New Way Publishing

If I am too harsh, NWP can answer the questions put to them. Until then, very pointed questions will continue to be asked and commented upon.

As to Lulu, CreateSpace, and Iuniverse, they do not claim to be publishers. They are printers, and they clearly list what services they provide.

NewWayPublishing.com said:

We're calling ourselves a collaborative publisher. It sounds like folks that take the time to be on this forum are not the market for us. I mean that positively. Many of you don't need us -- you did the work to self-publish on your own.

Click to expand...

Actually, you're wrong. This board has ALL kinds of writers, from traditional Agent-repped-big-6-published types, to self-published writers to those who are 3000 words into their first WIP.

What it also has is an area where people starting out can learn the pertinent questions to ask publishers before they sign a contract. This is it.

There are plenty of people who don't post on this board who read it. Perhaps you would like to address your comments to them. They'll find this thread when they Google you.

Also, the threads around here are full of their subjects having hissy fits. We get that it's difficult when you've done nothing wrong, have only the best intentions and the interweb is raising its eyebrows.
Writers are forever being told not to act like arsewipes because the publishing world is small and the people in it talk. This side talks too.

Can I ask you to explain the royalty situation?

Esp the 20% coming off the Amazon royalites? I don't really understand.

NewWayPublishing.com said:

Admittedly, if you're so super-savvy that you spend your time on a message board being a jerk, well, then, you don't need us.

Click to expand...

I assume that you were responding to here - as mine was the post above yours and I don't appreciate it. It's not professional and you're just showing yourself up now.

On that note, I'll just remind you, once again, that you are trying to sell yourself here, and that attitude is not going to help you.

In addition, you don't know who I am. You don't know who any of us are in real life, so you have no idea who you are talking to when you call people jerks. You might want to remember that lest you say something either here, or elsewhere, that you later come to regret. Be professional.

As for how much time people like me spend on here - we do so because we learned a lot from here, and as we learn we like to give back, help others learn and not make the same mistakes that we did.

What goes around comes around.

NewWayPublishing.com:
It sounds like folks that take the time to be on this forum are not the market for us. I mean that positively. Many of you don't need us -- you did the work to self-publish on your own.

Click to expand...

If by this you mean "you guys actually know what you're talking about and are asking us questions that we don't want to or can't answer" then no, we're probably not the right market for you. Sounds like the right market for you is people who don't know anything about publishing, because there's nothing better than the blind leading the blind.

People here have asked reasonable questions that really, you should be able to answer if you're seeking to run an open and honest publishing business. Unfortunately, you seem more interested in labelling people who question you as "jerks" and promoting the misinformation that Lulu or CreateSpace are "scams".

You say you want "constructive criticism" and then bitch when you get it and allege that people here are working for your competitors.

That kind of cluelessness is a hint as to your professional attitude and the value of your "services".

Basically, you're not doing anything other than package up a book and slap an ISBN on it. There are loads of companies doing that out there, many of which are cheaper than your prices.

Personally, I think that authors would be better served by using them rather than your company because you plainly don't have the first clue about what you're doing.

NewWayPublishing.com:
Admittedly, if you're so super-savvy that you spend your time on a message board being a jerk, well, then, you don't need us.

Click to expand...

Would that be the same message board you're posting on trying to promote your services? Way to go with insulting the potential customer base there. The first lesson in modern business? Don't be a schmuck in your company's name on a public internet forum.

MM

shaldna said:

As for how much time people like me spend on here - we do so because we learned a lot from here, and as we learn we like to give back, help others learn and not make the same mistakes that we did.

Click to expand...

Exactly. So when these hard, perhaps nit-picky, questions are posed to you, it should be an indicator of a few things.

Your pitch isn't as tight as it could be. Many writers recognize that their prose is bloated and through the editing process trim the fat away for clean, precise language. It's only natural when someone comes in and promises 'bigger, better and beyond', and what they're reading appears to be bloated and covered in fat, they are naturally going to trim away to get to the very meat of it.

This applies to their novels, their query letters, their summaries...

Mainly, what it is exactly that you are offering for the price quoted.

