If I publish with you, will I get to keep the copyright and earn royalties on my book?
What types of books do you accept?
How do I submit my manuscript?
Why does my book have to be edited?
After I agree to publish with you, will I still be involved in the process?
What is an ISBN, and why do I need one?
When you publish my book, am I required to buy or sell any quantity?
Who sets the price on my book?
Do I have to setup the text in any way?
How long will it take to publish my book?
Are there any hidden costs?
Can bookstores and libraries order my book?
After my book has been published, what will I need to do?
Can I sell books off my website/blog and at seminars where I speak?
Is there an author discount?
If I publish with you, will I get to keep the copyright and earn royalties on my book?
Yes, WriteLife authors retain full copyright and earn 50% royalties of all net profits received from the sale or other use of their content.
What types of manuscripts do you accept?
We are currently accepting exceptionally well-written fiction, nonfiction and children's manuscripts.
How do I submit my manuscript?
You submit your manuscript by agreeing to our contract/terms and conditions, filling out our online membership form, and uploading or e-mailing your manuscript and book marketing plan to us. Alternatively, you can print out our contract/terms and conditions page, sign, and mail them along with your manuscript and book marketing plan on a CD.
Why does my book have to be edited?
We only select a few, high quality manuscripts every year and there's a good reason for this policy. There are companies that will publish anything, without any editing, but that's because they make their money through the initial setup fees, and it doesn't matter (to them) whether or not the book ever sells a single copy. WriteLife, LLC, on the other hand, is only successful when our authors are successful. We care about our reputation and won't put anything under our imprint that will detract from it. This is a complimentary service for all of our authors.
After I agree to publish with you, will I still be involved in the process?
Yes, WriteLife authors provide input throughout the publishing process.
What is an ISBN, and why do I need one?
The ISBN is the International Standard Book Number, a unique identification number used by retailers and libraries to locate books within the market. All titles published through WriteLife, LLC are assigned an ISBN, which is then registered in R.R. Bowker's Books In Print database, along with the basic information about the title. The R.R. Bowker's Books In Print database is accessed by brick-and-mortar retailers, such as Barnes & Noble or Borders, and also feeds content to online retailers, such as Amazon.com. WriteLife, LLC will purchase and assign your book an ISBN, as part of the publishing process.
When you publish my book, am I required to buy or sell any quantity?
We expect our authors to work closely with us to market and sell their books. Each manuscript submission needs to include a book marketing plan. You are not required to personally purchase any books, but with our royalty model, it is in everyone's best interst to sell as many books as possible through the Writelife Retail Channel.
Who sets the price on my book?
We decide what the price of your book should be based on the cost of production. We also look at similar works and try to keep the price as competitive as possible.
Do I have to setup the text in any way?
You do not need to setup the file, except for the following: 1) make sure that all the chapter breaks are clearly marked and the chapter titles are bold. 2) Send your work to us in an easy-to-read font like Times New Roman (10-12 point), Bookman, or Arial. 3) Send us one MS WORD double spaced file (or other word processing file) containing all the chapters. 4) Do not use hard returns except at the ends of paragraphs, 5) indent paragraphs by using the Tab key, not the space bar. 6) Do not manually hyphenate words at the ends of lines. Let your word processor do it, or don't do it at all. 7) Do not put double spaces between paragraphs unless there is a scene break. 8) Do not put in any section breaks. 9) Do not insert any hidden codes.
How long will it take to publish my book?
We take great care to ensure that the final product meets both your standards and those of the retail book industry. Editing, designing and registering your book can take several months. From start to finish, the entire book production process typically takes twelve to eighteen months.
After your manuscript is reviewed by our professional editors, we will send you a hard copy of the editorial notes. We ask that you make edits and revisions based on the comments, and e-mail your entire edited manuscript back to us. The editorial process is full of give and take, and can go into several rounds. It normally takes another six to eight weeks for us to send you an online proof of the final manuscript. This is a typeset copy of your book. You will have to proof it and make changes where there are typographical or editorial errors. Once that's done, it will go to cover design. This can (but doesn't always) take another six weeks. After you've approved the cover, the book will be submitted to the printing department. It is important to note that once your book goes to the printer, no additional changes can be made. After it's printed in book form, you will receive a complimentary copy.
Are there any hidden costs?
No, we don't keep anything hidden. There is no cost to you to publish with us. WriteLife, LLC agrees to pay authors' royalties equivalent to fifty percent (50%) of all net profits received from the sale of their content. WriteLife operates much like a "traditional" publisher, who provides an author advance. Our advance to our authors is the pre-production and production costs of editing a manuscript, creating a book, and placing it in distribution channels such as Amazon, and Barnes & Noble. (Net profit is the money generated after all the WriteLife expenses for publishing the book.) There are no purchase requirements, and every WriteLife author receives a complimentary copy of their published book. No other publisher that we know of offers a package like this.
Can bookstores and libraries order my book?
Yes. Your book is automatically set up on the Ingram database as well as being listed in Bowker's Books in Print, and in the Amazon.com and Barnes & Noble online databases. Ingram is the largest book distributor in the United States. Bookstores and libraries can order your book through them.
After my book has been published, what will I need to do?
Since you are eager to get the maximum publicity for it, the more you are able and willing to do, the better your chance of selling books. Many authors (even the best known) aggressively push their own books.
We require authors to develop a personal marketing plan to supplement publicity efforts once the book hits the market. A successful book marketing plan can include, but is not limited to: holding book signings at bookstores and other venues, coordinating speaking events, distributing marketing materials, creating a book-focused website, sending out a newsletter and writing contributed articles for local news publications. Coupled with your book's publicity campaign, your personal marketing efforts can play a major role in establishing your credibility as an author and spreading the message about your book. You need not engage in any of these activities, but they often help sell books.
Can I sell books off my website/blog and at seminars where I speak?
Yes. You may sell your books directly to consumers.
Is there an author discount?
Yes. You may purchase books directly from Writelife, at 20% off the retail price. Books sold at the author discounted rate do not count toward the break even royalty number.