Who's a good fit for hybrid publishing? Part 1 (Time)

Hybrid publishing can be an excellent option for a wide variety of reasons, most of which have nothing to do with the quality of a manuscript and everything to do with an author's needs and goals or a project's scope and potential audience.

So what types of authors and/or projects are best-suited to the hybrid model, and why?

This series explores ten different scenarios where hybrid publishing makes good sense.

In this first post, we look at time. Sometimes an author just needs to get their book out quickly. A hybrid press can help.

HYBRID TYPE 1: AUTHORS WHO NEED THEIR BOOK YESTERDAY

Okay, we can’t actually reverse time, but we can speed up the publishing process, by a lot.

In most cases, we can bring out a book within four to six months of receiving the manuscript. That’s compared to the 12 to 24 months it takes most traditional publishers to get a book into stores — if you’re lucky enough to secure a traditional publishing contract to start with.

Anyone who can’t, or won’t, wait that long may be a good candidate for a hybrid.

The process is streamlined in a few key ways:

1.) We're used to responding quickly to manuscripts, and in most cases we'll tell you what yours needs within a day or two.

2.) If your manuscript is accepted, it can go into production as soon as other projects are cleared, usually within a few weeks at most.

3.) Because we use print-on-demand technology and online distribution networks, there are no licenses to clear in different territories.

4.) From the moment your book is listed on Amazon (and the websites of thousands of other online book vendors, including Barnes & Noble and Chapters/Indigo, for Canadian authors) it is instantly available anywhere in the world where mail is delivered. 

As such, hybrid publishing is attractive to anyone who needs a book to grow their business or show that they have a tangible presence in their field. In this category, we've published books by life coaches, career consultants, business, leadership, process, management, or financial consultants, and wellness experts, to name a few. In a lot of cases, their book becomes their primary calling card, and they can't wait two years or more for a traditional publisher to bless their enterprise.

Some projects are less business-oriented and more esoteric, but can still help to build credibility, secure legacy, and attract clients to a new or established business. We’ve published books by an applied neuroscientist, a finance-oriented firefighter, a famous Canadian musician and music producer and a psychic medium. In each case, they can use their books to create opportunities and draw attention to themselves and their business.

Then there’s another category of author who wants to tell their story while they still have time.

As sad as it always is, we’ve been honoured to publish some amazing books by authors who are battling severe illness and want to leave something behind for family and friends, or finally tell their story to the world. We’ve published books by people who’ve died during the production process, and whose families wanted to honour their wishes by bringing a project to completion. We’ve been told that it gave these authors peace of mind to know that their story would be in the world after they were gone.

A terrific book of humour and essays that falls into this category is our recently published collection of Holocaust narratives, Yiddish comedy, memoir, poetry, short fiction and non-fiction by Sam Hoffer, From the Heart. Sam was born in 1945 and came to Canada at the age of seven with his parents, rejoining his brothers, Leizer and Joe, who had come to Canada after surviving the Holocaust. By turns moving and hilarious, this book collects his memories and dreams as revealed in his many poems and stories, all written from the heart.

Another example of this kind of project is Yesterday’s Battles, the last book published by international best-selling author Jack Whyte. We published this short story collection not long before Jack died, giving him an opportunity to share a different type of writing with his global fan base.

You can read more about Jack’s story in a separate blog post that explores another reason why some traditionally published authors choose to go with a hybrid: to try out a new genre or publish smaller-scale stories that their big publishers don’t want.

Watch for Part Two, coming soon.

—Lee Parpart