their site, or supply links so they get a referral fee. And a newsletter is a great resource to build your following.

Then there’s marketing. Of course there’s the DYI aspect of blanketing social media, networking with other authors, etc. But then there’s ads, which often are more effective. Book reviews are often done for free, but larger reviewers have begun charging. And there’s buying your own books to hand sell, take into book stores, etc. And swag, such as book plates, bookmarks, etc. And, if an indie bookstore is willing to have you in for a reading or a book launch, swag is generally expected. Also, if you plan to attend conferences, there’s admission, table rental, and purchasing books to sell.

Plus of course, your time, travel expenses, etc.

I have a friend who went with a small publisher and hired a PR firm to market her work, which is another option that seems to work very well, but expensive.

It depends on what your goals are, honestly. Publishing for fun is very different from building a career. It’s also important to note that unless your novel does INCREDIBLY well, you usually can’t take a self published novel to an agent or publisher. They want previously unpublished manuscripts.

For myself, it’s why I’m now signed with an agent and on submission. Self publishing is a LOT of work, and while I can do some of it myself, I know darn good and well that I need professionals for other things. Line edits and cover art for starters. I don’t currently have the time or money that self publishing needs to be successful, and that’s despite having several indie editors as friends who’ve offered a price break or payment plans. Depending on what happens with trad, I may end up trying a crowdfunding campaign to raise enough money for self publishing.

Self publishing is a fantastic path for many authors. I know a few who make a great living with it. But the ones who do were able to invest in the beginning. Readers are picky, and rarely give an author a second chance.

@ChubbyMorticia I agree with much of that (though most self-published writers do their own formatting quite easily, and it's cheap enough to buy a few author copies of your book from Amazon for book signings etc). But if you're with a small publisher which does very little in the way of editing, distribution and marketing (which may be the case here) you're better off self-publishing, even if it doesn't earn you much. At least what you do earn doesn't have to be shared with the small publisher, and you have full control over the choice of cover. And even the big publishers expect writers to do a lot of their own marketing these days. Many traditionally published books sell very few copies.

@User601 I’m very aware of how much trad expects from authors. Some contracts even demand a certain amount of time spent on social media! (A friend’s agent had that stricken).

Some small publishers are fantastic. Others are little more than scam artists, others are full on scammers. Navigating the minefield is definitely a challenge. Even agents have sold to publishers who started well, then quit paying royalties, etc.

Publishing. In my next life, I’ll do something less stressful. Wrestling alligators wearing a meat suit, maybe.

I'm not sure what the royalty rate is based on. I just assumed it is 40 per cent of the price sold. It's certainly something to ask.

There's no advance.they are buying paperback, audio and ebook rights. I'm not sure in which territories, I'd have to go back to the contract to find out. Rights revert back to me after three years.

I am proceeding with caution. By formatting, what they've done is put the book Inyo single space, and added copyright and their logo. They've also put in a disclaimer about the characters being works of fiction.

I've put a stop to any more work on the book.

Yes SoA are great. I'll send them a copy of the contract if it gets that far. Thanks for your well wishes.