The Dos and Don'ts of Self-Publishing

When authors approach us it is likely that they have also spoken to other self-publishing companies and that the information they have received differs greatly. It is therefore important you as the author know the dos and don’ts before making the final decision on the company you choose to publish your book with.
 
Here are some of our do and don'ts for writers
 
Don't: We don’t ignore the phone; we like to speak to authors and meet them face-to-face (when possible).
 
Do: When dealing with any publishing company, make sure you can talk to them on the phone and visit their offices if you wish to.

Don't: If any self-publishing company tells you they will read your book then accept you, then charge you money for publishing, they cannot be trusted. They have not read your book and do not publish with them.
 
Do: The decision to publish the book is yours as you are paying for a service. Therefore, we don’t make a decision on the publication of your book based on editorial evaluation. In a small number of cases we may reject a book based on unacceptable content; this includes hate speech, racism, excessively explicit  content etc.
 
Don't: Many companies will hike up the retail price of your book making it impossible to sell.

Do: Always get an idea of your retail price before committing; NGP will always sell your book at a competitive market price and will discuss this with you first.
 
Don't: Some companies offer 100% royalties on sales. But what is their interest in then helping sell copies of your book? Have they increased the price of their services to compensate for receiving nothing from sales?

Do: Firstly, find out what your actual royalty is in monetary terms and, secondly, ask them why they aren't interested in maximising book sales?

Don't: Every publisher now offers 'global distribution' but don't assume all global distributions mean the same.

Do: Ask for specifics and examples of where your book will be listed and the countries and retailers it is available to. Also, ask whether it will be available in all formats and whether the publisher has local printers rather just printing and shipping it from a single country?
 
Don't: Some companies will offer you a large number of free books. They don’t - they simply include the cost of these books in your initial price so ignore packages with free books.
 
Do: Always read the T&Cs before proceeding; you'd be surprised how many authors tell us they have been caught out with previous publishers before moving across to NGP.

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If you would like to discuss any of these points, or have more of your own to add to our list, or to chat about your publishing options, please get in touch. Simply email info@newgeneration-publishing.com or call 01234 711 956.