What types of books are you looking to publish?

Our focus is on books that match our “Short Books. Big Ideas” tagline. Specifically, we are looking to publish books that are:

• How-to oriented and/or motivational/inspirational books
• Between 80-120 pages in length
• Focused on solving a specific problem for people (fear of failure and rejection, for example) 
• In the areas of health, wealth, success, happiness, and relationships.

Why would anyone use this model of publishing? 

Not a lot of people should. We are big believers in the DIY model. There are a ton of resources for getting your book self-published on your own. (We did it ourselves at the dawn of time before Amazon even existed.) You don’t have to spend a lot of money either.

The people who choose a hybrid model like ours have more money than time. They are usually successful business owners who want it all done for them instead of doing it themselves. They don’t want to deal with getting a cover designed or finding an editor let alone making an editor’s changes. They don’t even want to learn how to upload a book onto Amazon. They are also not “writers” by trade. What they do want is a book they can be proud of and sell to those that want to learn from them, their stories, and ideas. 

One other option is to go with a book services company that will do all the “packaging stuff” and then give you the book so that you can publish it and retain 100% of the royalties. The book packaging services can range from a couple of thousand dollars and go way up from there. It’s not a bad way to go either. 

We are not just a services company, we are partners with our authors. Our goal is to help them create the best possible book that we can. We work on the strategy of their book, how it fits into their business, how to write a book that solves the problem the author wants to solve for their readers, and give ongoing marketing support for as long as the book lives. We are deeply involved in every aspect of the book’s creation (developmental editing, writing as needed plus all the production) as if it were our own.       

Why do you only publish short books?

There are so many reasons, where should we begin? For starters, short books:

• Take less time to read 
• Are easier and take less time to write
• Can be priced lower, making them an easier purchase decision 
• Are less expensive to produce and ship

More important, keeping a book short triples the chances people will open it, read it, and recommend it to others.

When and how do you pay authors their royalties?

Author royalties are paid within 45-days of the end of each quarter. 

How are author royalties calculated?

Royalty calculations are based on a very simple and verifiable formula:

Book sales price – less retail sales/distribution costs = Split 50/50 between the two parties (you/us).

What are the costs involved? 

We have a couple of options but the big question is, how much help do you need in the actual writing of the book? You can spend 30K-50K or more with some companies to help do your book (and you keep all the royalties) or you could spend just a few hundred dollars and do everything yourself including the writing and editing. (Don’t do that!) Again, we’re a partnership so we share everything. Our fee depends upon a few factors which we can share if we speak. Because we are so hands-on with the authors and their book, we are only able to take 2-3 clients per year. Writing and publishing is a painstakingly detailed process to do it right. 2023 is currently booked.      

Do you offer any kind of marketing packages or services?

Absolutely, we work with our authors to create marketing campaigns or promotions to drive sales which is all part of being partners in the book. We also highly recommend running Amazon ads and manage that entire process, working to make the ads as profitable as possible.    

Do you allow authors to look at your financial records?

Yes. We use Amazon’s payment “dashboard” for all calculations, and we’ll give you an exact “to-the-penny” accounting of sales every 90 days. We’ll also provide an accounting of any additional sales of your book title (to books clubs, foreign rights sales, etc.) less any directly related costs involved at the same time. You will know EXACTLY what was sold, what came in, and what went out—along with a check for royalties due. We are 100% transparent in all dealings with our authors, and you will never have to chase us for your money.

If disputes arise, how are they addressed/settled?

No one likes (or wants) to engage in disputes, but since you asked, this is covered in detail in our Terms of Agreement at the bottom of the website and outlined in detail in our standard publishing contract (provided at the time we agree to work together.)

What platforms do you distribute books through?

Success in 100 Pages publishes and distributes exclusively through Amazon for paperback copies.

Why only Amazon?

Besides the obvious—that Amazon is the “big dog” in the book marketplace today—we publish exclusively through them because:

• Amazon’s pricing for book production is extremely reasonable 
• The overall quality of Amazon’s product is excellent 
• Dealing with a single bookseller makes life easier for everyone

The biggest reason of all, however, is that spreading book sales across multiple platforms reduces the likelihood that a book will hit the bestseller list on any of them. Publishing exclusively with Amazon increases the likelihood they will promote a book on its site to other buyers. To date, Amazon has always treated us right. Until that changes, they’ve earned our loyalty and exclusivity.

How many copies will my book sell?

The honest answer is, no one knows—and anyone who tells you they do is lying. This doesn’t mean we don’t have a pretty good idea your book will sell well (or, at least break even—after all, if we didn’t, we wouldn’t publish it.) We’re putting our time and money on the line, just like you have. We don’t make money until you do, so there’s no reason for us to publish any book that we don’t have optimistic expectations for.

Do you publish every book that is submitted?

No, we do not. Per our Mission and Values Statement, we do not publish any book we do not believe has a reasonable chance at success. 

Aren’t “traditional” publishers” better in terms of credibility?

Maybe. If the primary reason for publishing your book is to get speaking engagements to Fortune 500 companies, having a major publisher do a hardcover version of your book can be helpful.  The truth, however, is it’s damn hard (not to mention the 18 to 24-month lead-time involved with most major publishers) and expensive. When you see books facing out at the airport bookstore, someone likely paid to be there, often the author. On top of that, large publishing houses have little interest in publishing books for smaller “niche markets” and are unlikely to take you on.  

Can I have books printed myself, or do I have to buy them from you?

All our authors are required to buy books directly from us, just as any author would with any other publishing company. The only exception is for hardcover books (done for the purposes of having a higher price point product for back-of-room sales and/or for speech marketing purposes) which we allow our authors to do with the printer of their choice at their own expense.

How much does it cost to buy copies of my book?

Success In 100 Pages offers a 75% discount off the retail cover price making the typical price of purchase $3.25-$4.50 (plus shipping costs) depending on the cover price.  In certain situations, where an author may wish to purchase a higher-than-usual quantity of books (1,000 copies or more at a time) we use the services of an off-set printer. This is done to provide our authors a slight quantity discount on bulk book purchases (something Amazon does not offer) and to save the author money on shipping costs.  

What about foreign rights and translations?

Generally, foreign rights for translations into other languages is not something we proactively pursue. However, when opportunities present themselves, we utilize an outside company that specializes in foreign rights to negotiate the deal.  When and if this happens, we operate on the same 50/50 profit split (after legal and/or agent fees.)