Manuscript Submissions to Goblin Fern Press, Inc.

Step 1: Have a manuscript. If your manuscript is not complete yet, we can offer valuable input through our workshops and other author services

Step 2: Think about the risk involved with publishing. With traditional publishing, it normally takes a few thousand dollars to compose the material in a professional, aesthetically pleasing manner. It costs a few thousand more to produce enough books to make a profit after distribution and marketing costs are met. These risks must somehow be overcome by the author, the publisher, or through a shared effort. A healthy publishing contract will balance the risk vs. reward for both parties.

Print-On-Demand technology can change this scenario for low-volume production.

Be prepared to answer questions about what you, the author, can do personally (i.e., marketing) to either reduce the risk and help reap the rewards of publication. If you need help marketing your book, Goblin Fern Press, Inc. offers marketing kits at an additional cost.

Step 3: Decide how you would like to have your book published. There are several different options:

• Equity-publish under the auspices of Goblin Fern Press, Inc. The author pays for all publication services and keeps all the books that are produced. This can be a very lucrative investment, since direct-marketed books can have an enormous profit margin. It is also a great way to produce books that are not intended for retail sales (educational material, manuals, family heirlooms, etc). You, the author also own all rights to the book, which can be additional income streams for your book. Goblin Fern Press is still your publisher, lending access and credibility to your book.
• Self-publish under your own publishing company. Goblin Fern Press, Inc. can help you create your own publishing company, then provide the production services to create your books. This option allows you to create and maintain your own company image - your own brand.
• Publish with pre-paid books. As a way to reduce the risk, you agree to purchase a specific number of books (usually 250-500) at an author discount of 40%. You can then sell these books at retail price to earn a profit for yourself, and recover your investment. Royalties are then paid to you after we recover the initial cost of production.
• Publish and receive advance royalties. Advances are paid when publishers are absolutely, positively, ready-to-bet-the-firstborn-and-house sure the book will sell many thousands, or even millions, of copies. Advance royalties are a way of balancing the risk vs. reward scales when the author is very famous or extraordinarily talented. Goblin Fern Press, Inc. does not offer advance royalties at this time.
• Other means of risk/reward sharing. Each Goblin Fern Press publishing contract is unique to the individual author, because each person brings different assets, experiences, and talents to the table. Publishing contracts are based on one of the above templates, and then tailored to the individual.
• Traditional printing or Print-On-Demand? Print-On-Demand (POD) technology has dramatically changed the costs of low-volume printing. POD requires you to pay an initial setup fee, and then you or someone buying your book pays a price-per-book for production. The production costs are low enough that you can still make a profit through direct sales of the book. Production quality may be slightly lower, but the average customer will not notice a difference.

  POD is a great way for you to build a customer base and earn profits (which usually lead to progressively larger print quantities) with a fraction of the investment required for traditional printing. Traditional printing becomes more cost effective once the you are capable of supporting print runs larger than 250 books.

Step 4: Write a book proposal. You can get started by printing out our Guide to Writing a Book Proposal. Be sure to include information from steps 1-3. A good book proposal does these things:

• Gives an example of what condition your work is in currently, and states what you would like to have at final production. We use this to estimate the composition costs of the book. We can also get an idea of your talent from a synopsis and sample chapters.
• Identifies the target market of your book. The more keenly focused your target market is, the more effective any efforts will be to reach that market. In the opposite extreme, a target market of "everyone" will render marketing efforts nearly useless. "Everyone" should never be your target audience.
• Compares and contrasts your book with other books of interest to your market. This gives us an idea of the competitiveness of your book idea. Seventeen new titles are published every hour in America alone. It would be well worth your while to do intense research on your competition.
• Tells us something about you, your experience, your personality, and your credentials. You, the author, as a person, are the most important driving force behind the first thousand books sold. This is a critical part of a book proposal because it gives us a feel for the marketability of YOU.
• Makes a good sales pitch. Remember, those thousands of dollars of risk must be paid by someone. If you are unable to cover or reduce that risk yourself, you'll need to effectively convince someone else to take the risk.

 

Step 5: Download, print, and fill out the Author Marketing Questionnaire. There are a lot of questions in this form, and it will take a considerable amount of time to complete. We guarantee this will be time well invested, and it indicates to us your commitment to the project. No matter what happens with your book, its success will be enhanced if you have researched and prepared answers to these questions. Attending our Book Marketing 101 workshop will further enhance your book's success.

Step 6 (optional): Fill out a non-disclosure agreement (NDA). This ensures the privacy of your work while it is under consideration and production. This agreement is not necessary, though you may feel more secure with it. Goblin Fern Press, Inc. is willing to sign this agreement with any author.

Step 7: Submit your material. Mail your manuscript, NDA, book proposal, guidelines for manuscript submission (pdf) and marketing questionnaire to [email protected]

Step 8: Follow-up. Goblin Fern Press, Inc. will send you a letter acknowledging the material you sent us within 14 business days of receipt. This does not preclude you from contacting us as well (toll-free 1-888-670-2665). Assertiveness is a valuable and marketable author trait.