self publishing

Self-publishing has become a catch-all term that can be used to describe vanity publishing, subsidy publishing or independent ("indie") publishing.

A vanity publisher will accept any manuscript submitted to it and turn that manuscript into a book via its own editing, packaging and manufacture processes, all of which are offered to the author for a fee. The author must commit to buying a minimum quantity of the resulting book. Usually, the author must sign over some or all of her rights to the work being published for a fixed term as well. The vanity publisher may also offer ebook or audiobook production services, book distribution and marketing services on a fee basis.

Subsidy publishing is virtually identical to vanity publishing, except that subsidy publishers have a manuscript selection process and some subsidy outfits do not require the author to sign over future publication rights.

Indie publishing is used to describe the activities of individual authors or author collectives who essentially act as their own publishers. Editing, cover design, typesetting, printing, distribution and other services are hired by the indie publisher as needed, but the indie publisher himself manages the entire process and retains all rights to his work.

by April L. Hamilton Are you a writer, passionate about this or any other topic? Join Blogcritics!

Original Technorati articles tagged “self publishing”

• in Social Media
  Mainstream Publishing versus Self-Publishing ... and the winner is?
  The debate rages on over the benefits of mainstream publishing versus self-publishing
  by authorbriant / on Sep 26, 2011
• in Technology
  Ninety-nine Cent Price No Barrier To E-book Success
  Thriller writer Stephen Leather has discovered that price really is no object when it comes to ebook success.
  by darrell1001 / on Mar 9, 2011
• in Technology
  Barnes & Noble Launches Self-Publishing Platform PubIt!™
  E-books to be New BFF for B&N?
  by wendyscott / on Oct 13, 2010

Latest blogosphere posts tagged “self publishing”

 

• Most Comprehensive Study Ever of How Self-Published Authors Are Doing in the Marketplace

  
  — Authority:
  This must-read study was posted on Smashwords on May 8th. If you want to find out what the best price for an ebook is, if long books sell better than short books, how many book sell well, and what the average word count for the 60 bestselling Smashwords romance books is - go HERE . New Smashwords Survey Helps ...
  5 days ago

• Hugh Howey Leads Self-Published Bestsellers List

  
  — Authority:
  Science fiction novelist  Hugh Howey topped our  Self Published Bestsellers List  this week with two collections from his  Wool  series rising on Amazon. To help GalleyCat readers discover self-published authors, we compile weekly lists of the top eBooks in four major marketplaces for self-published digital ...
  5 days ago

• Is It Worth it?

  
  — Authority:
  In yesterday’s blogpost I mentioned a Fast Company article regarding the idea of trying to re-brand self publishing as artisanal publishing, but there was an interesting note at the end regarding building a platform: “It’s difficult to maintain the writing pace for a personal blog,” he says, “and only a ...
  5 days ago

• Self-publishing gaining ground in the academics

  
  Lulu Blog — Authority: 120
  [Graphic: Michael Morgenstern for The Chronicle of Higher Education] While I don’t typically pay a lot of attention to academic publishing, I recently ran across a very interesting article  in the Chronicle of Higher Education on (mostly) young academics taking advantage of the new opportunities afforded to them ...
  5 days ago

• Red Threads — Launch Date

  
  — Authority:
  Happy Monday to you all! Well I know people say that all we talk about in the UK is the weather, but when you have such bizarrely unseasonal weather as we have been suffering just recently, I think we’re entitled! I am excited to say, however, that I am sitting here writing this blog post and I’m not wearing a ...
  5 days ago

• What Are the Real Costs of Self-Publishing? Wrong Question

  
  — Authority:
  From Passive Voice regular JW Manus: So here’s the situation: You have a book to publish and you have a budget. You need to know how best to spend your budget to produce a profitable product. The “experts” are the wrong people with which to have this discussion. They can give you facts and figures. But. An ...
  5 days ago

• Self-Publishing: It’s Not for Everyone

  
  — Authority:
  Photo credit: nsfmc on Flickr I have written nine manuscripts. Four of them I have attempted to get published—three of which will likely never see the light of day—and four will need massive, book-altering revisions to stand a chance. Whether or not those revisions will take place remains to be seen. Ten ...
  5 days ago

• 5 Self Publishing Mistakes You Can Avoid

  
  — Authority:
  Unfortunately, some people have a negative perception of self publishing . This is because some self publishing authors make detrimental mistakes that prevent their books from being taken seriously. If you want to be seen as a professional author with a successful book, be sure to avoid these five self publishing ...
  5 days ago

