The DO Book Company

I just found a really curious and noteworthy new independent publishing house out of the UK, The DO Book Company. They’ve only started with five titles and the books run only about 100 pages.  They’re mini-inspirational primers on subjects that people want an immediate insight into, like “Do Grow – Start with 10 simple vegetables.” 

At close to $6 a pop for the eBook, who wouldn’t want to gobble them up like M&M’s, reading “Do Disrupt – Change the status quo or become it” in between corporate meetings? Check them out and support independent publishing.

URL: http://thedobook.co/collections/guidebooks

Hanover Publisher Services: A Helping Hand for Indie Publishers

There has been some new and exciting developments for Benay client, Steerforth Press. They have officially debuted their small press distribution unit, Hanover Publisher Services.

Hanover Publisher Services has been around since early 2010, although they were never formally introduced to the public. Publisher’s Weekly states, “HPS evolved from an informal relationship with its distributor, Random House Publisher Services that allowed the indie house to offer select small presses—with the approval of RHPS—distribution via RHPS, which generally will only work with publishers with more than $500,000 in sales.”

Chip Fleischer, President of HPS and Publisher of Steerforth Press, explains how RHPS president Jeff Abraham expanded Random House’s distribution services. However, RHPS was reluctant to take on small clients. This is where Hanover Publisher Services stepped in. According to Fleischer, HPS “’enables Steerforth to leverage its good working relationship with RHPS and its good understanding of RHPS's complex operating systems.’”

In other words, HPS works for the little man. They get the independent publishers to the mainstream distributor. The whole process is streamlined because, Fleischer noted, ‘it's the same as having a single publisher client with multiple imprints.’” A win-win for everybody.

HPS currently has five clients including For Beginners, Campfire Graphic Novels, New Europe Books, Steerforth and their newest addition, Brooklyn-based Archipelago Books. Fleischer “said that HPS is taking a ‘go slow’ approach to adding new clients, but he also said he will consider adding more publishers if they are ‘the right fit.’”

Read the two articles on this exciting new development here and here.

Learn more about Steerforth Press here.

- Marcie Gainer

It's A Bird! It's A Plane! No, it's... SOHO PRESS!

After last week’s blog on success story, Colin Cotterill, and his fresh new novel The Woman Who Couldn’t Die, we once again must pay tribute to the powerhouse publisher and Benay client, Soho Press.

Jim Milliot’s review last week in Publishers Weekly gave Soho Press my – and I’m fairly sure, everyone’s – undivided attention.  Milliot cites the company as having a 96% sales increase from last year’s period, alone.  That’s higher than any other independent publisher across the nation, including Other Press, a neighbor of Soho in Manhattan, BenBella Books out of Dallas, Smithsonian Books out of Washington, D.C. and Ulysses Press over in Berkeley, California.

So what has this stellar valedictorian done to reach the top of its class?  Milliot gives us the inside scoop on four key steps that the publisher has taken to achieve such astronomical success:

Digital Publishing: In last two years Soho has focused many of its efforts on developing the digital sector of the company.  In 2012 e-books accounted for just over half of the company’s total sales, with the format representing 43% of sales for literary titles and 67% of the titles under the Soho Crime imprint.

Marketing and Publicity: Soho nearly doubled their promotional budget from January of 2011 and gave a slight increase to the numbers behind the marketing and publicity team.  They also broadened their advertisement horizons, sticking to traditional media mediums while utilizing the social media boom to their utmost advantage.

Distribution Reform: Seeing the opportunities that could come from working through a large-scale distributor, Soho turned to Random House for distribution services in January 2011 and broadened their outreach significantly, reaching audiences overseas.

General Growth:  In 2013 Soho plans to launch a new imprint for young adult novels called Soho Teen.  The new addition will add 12 titles to the 64 titles that the company has already published.

Soho Press Publisher, Bronwen Hruska

And the best part, if you can even believe that it get better - they are just so darn down-to-earth!  Look no further than the About Us page to see for yourselves.  Among other things, the Soho team boasts the qualities of a former cactus model, self-proclaimed habitual defector, and greek yogurt lover.  Publisher Bronwen Hruska pokes a bit of fun at herself, saying “None of the screenplays [I] sold were ever made into movies so you can’t watch them.” 

Hruska has had a bit of additional success recently with her book Accelerated – a gripping commentary on the tendency that our society has to jump the gun on ADD and ADHD diagnoses in children.

