Here is a quick overview of how the Morgan James Publishing Model compares with other publishing models. Items listed are in no particular order. If we left anything out, let us know.
Features
Old-School Traditional Publishing
Morgan James Publishing®
Typical Self-Publishing
Author Rights
Publisher maintains the Intellectual Property rights
Author maintains ownership and control of Intellectual Property rights
Author maintains the Intellectual Property rights
Time to Market
Books are brought to market usually in 18-24 months
Books are rolled out to market usually in 3-4 months for authors and eBooks and 7-12 months for bookstores.
Books are made available to the author usually in 3-6 months
Royalties and Advances
Average of 4% to 15% Royalty, depending on mode of sale and is typically based on Net sales, paid twice a year, with an average advance of $1,500
20-50% Royalty across the board of Net sales, Paid Monthly and small advances paid
20% to 100% of net sales depending on whether you do it yourself or use a publishing service company with no advances paid, but typically a $10,000-$15,000 cost
Design, Editing, Printing
Books are given a custom designed interior and cover and all printing costs are covered. Publisher typically takes over editing and final manuscript content and quality
Books are given a custom designed interior and cover and, as you’d expect, all printing costs for distribution, are covered by Morgan James. Authors provide a fully edited, proofread manuscript that we then perform an Analysis on to ensure quality
Authors assume all cost associated with design and printing. An author services company may offer template driven designs or custom design services to purchase
Bookstore Distribution
Full Bookstore Distribution both online and off via Ingram Publisher Services or other reputable distribution solutions
Full Bookstore Distribution both online and off via Ingram Publisher Services
No Bookstore distribution or limited online availability unless author hires distribution company directly
Continuing Education
No Continuing Education
Our individual Entrepreneurial Vision Mastermind is included as well as the Morgan James exclusive Marketing Resources Guide to help with the business behind the book
Typically no or expensive continuing education
Mastermind
Publisher takes over and makes all decisions
Authors become part of our trademarked Entrepreneurial Vision Mastermind to establish the best future for title
Author makes all decisions or hires own professionals to guide them
Publishing Fee
No Publishing Fee charged
No Publishing Fee charged, hidden or otherwise
Publishing Fee charged and can vary from extremely expensive to relatively affordable
Author Book Discounts
Typically 50% of retail price and typically limited to a certain amount
Author may purchase books at print cost plus a percentage with volume and quantity discounts
20%-65% off retail price depending on format and quantities purchased
Book Purchase Requirement
Many major houses require authors to purchase 5,000 copies, or more, of the book upon its release, usually at a 50-60% discount off retail
Author is asked to commit to purchasing, during the life of the agreement, up to 2,500 copies at print cost plus $2 (non-fiction)
Typically Author is expected to purchase however many copies required to sell to the general public
Return Rate
Average of 45+% bookstore return rates which are usually shredded for the tax benefit
Average of less than 25% bookstore return rates which are then restocked for resale, offered to the authors, or donated to Habitat for Humanity
Books are typically sold on a non-returnable basis and are not available in bookstores
PR Support
Unless author is one of the top 6%, no PR Support is offered
Press Release posted to the Morgan James website, via social media and our exclusive Red Carpet Event each publishing season where each author will have their own individual moment on the Red Carpet being interviewed about who you are and what your message is.
No PR support is provided
Marketing Budget
Unless author is one of the top 6%, no Marketing Budget is offered
Co-operative marketing monies invested to the trade on every book published
No Marketing Budget is offered
Partner Status
Authors are sometimes treated as a partner
Authors are treated as valuable partners in the process and are the most important member of the mastermind group created for each project accepted
Authors are treated as a customer
Giving Back to the Community
No cause related marketing is typically associated at the publisher level
A percentage of all sales across the board is donated to Habitat for Humanity and speaking opportunities available as well as international recognition for charitable works
No cause related marketing is typically associated at the publisher level