FAQ's: About Self-Publishing Your Book(s) with Freebird Publishers

Q: IF YOU READ MY STORY, CAN YOU TELL ME IF IT WILL SELL WELL?

 

A: We get asked this question more often than you might think. The short answer is, no. We cannot tell you if your story will sell. There are no guarantees in the publishing business. What stories sell is subjective, meaning different factors will determine whether or not your story or book will sell. Your audience - the people reading the story- is going to be the main factor that decides whether or not your book will make it. Just because we like and enjoy your story, does not mean everyone else on the planet will be begging for your stories. We can tell you this: well-written and well-edited stories sell better than those which are not.

 

Q: AM I SIGNING MY BOOK OVER TO YOU?

 

A: No. As a self-publisher, you retain all rights, including the right to sell, publish or distribute your books wherever, however, and with whomever you choose. 

 

Q: HOW DO I GET PAID?

 

A: You earn royalties based on sales of your book. Should you choose Freebird Publishers to be your distributor, we take a percentage fee out of the payment that is sent by the customer, to process orders and distribute your book. This percentage is based on the selling price of your book. If you choose another distributor, there are no further payments due to our company after the book is completed, transferred to your distributor, and the project is paid in full. 

 

Q: WHY ARE THERE NO UP-FRONT PRINTING COSTS WITH YOUR COMPANY?

 

A: No up-front cost refers only to the cost to have the book printed. This does not mean that it's free to get your book ready to be printed or published. There will be fees charged for typing, editing, proofreading, creation of the cover, postage, converting the digital files to PDF, setting up any online accounts you need, such as email and with the printer, uploading files to the printing company, setting up the book on Amazon or Kindle, distribution and services like invoicing and bookkeeping. We have bundled many of the basic components inside of our package rates (see rate listing). Once your manuscript is typed into a digital format, is professionally edited and proofread, has a front and back cover design, and is ready to upload to the printer, then there are no up-front printing costs to print books by Freebird Publishers. 

 

Q: HOW MANY BOOKS DO I HAVE TO BUY IF I USE FREEBIRD PUBLISHERS?

 

A: Zero. The only book required to purchase is your proof copy so you can review the completed book and make any corrections before printing or publishing with a Print-On-Demand (P.O.D.) publisher. If you chose to, we use a P.O.D. printing company so you don't have to spend thousands of dollars to order printed copies of your book. We also use a digital selling format like Kindle, meaning the files are not printed, but purchased as a digital file only and read on a small handheld e-reader. 

 

Q: HOW DOES PRINT-ON-DEMAND (P.O.D.) PRINTING WORK?

 

A: P.O.D. printing prints one book at a time. The cost is slightly higher per book to print each book, but you don't have to worry about where you're going to store 1,000 printed copies of your book or how you're going to come up with thousands of dollars to get it printed in the first place. Your book is held in a file storage system by the book printing company until such a time as a copy of the book is ordered. This is why ALL book files and stories must be in digital format. 

 

Step-by-step procedures for P.O.D. ordering to the delivery process. 

 

 1. The customer sends his order and payment to the retailer, or bookstore (e.g., Amazon.com).

 

 2. The retailer processes the payment (debit, credit, check or money order, etc.).

 

 3. The retailer signs on to the print company account and places the order for the copy of the             book completing all the necessary information such as the customer's name and address. 

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 4. The on-demand printing company prints one copy of the book and ships it to the customer.             AKA: drop shipping. 

 

Any money left over after printing and shipping costs is the royalty made on the sale of the book. Book files uploaded to the on-demand printing company can be listed on Amazon.com. When a copy of your book is sold through Amazon.com, they take their share of the profits so the profits are lower than what would be made if selling the books outright. However, there are benefits. Amazon does not charge advertising fees to place books for sale on their site if the book is printed through their on-demand printing company. The book's author benefits by having their book listed on the Amazon.com site which increases promotional visibility and sales. There are other companies like Smashwords where you can upload your digital file to help sell your book on other websites that sell books. 

 

Q: CAN MY BOOK BE CONVERTED TO AN EBOOK AND SOLD THAT WAY? 

 

A: Yes, for an additional fee we can make your book available to sell as an eBook. We make your book so it can be read online using online readers, or it can be downloaded to other reading devices such as the iPhone, iPod Touch, Amazon Kindle, Sony Reader, Barnes & Noble Nook, or other e-reading devices. 

 

Q: CAN I EXPECT A SET AMOUNT OF TIME TO COMPLETE MY BOOK?

 

A: No, we do not work under time restraints but we do handle all of our publishing projects in a timely and professional manner. You must be patient. We cannot adhere to an exact timeline due to the numerous amounts of detailed work that have to be completed accurately. Our service is the quickest of all prison publishers because we have built our network of experienced part-time employees which we can scale up as needed as no one else can. Simply, the more new projects that come rolling in, the more dedicated workers we employ. We will give you a fair estimate of when your project will be completed and keep you posted at all times. We process our publishing projects by first-in, first-out methods to be fair to all.

 

Q: WHAT MAKES FREEBIRD PUBLISHERS DIFFERENT FROM THE REST?

 

A: We market your book with a personal creative touch. We introduce you and your book to a network of resources that will assist you in getting your title effectively promoted. All books prepared for publishing through us will be listed on our website www.FreebirdPublishers.com

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If you want further marketing, for an annual fee you can purchase a promotional package that includes having your book listed in other advertising venues, including Facebook.

 

Q: MY BOOK IS ALREADY PUBLISHED AND DISTRIBUTED BY A DIFFERENT PUBLISHER. WILL YOU HELP ME PROMOTE MY BOOK(S)?

 

A: Yes, even if your book is presently in print with another distributor, you can still purchase one of our yearly promotional packages. 

 

Q: CAN I GET PROMOTIONAL MAILING MATERIALS CREATED?

 

A: We can create custom book promotional materials and work with you to make your promotional mailing supplies perfect. We can also help you distribute these materials. We also make display ads to be placed in other print and online publications.