All in all, she and her team seem to achieve the embodiment of modern grace, thriving in the fast-paced culture of today’s business world without selling their souls.  It’s one of the more refreshing things I’ve seen to date.  I’d recommend Soho for any young professional as a good business model simply because, ladies and gentlemen, Soho Press is on fire.

If you’d like to learn more about Soho Press, visit their website at http://www.sohopress.com/

- Colleen McClintock

Binghamton University Marketing Major Publishes First Novel Independently

This one's not about any of our clients, but I thought it was a very interesting story, and it happened in Binghamton, NY (which is where I'm blogging from, BING REPRESENT!). A senior marketing major at Binghamton University wrote a novel last year in his spare time working at an auto dealership and has, just this month, gotten it published by the independent publishing house Black Rose Writing. There are several things great about this story:

1.) Yes, I said marketing major; not English, not Creative Writing, MARKETING!!!
2.) He wrote this book at WORK; he started it in his spare time between selling cars and then took it with him on his semester abroad and finished it in Prague.
3.) The book has been picked up and has already garnered a positive review from Kirkus Reviews.

It's really a great story. It goes to show that there is no conventional way to write a book and get it published, and no one should ever be discouraged from trying to put something out there. For more details, here's the BU student newspaper article. The book is The Ancillary's Mask, and it's written by Daniel Cohen.

Happy Third Birthday For Beginners!!!

Our friends and clients over at For Beginners Books are celebrating their third birthday in a very big way.

They're giving away all thirty-eight of their titles (that's right, a full catalog) to one talented individual who writes them a catchy and fun tagline for their graphic non-fiction series.

Be that lucky winner. Send them your ideas for a tagline by posting it on their facebook wall, at the facebook event page, post it in the comment box of their blog, email it to them at info@forbeginnersbooks.com, or tweet it on Twitter with the hashtag #ForBeginners.

Good luck and Happy Birthday For Beginners!

LUMINARIUM by Alex Shakar

Our friends over at Soho press are preparing to release LUMINARIUM, the highly anticipated second novel by author Alex Shakar. LUMINARIUM is the story of one man's foray into the intersection of technology and spirituality in a desperate attempt to understand, persevere, and forgive after his twin brother, best friend, and business partner lapses into a coma.

The New York Times said of Alex Shakar, "It's exciting to meet an author who's unafraid of heights." Read his first book, The Savage Girl, a New York Times Notable Book and a Booksense 76 Pick, and look for LUMINARIUM out soon!

Granta Opens Subscription-Only Online Archive

Last week, Granta Magazine, our client across the pond, released a full archive on their website that can be accessed online for a yearly cost of £12.99 (about $20).

The archive contains all 111 issues of the literary magazine that have been released since its debut in 1979 and contains many rare works from the early careers of authors such as Nick Hornby, Salman Rushdie, Joyce Carol Oates, and Don DeLillo.

For just twenty bucks, this online archive offers countless hours of high quality literature and access to nuggets and artifacts that were once believed to have been lost to the realm of charity shop bins and yard sales. Take advantage of the subscription here.

Rock Paper Tiger by Lisa Brackman

The New York Times calls Lisa Brackmann's first novel, Rock Paper Tiger, published by our good friends and clients over at Soho Press, a "wild ride." Jam packed with chases, terrorists, and plot twists, Rock Paper Tiger could easily leave Jason Bourne in the dust.

The novel follows expatriate Ellie Cooper on a break-neck thrill-ride through China as she battles terrorists, confronts mysterious black ops commandos, searches for her missing artist boy-toy, and joins a secret society, all just to escape the monotony of every-day life back in the states.

The novel intersperses political wit and social commentary on war, torture, and the anxieties of cultural change into the mix to create a novel that is truly one of a kind.

Take a look at the New York Times review and the website for Rock Paper Tiger by Lisa Brackmann.

Tin House Stands Up For the Little Guys

We are so grateful to have such great clients. Just a few days ago, Tin House announced a new plan to support the indie booksellers of the nation. Tin House Announced last week that from August until November, any unsolicited manuscripts submitted to their publishing company must come attached with a receipt for a hardcover or paperback book from an independent dealer. Here’s a link to Publishers Weekly’s Article: Tin House, Dzanc Books Aim To Help Indies

Way to stand up for the little guys. We all know they need a little help right now. Thank you, Tin House. We’re glad to know you.