After deciding to self-publish on Amazon, the next hurdle is figuring out how to choose a provider from a sea of options that all claim to be able to get a manuscript into a book that can be sold on the market. The quality and quantity of these providers is very different, and selecting the wrong one can result in wasted money, missed deadlines, or a completed book that doesn’t perform well in the marketplace. This article provides an overview of the types of support that are available and the factors to consider when assessing a provider.
Understanding the Landscape
Self-publishing companies can vary from large established companies that publish thousands of books annually to a small team or even a single freelancer who focuses on a specific genre or service. In between are hybrid publishers, publishing consultants and full-service agencies that put together a team for each project. There is no one right or wrong structure; it will depend on the budget, timeframe and level of involvement that the author wishes to have in the process.
Amazon itself offers the distribution channel, but not the editorial, design or promotional assistance that most books need to be competitive. This is the space that Amazon Book Publishing Services aim to fill and it is also the space where there is the most variation in quality and price. Some providers offer a limited range of services, while others provide a full range of services. The first step to making a good choice is to determine what the project really requires.
Core Services to Evaluate
Book Formatting Services: Formatting is the way a manuscript will appear on devices and in print. This involves interior design, chapter headings, table of contents, page numbering, and making sure the file is technically correct for Kindle and paperback editions for Amazon. One of the most frequent ways that a well-written manuscript looks unprofessional is due to formatting errors. When considering book formatting services, it’s important to request sample pages of past work and ensure that the service provider supports both ebook and print formats, as the technical specifications are different for each.
Book Editing: There are several types of editing mainly: developmental editing (structure, pacing, plot); copyediting (grammar, consistency, style); and proofreading (final error correction). The number of tiers offered by providers and the number of rounds required for a manuscript will differ. Asking to see a sample edit of a few pages before signing a contract for a full manuscript is a good way to check.
Cover Design: In the Amazon thumbnail browsing environment, a cover must stand out from dozens of similar ones. A good provider will seek to understand the genre, similar titles and target audience before starting to design, not create a template. It is better to look at a designer’s portfolio within the genre of the work being reviewed than to look at their work in general.
Book Publishing Distribution Services: Distribution refers to the location and method of a book’s availability for sale, such as on Kindle, paperback, hardcover, and in some cases, audiobook, as well as outside of Amazon through other platforms like IngramSpark. Book publishing distribution services can help a book reach libraries, independent bookstores, and international markets that KDP cannot. Not all authors require this wider distribution, especially for their first book, but it is important to know what the distribution of a particular provider entails, and not take it for granted thinking it is the same for all providers.
Marketing and Launch Support: Includes Amazon advertising, email marketing, advance reader copy (ARC) distribution, and launch strategy. This is the most difficult area to promise, and the most likely to overpromise. A provider’s history and honesty about the types of marketing support they offer is more informative than any sales projections they make.
Ask These Before You Hire Someone
A brief series of direct questions can provide a lot of information about the provider’s authenticity
and suitability:
- What does the package cover and what doesn’t?
- Are there examples of work that has been done in my genre?
- Who owns the rights to the final files: the cover, the formatted manuscript, the ISBN?
- What is the expected time frame and what happens if it gets delayed?
- How many rounds of revisions are there for editing and design?
- Are there any existing independent author reviews that can be verified?
The issue of ownership of rights is of special importance. Some providers may hold rights to cover art or formatted files, unless the author pays an extra buyout fee, which can cause problems if the author decides to move to another provider or platform later on.
Warning Signs
Some patterns are generally a sign of poor or shady providers. Any package that promises to become a bestseller or a certain number of sales, should be taken with a grain of salt because no provider can dictate reader demand. Another red flag is when there is pressure to buy a large bundle of services upfront, rather than testing one service before committing to the rest. If the answer to which team members will actually be involved in a project is vague or evasive, ask more questions. Last but not least, if the price is significantly below the average for the same service, it is likely that the work is being outsourced and not of high quality.
Matching Services to the Project
The services that are appropriate will vary greatly depending on the kind of book and the author’s objectives. A nonfiction book for a specific professional audience might require strong editing and formatting, and a modest amount of cover design investment and wide distribution. A debut novel in a more competitive genre such as romance or thriller, on the other hand, will likely need professional cover design, genre editing, and a relatively small marketing push, as these genres are filled with prolific, well-supported authors.
Authors who are thinking of a series or a long-term publishing relationship tend to value the consistency of a single provider or team across multiple books, as this will maintain visual and editorial continuity and may save money in the long run by having repeat clients. If the author is publishing a single, stand-alone book, they might be better off hiring experts for each part separately instead of signing a contract with a single firm for a package deal.
Conclusion
When it comes to selecting a self-publishing partner, it’s not about the “best” provider, but rather the best provider for the specific needs of the project. The foundation of any professional release is book formatting services and editing. As a book’s scope expands beyond a niche audience, cover design and book publishing distribution services gain significance. Amazon Book Publishing Services, in the broadest sense, are simply the reason why KDP doesn’t offer editorial and design services, only distribution, and that’s the first thing you need to understand when choosing among various self-publishing companies.