Frequently Asked Questions About Publishing
Do You Provide An ISBN? Would Then You Be The Publisher And Hence Have Copyright To The Book?
If we are satisfied with the editorial quality of your manuscript and the cover and pages you have designed for your book, or if we provide these editing and design services ourselves, we will publish your book. That implies we will provide an ISBN for EACH format your book is developed in. (Currently if you work with us, there can be a maximum of 5 formats: Paperback and Hardback if you are developing a printed version, and EPUB and PDF if you are developing an electronic version.)
This, however, DOES NOT MEAN, we will have any rights to the book. These rights will always remain with the creators of the content in the book.
What Is An ISBN And How Do I Get One?
An ISBN (International Standard Book Number) is a universal code that publishers and booksellers use to identify and order books the world over. In India, ISBNs are provided free of cost. You can obtain one from the issuing agency in India.
We will issue your book an ISBN after we are satisfied with the editorial quality of the book and its presentation. However, if we are not involved with the development of the book i.e. with its production and design, we will not issue the book an ISBN. For such books, however, our print-on-demand services are available and we can print and deliver as per the needs of the author. CinnamonTeal also provides you an ISBN barcode that can be added to the back cover of the book.
Having an ISBN is not necessary if your book is for personal use or for circulation within a limited group of people. It is required if you wish to sell your book in bookstores, whether online or offline, or in any other retail outlet. Each version of a book — whether paperback or hardcover, first or second edition — must have a different ISBN. A unique ISBN distinguishes between different versions of a book, helping customers ensure that they get the book they want.
For more information about ISBNs, visit our blog entry on the subject.
Do You Offer Packages? Other Service Providers Do.
We do offer authors the option of customizing a package based on his or her needs. Visit this page to know more.
What Are The Expenses I Will Incur?
Your expenditures will happen primarily for three reasons:
a. You will only have to pay for the services you “buy”. These are services related to editing, design and marketing the book, and are optional. There are no other charges or publishing packages you are forced to purchase. For more on costs of self-publish, visit this page or our blog on the subject.
b. Because of the way the service is structured, we are unable to accept returns. Retailers understand this peculiar situation and may be reluctant to stock your books. We therefore ask you to buy a few copies of your own book so that they can be reviewed or kept with retailers. Similarly, if retailers choose to stock your book, you will have to pay for the copies up front. This is an additional cost you will have to bear. Of course, you will be able to avail of author discounts when you order prints of your own books. The final decision on how many copies to print, however, remains with you.
c.If CinnamonTeal issues you an ISBN, you have to pay for 5 copies that must be necessarily submitted to the National Libraries. While CinnamonTeal prepares the necessary paperwork for this purpose, you will be expected to pay for the printing and shipment of the books.
Would It Matter If I Simply Had The Book Printed Rather Than Having It Published?
A published book will be issued an ISBN. Many retailers insist upon an ISBN as a prerequisite to stocking your book for sale. Moreover, after your book is issued an ISBN, you are required by law to deposit 5 copies of that book with the National Libraries. This in turn ensures that your book is accessible to readers in at least these libraries.
Nowadays many mainstream publishers are looking at self published books to publish these books themselves in a revised edition. A published book, that is carefully edited and nicely presented, increases the chances of this happening.
What Is The Process To Get My Book Published?
The process is as follows:
a. Before the process commences, we will send you an author’s contract that you are required to print, sign and send back. The contract is a legal document mentioning various terms and conditions. Please note that we prefer you begin this process only after you are satisfied that you have completed the book.
b. The next step is to have the manuscript thoroughly edited. You must provide your text for publishing after at least one round of editing. You could choose to have your book edited yourself or avail of our editorial services
c. Once your manuscript is edited, you have to get your cover designed. Again, you can have the cover designed yourself or engage our cover design services. If an ISBN is issued to you, it must be included on the copyright(imprint) page of your book and a barcode must be added to the back cover.
d. The interior of the book must then be designed. This involves the appropriate selection of font, margins and paragraph settinsg besides the formatting of the header, footer, the imprint page and the table of contents.
e. Once the manuscript and cover are both ready in pdf format, your book is ready to be printed. Your book will be available within ten days of ordering and payment.
f. Further you may choose to develop your book as an e-book. We provide e-book conversion to EPUB, MOBI AND PDF formats.
f. Similarly, we provide distribution services for both, printed and electronic formats of your book.
