Aberdeen Bay Website:
Royalties are based on the payments we actually receive from worldwide sales, not include shipping and handling charges or sales and use taxes.
According to this, royalties are paid on
net book prices, which reduces the amount that the author will take home. I'd be particularly worried about the fact that they seem to be deducting shipping and handling charges, which should be provided for in the price of the book anyway.
Aberdeen Bay Website:
We offer discounts to retail and wholesale customers, so the royalty amount you receive depends upon which type of customer bought your book and any discount they received.
According to
their website independent stores can get a 30% reduction, which means that authors will be losing a third on their royalty payments (before losing more in respect of shipping and handling).
Aberdeen Bay Website:
Author book purchases are royalty exclusive. You will earn royalties on all books not purchased by yourself or any co-authors
In practice I would suggest that given the apparently lack of availability in bookstores, Aberdeen authors will need to sell their books themselves, for which they will not be eligible for royalties. One of their books retails for $14.95 on Amazon.com, which means that to make any money, an author selling books themselves would need to price higher or make a loss.
Aberdeen Bay Website:
For each book we publish, we go through the steps of: submission verification, design and layout, author proof, revision, and final production. Once we receive author’s publishing agreement and completed manuscript, it usually takes around 90 days to complete the publishing process
90 days is very short and suggests that it's unlikely there will be an effective marketing strategy in place by Aberdeen by the time the book is available.
Then there's the fact that their submission process is strange. Here's what they ask you to provide:
Aberdeen Bay Website (BOLDING MINE):
1. Author photo (in JPG or JEPG format)
2. Author bio (written in third person voice)
3. Completed, edited, and finalized manuscript in Microsoft Word format (see Manuscript formatting guidelines)
4. Short synopsis (less than 400 words) in Microsoft Word format
5. Long synopsis (less than 800 words) in Microsoft Word format
6. All images author would want to include inside the book (if any)--not guaranteed for placement in the book
7. Cover image author would prefer to be used (if any)--not guaranteed to be used as the final book cover
8. Optional elements such as foreword, dedication, acknowledgment, and others. We encourage author to include the acknowledgment section to appreciate people who had made a difference in her life--such as being supportive, encouraging and kind. Most people would appreciate such recognition.
9. Your signed & dated publishing contract.
There's no copy of the contract on the website, so how an author is supposed to sign this before they submit, Lord alone knows. In any event, the fact that it does have to be signed and dated on submission kinda suggests little negotiation room.
I particularly love the encouragement to put names in the acknowledgement section - I suppose that helps Aberdeen Bay gauge the number of likely purchasers ...
And then there's this huge red flat on the FAQ page:
Aberdeen Bay Website:
Question: Do I need to find and work with my own illustrator for my children’s book?
Answer: Yes. Aberdeen Bay’s publishing principal is to preserve author’s voice and style. To ensure children’s story is fully illustrated according to author’s specification, we require author works with his/her illustrator and submits final manuscript along with illustrations.
Firstly, producing your own illustrator is an additional cost for the author and its a cost that no children's author should have to incur as commercial publishers will have their own illustrators who
they will pay to produce cover or other art.
aberdeenbay:
Books published by Aberdeen Bay has world-wide distribution and available in many major booksellers.
Hi,
aberdeenbay, and welcome to AW. Who are you distributing your books with, what stores will your books be available in and will your books be physically stocked in stores or will they merely be available to order from stores?
MM