For a myriad of reasons, authors are increasingly making the decision to self-publish.  For some writers, self-publishing is exactly that: they handle every element of the production process, manage distribution of print and electronic editions, publicise their books and retain 100% of income from sales. Others want or need more assistance, and this can mean anything from commissioning bespoke editorial, formatting and technical assistance from specialist freelancers, to signing up with a self-publishing services provider that can deal with the whole publishing process.

If you are thinking of signing up with a publishing services company, we recommend comparing providers, perhaps also checking feedback from other writers using the Self-Publishing Services Rated chart on the website of the Alliance of Independent Authors.

The Advisory Team is happy to comment in detail on any agreements members are offered, but some essential elements for self-publishing agreements are the following:

• There is no grant of rights to the company
• The final version of the work belongs to you; you will be provided with the electronic files and be free to use them however you wish in future without reference to the company
• Your name and details will be used when setting up accounts with Amazon and other retailers, so you have control over how your work is listed, the metadata and what happens to income.

We have a range of resources available for self-publishing members, in text, film and podcast formats, and these can be found in the Resources Section of our website, or you can email to info@societyofauthors.org if you would prefer us to provide files and links to you directly.

We would also alert members to a fairly new kind of publishing offer which is rather more opaque and is neither self-publishing nor traditional publishing. These are ‘minimal investment’ deals, and we are seeing an increasing number of contracts for this kind of arrangement from members. 

A huge number of companies seem to be operating online using the minimal investment model, which offers little more than making an ebook (and sometimes a print-on-demand) edition available for sale online. The company will often look to take control of a very broad range of rights for a long duration and retain a significant proportion of any income. The publisher may be offering nothing you can’t easily do yourself by self-publishing, which – although we know it’s not for everyone – would also leave you free to pursue any better offer that might come along.

It is not always obvious from the company website or draft contract you may receive what kind of publishing arrangement is being proposed. If you have an offer from a company you have come across online, or which has approached you direct but you have not heard of before, don’t forget that we can advise members on offers as well as full contracts, and please get in touch with us to discuss any new publishing ventures you are considering. 

Members can also download a copy of our Guide, Who will be publishing my book from the SoA website, or we can email a copy to you directly.