I had thought you came in for people to help you trim away that fat. When people started to pick at the nits, you grew defensive instead of recognizing that your plan and pitch wasn't a ironclad as it could be. Seems to me it's in your best interest to take the criticisms and give them a hard look. See if they actually have some substance to them.

These are savvy people on this board. They are not asking questions to be big meanie-heads. They are asking for clarity. What you have put forth is not clear to them. You can now work on your own copy to see that clarity is achieved.

Or you can say that everyone who is challenging your words and your meaning and your intent are 'big stinky doodooheds'.

Which, honestly, leaving aside commentary on maturity and professionalism, speaks volumes about what information you're willing to come up off of as being more than just vague to cover yourself contractually. Doesn't give me any warm feelings of good will for someone that I would entering into a contract with and who is willing to take my money with no guarantees of precise language from your end in our deal.

First, thank you for coming back and engaging in the discussion. I understand how stressful it can be to answer a barrage of questions, and I appreciate that you are willing to discuss your company, and to listen to advice.

Yes, I would say that NWP is more a service provider than a publisher. The industry definition of publisher generally includes the entire range of services that you mention and more--content editing, cover art, interior and exterior design, marketing, and promotion. And they do that at their cost. Because they front the cost, they tend to be selective in what they acquire.

Your company doesn't acquire, in the sense that trade publishers understand it--they provide publishing-related services. That's fine. Lots of SP authors either don't have the skills or the time to take on those tasks. (I'm a software engineer. I think it's fun to learn about ePub formats and the related tools.) However, most companies that provide such services either charge a flat fee *or* they take a cut of the royalties.

They don't do both.

What I'd like you to consider is making that choice--flat fee or royalty cut--and then to post those charges clearly on your website. Once you have that business model set, then start advertising to your customers.

Wishing you the best of luck.

NewWayPublishing.com said:

There's ongoing work, so that's where the flat fee and the royalty cut comes in.

Click to expand...

To be very picky, what ongoing work do you foresee? Once the book is formatted, what else comes next?

I'm not sure about the royalty cut to be honest. The printers I have used in the past have all made their money BEFORE the book even goes on sale - their 'cut' is what I pay them for, and is factored into the amout that they charge me.

Perhaps I'm misunderstanding, but are you planning on taking an additional amount from the author for each book sold? A cut of the royalties they make?

eqb said:

To be very picky, what ongoing work do you foresee? Once the book is formatted, what else comes next?

Click to expand...

Ditto.

If you use Authors Solution or Lulu/Creatsepace with add on services it essentially does this, fees up front and cut of royalty.

veinglory said:

If you use Authors Solution or Lulu/Creatsepace with add on services it essentially does this, fees up front and cut of royalty.

Click to expand...

I was asking specifically about their Kindle conversion service. Smashwords, for example, takes a cut of the royalties, but they convert the book for free. They also throw in a free ISBN and get your book onto the major vendor sites like Apple.

If I pay $129 for converting my .DOC to an eBook, plus I have to pay a cut in royalties, I'd like to know what else I'm getting for that. That's all.

Just a thought, but maybe NWP should add services to the company name, something like New Way Publishing Services, LLC or something like that...

This might reduce any confusion on what they are in reality...

Like I said, just a thought...

NewWayPublishing

Would you be kind enough to detail exactly all the things you would do, and what you would charge for each facet of what you would do, to take a typed manuscript of 20,000 words and bring it to a stage where you would get it unploaded as an ebook, including any promotion you can do? Lets say it's 120-130 pages long.

If I were to do an ebook I would need and want someone else to do everything for me. At this moment I'm ignorant when it comes to producing an ebook and if affordble I'd turn the project over to a company. The question is, is it affordable for me?

NewWayPublishing.com said:

I have written three books, one for Plume, one self-published and the upcoming one for Skyhorse. I have also edited numerous books and formatted a number for self-publishing. My partner is an acclaimed artist/graphic designer.

Click to expand...

Are Daniel Kline (50 things A Guy Should Know How to Do, published by Plume, and Worst Ideas Ever, published by Skyhorse)? I'd just like to put a name to the representative of NWP here. Also, what is your role within NWP? Will you, for instance, be directly involved in editing, formatting, etc.?

Does your partner have an online portfolio of his work? I have an interest in the art/graphic design scene, so I'd like to take a look.