• Social Media for Book Editors

  
  StyleMatters Blog — Authority: 129
  Because many book editors are living the high-flying freelance lifestyle, they strive to drum up business on their own. Whether it’s through connections from time in the publishing industry or digging up projects online, taking the time to really think about your social media presence can pay off big time. As ...
  5 days ago

• The Goodbye Ride – release day May 23

  
  — Authority:
  Cover design by Wendy Johnston of Bright Eyed Owl. Your mission, Lily Malone, should you choose to accept it: Self Publish your new novella, The Goodbye Ride. So that’s what I’ve been doing this past weekend, and my mission is a SUCCESS! Houston… we had no major problems! Just a little bit of ...
  5 days ago

• AME Blog Carnival: tips and tricks for writers and authors – May 20, 2013

  
  — Authority:
  Welcome to the May 20, 2013 edition of tips and tricks for writers and authors. We’ve got some great tips on writing and book marketing in this edition. Thank you to the contributors! Book Marketing Jo Linsdell  presents  PROMO DAY: The Benefits of Attending Promo Day  posted at  PROMO DAY , saying, ...
  5 days ago

• New Smashwords Survey Helps Authors Sell More eBooks

  
  — Authority:
  PG missed this one a few days ago. From the Smashwords blog: For the study this year, we analyzed over $12 million in sales for a collection of 120,000 Smashwords ebooks from May 1, 2012 through March 31, 2013.  We aggregated our sales data from across our retail distribution network, which includes the Apple ...
  6 days ago

• Artisanal

  
  — Authority:
   have a love hate relationship with this whole concept of calling self publishing artisanal publishing. It’s pretty and maybe it would get some people to read an otherwise likely unreadable book but let’s be real here, while quite a few authors may put a great deal of work into it, the same cannot be said of all ...
  6 days ago

• Should You Self-Publish? 15 Questions

  
  — Authority:
  From Orna Ross on Jane Friedman’s blog: Self-publishing is not for every writer. In order to succeed, you need to have or develop specific traits, along with certain ways of approaching the publication of a book. Consider the following questions. 1. Are you positive and proactive? Many writers wait for ...
  6 days ago

• Patchett Rallies Author Troops to Get Involved With Health of The Publishing Industry

  
  POD, Self Publishing and Independent Publishing — Authority: 128
  Every so often authors immersed in the traditional world of publishing pop their heads above the precipice and make grandiose statements about independent publishing, the retail book trade, and, in particular, self-publishing and self-published authors. Garrison Keillor tried it prior to Book Expo 2010 with an article ...
  6 days ago

• Authors must work with trade

  
  — Authority:
  From The Bookseller: Orange Prize-winner Ann Patchett has warned that authors who decide to shun traditional publishing deals and instead use self-publishing channels to “cut out the middle man” are turning their back on vital publishing services they really need. . . . . Patchett told The Bookseller that ...
  1 week ago

• Racewood Radio: All By Myself

  
  — Authority:
  On my own this week I discuss luck versus talent, looking back on old ideas, my favorite character to write and discuss more about screenplay writing, also an announcement regarding a slight schedule change for Racewood Radio. Programing Note: In case you wish to avoid listening to me altogether, Racewood Radio will ...
  1 week ago

• E-Commerce & Social Networking Week in Review May 18, 2013

  
  — Authority:
  Straight from the source, here’s what happened in the world of e-commerce, social networking and selling online in the past week: Hangout on Air: Ad Disapprovals and Review Process AdWords Specialists Joe Abernethy, Alec Fox, and Kaylyn Frazier hosted a Hangout on Air yesterday about Ad Disapprovals and the Ad ...
  1 week ago

• Blog of the Week: Terribleminds

  
  — Authority:
  here is frankly no excuse for why I didn’t do the Terribleminds blog earlier. Frankly there are quite a few author blogs that I absolutely love, but I have to say Chuck Wendig’s Terribleminds blog has to be one of my favorites. I first discovered the Terribleminds blog from StumbleUpon (an addictive site which ...
  1 week ago

• Smashwords Research 2013 Highlights

  
  — Authority:
  When Smashwords CEO Mark Coker talks ebooks and sales, indie authors listen. Here are highlights from a recent study : Most books don’t sell well, but those that do sell really well (how do you get that ball rolling?) Longer Books sell better than shorts (top sellers averaged ~ 115,000 words) books ...
  1 week ago

Comments about self publishing