publishing.
WHAT IS HYBRID INDEPENDENT PUBLISHING?
There are many different hybrid book publishers; we cannot speak for other hybrid publishing models, we can only speak for ourselves. We discuss our publishing practices and hybrid business model when we first connect with potential new authors. We are not a self-publisher or “vanity press,” where the author pays to have their book published and signs a restrictive contract which involves surrendering significant rights. Instead, we offer a collaborative process with our authors during the creative writing and book production stages, share costs and risks with the author, and actively market and sell each book. We also maintain collaborative marketing and PR strategies post-publication, meaning our authors still get ongoing support after their book is published.
Independent publishing, sometimes referred to as hybrid publishing, blends the best elements of the traditional and self-publishing worlds. The Awakened Press offers 100% royalties to new authors and all authors maintain 100% copyrights to their written works. Additionally, we help all authors through each stage of the often-complicated publishing process. We also automatically include ongoing marketing and promotions for each book we publish.
STANDARDS
In 2018, the IBPA Advocacy Community published the first iteration of IBPA’s Hybrid Publisher Criteria, a list of criteria defining what it means to be a professional hybrid publisher:
Define a mission and vision for its publishing program
Vet submissions
Commit to truth and transparency in business practices
Provide a negotiable, easy-to-understand contract for each book published
Publish under its own imprint(s) and ISBNs
Publish to industry standards
Ensure editorial, design, and production quality
Pursue and manage a range of publishing rights
Provide distribution services
Demonstrate respectable sales
Pay authors a higher-than-standard royalty
The Independent Book Publishers Association (IBPA), a not-for-profit membership organization, serves and leads the independent publishing community through advocacy, education, and tools for success. With over 4,100 members, IBPA is the largest publishing trade association in the U.S. for independent publishers, mid-sized publishers, and the like. The IBPA supports independent publishers and authors. We have been fulfilling these standards since we were established, before the IBPA invented these standards, and we are happy to hear there is now a worldwide organization keeping all publishers accountable. This is part of why we have a complimentary call if we accept your manuscript for publication—to discuss our business practices and methods in a fully transparent manner, as well as discern whether the book will be the correct fit for everyone.
Est. 2009, we are a hybrid independent book publisher specializing in nonfiction self-help and body, mind and spirit books. Please see the associated subgenres listed on our Book Submissions page. This means we help authors at various stages of their writing process, with a structure that allows the freedoms of a self-publisher but the support of a traditional publisher.
100% royalties to new authors
Basic
The Awakened Press offers 100% royalties for new authors until a certain book sales threshold is met, usually between 1,800–3,000 copies. After a certain book sales threshold has been achieved, this means the author’s book is consistently selling, so any upfront investment the author made has effectively been neutralized from book sales.
Intermediate
Afterward, a shared book royalty opportunity between The Awakened Press and the author is put in place in exchange for further PR and book marketing services that we provide, so it remains a win-win situation for all.
Advanced
If authors have an already-existing established audience, there is no upfront fee and we will propose a 60-40% royalty split with 60% of the royalties given to the author. Almost half of the existing books on our roster have either been converted to this situation after successful sales of the book or published without any upfront fees.
distribution
Distributing your book to Amazon only is not the most effective publishing method. This is why 99.99% of the books published with The Awakened Press are distributed worldwide. A few exceptions were purposeful for their marketing strategy. Global distribution means your book will be available for sale worldwide through every major online retailer and more, including bookstores.
Most authors never get into bookstores because of their distribution system. Amazon is normally a direct competitor to bookstores. When you choose to publish with us, your book will be distributed using our proprietary Global Reach program that offers access to bookstores.
Along with our individual marketing strategies embedded within each book we publish, the book distribution platform with The Awakened Press gives you the best reach.
Books published with The Awakened Press are distributed to over 40,000 retailers, libraries, schools, and universities globally—online and in stores. Our distribution network includes Amazon worldwide, Apple, Barnes&Noble (US and UK), Scribd, Inktera (formerly Page Foundry), Chapters-Indigo Canada, and more.
marketing
Book marketing and PR services are automatically embedded in each book we publish. When we publish your book, we represent and support you as an author. For example, if we choose to work together, we help you reach more readers by exposing your book on our website, social media, and email lists; we provide individual outreach to writing groups and/or literary networks, bookstores, podcasts, and traditional media such as newspapers.
Currently, each author we publish is invited to attend our monthly ongoing post-publication support meetings hosted by our CEO and publisher, Lindsay R.A. Dierking. These monthly meetings are complimentary for The Awakened Press authors and designed to help each author build their individual “Author Platform,” AKA, grow their network/audience of readers.
Although we do assist you with book exposure for as long as your book is published with us, the best opportunity for success is when authors execute their own marketing efforts in addition to ours.