Working with the experts at a publishing house can save you money in the long run and certainly minimize the hassle.
Many years ago I bought a German-made car. For maintenance, I would visit an auto mechanic who works on all types of cars, regardless of brand. I go to his shop with this mechanic a few times a year and it gets tedious. My car still has regular problems and bugs.
I ended up switching to a mechanic who only used German cars, which ended up costing me more than the average mechanic. But now I like the service better because the specialty of the shop are German cars. After the switch, I only go to the mechanic once a year. Although I spent more money, I ended up saving money because I don’t go to repairs three times a year and my car is better tuned.
This may seem far from the subject of publishing a book, but read on:
As we all know, publishing books is a collaborative effort. As someone who is going to publish a book, you have two main options: work with the help of a book publisher or hire an individual freelancer yourself.
A book publishing company comes with a consulting manager and a publishing services team, but at a higher price. Independent freelancers who work in book publishing companies typically spend less.
Enlisting the help of a publisher or hiring a freelancer is one of the first fundamental decisions when determining the quality, cost, and overall ethos of a book project. Remember that to publish a successful book, the money left over after publication is not your biggest factor. Instead, how the money is being spent, and whether it is being spent well, will be the biggest indicator of your book’s publishing success.
When you’re looking for publishing services, you want to make sure you’re getting the best books at a good price. The main reason people use freelancing in publishing is to save money. At first glance, you may find it cheaper for individual freelance book editors, but costs in other areas can suddenly skyrocket. When you work with book publishers and their teams, they understand the industry. Some costly pitfalls in the book publishing process, such as discovering typographical errors too late or beginning book editing, can rob your book of significant value.
In the case of book editors, it can be a big mistake to hire only a text editor by a freelancer. It seems that 3 out of 4 clients I speak to have considered a copy editor for their project. “Oh yeah, I’m already in charge of editing books.” Who is hired to ensure the quality of your books? Is it someone who often works in book editing and printing? Do they meet the latest release standards? I often ask freelance book editors what standards they use for proofreading, and they don’t know themselves. Publishing standards are ambiguous at best and can change from month to month based on literary trends. While many authors are talented writers, even good at grammar, they should never be book editors for their own projects. I repeat, don’t be the editor of your own book! Only professional and quality book editors can produce beautiful, beautiful books. Unqualified freelance editors devalue other areas of your hard work.
How do you find the right type of book editing and publishing services for their unique project?
One of the benefits of working with a book publishing company is networking with other industry professionals. Book packers should have contacts with experienced publisher contacts within the publisher network. When it comes to packaging and printing books, you want to know the best book editors and book printers, and a book project manager will figure this out quickly. In addition to their skills, experienced contacts can bring collaboration and coherence to a project, especially when they are used to working together. In an efficient book publishing company, illustrators have worked with layout designers on several previous projects, text editors are used to working with project managers, and everyone knows their role in the book journey. Collaboration and easy communication between trusted teams saves time and money. By only hiring a freelancer, you risk hiring someone who has never worked with others, with a different level of skill and expertise that is unknown. This often leads to communication problems and work stoppages.
Bottom line: you get what you pay for…this can be a disaster for book publishing! Sacrificing the editorial quality of the book, or making a mistake that
to bless. For some, the cost and independence of finding their own freelancer is low enough to ignore the risks of a book’s quality and results. However, investing more in guaranteed expert management and consultation with a book publisher is your best investment.