If you do not avail of our pre-publishing services such as editing or cover design, there are no payments that need be done except when the copies of the printed book are ordered. Please note that we do not issue an ISBN unless we are involved in the editing and design processes. In such cases, we only provide the requested services.
PLEASE REMEMBER THAT it is important to begin the publishing process only after you are satisfied that the text of the book is completed except for changes that may be suggested by the editor later. Adding text to the book after the publishing process has begun leads to unnecessary delays and complications with various versions. Such a situation is best avoided. We cannot emphasize this enough.
Must I Opt For Your Services? Can’t You Publish My Book Just The Way It Is Submitted?
We do not insist that you purchase our services. We have published the books of many authors who have had their books edited before they approached us, and have helped many others design their own covers.
That said, we will not publish a book that is not properly edited or has a bad cover (usually clipart downloaded from a powerpoint presentation). If the author insists, we may simply print that book but we will not issue the book an ISBN. This is because we believe that the content within the book must be carefully and properly edited and presented.
If you approach us with a manuscript, we will explain to you why the book needs to be edited. Further, we will also explain our reasons to suggest either copy editing or substantive editing. We will also explain why the cover you have chosen for your book may not be the right one to go with, or why the illustration you have provided will need a little more work.
I Would Like To Publish Under A Pseudonym. Will It Have Any Legal Or Copyright-Related Impact?
Publishing under a pseudonym will have no legal impact or influence copyright protection of your work as the author agreement you will sign will have your details and state that you have published the book under a pseudonym.
Will I Get To Know The Total Cost I Will Incur Before We Begin The Process?
Yes. Before you sign on, we will give you an estimate of the costs involved. These estimations are a close approximation of the actual expenditure you will make to have the book published.
Will You Allot A Project Manager Or Someone With Whom I Can Exclusively Communicate With?
Yes. You will be assigned a single point of contact to whom you can direct all your queries.
What Self-Publishing Services Will My Book Need?
That really depends on your book, its structure and intended audience. But let’s keep it simple.
Typically a book requires the following services:
Editing: So that the book reads well, and is free from grammar and syntax errors.
Cover Design: So that the book is nicely presented and has all relevant information.
Page Design (or Interior Layout): So that the book reads well, has a choice of fonts appropriate for the target group, a nicely designed table of contents, and copyright and all other such information.
Printing: Whether in bulk or on demand. The author may also choose to develop e-books at this juncture, along with the printed edition, or without it.
That’s it. That is actually all the book needs to gain a physical presence or be accessible to the buyer. Further, though, there are other services you may wish to consider:
Illustrations: Something you may want if it is children’s book, or if you wish to drive home a point with an illustration.
Indexing: Mostly used for academic texts, available for both, subject and person.
Marketing: Digital marketing services that will help your book capture the market’s attention.
Distribution: So that your book is accessible within domestic and international markets.
Browse further for a full list of pre- and post-publishing services.
Should The E-Book And Print Versions Of My Book Have Different ISBNs? If So, How Are They Linked Over The Internet?
ISBN rules mandate that each different format has a different ISBN. That means, while hardcover and paperback versions are already issued different ISBNs, each ebook format (whether epub, pdf/a, mobi, or any other format) should also be issued a different ISBN.
Most retailing platforms will recognize the similarity between the various formats (versions) and link them together.
Can The Book Be Changed After The First Copy Is Printed?
Yes, the contents of a book can be changed subject to certain conditions. Simply send us the new manuscript and indicate that it should be used for further prints. However, please note that we are not responsible for maintaining earlier versions of the manuscript.
In fact print-on-demand allows you to change your manuscript for each successive reprint. Many authors have used this to their advantage by incorporating user suggestions into their manuscript or by mentioning book reviews on the back cover.
However, please note that a significant change in the content of the book might warrant a change in the ISBN. This option of “changing” must therefore be used with discretion and only to customise a copy for the user.
If the changes that you request must be made to an already finalized manuscript, appropriate charges will be applied. We therefore request you to view a copy of the book before you decide to list the book for circulation. It would be even better if you reviewed the edited manuscript thoroughly and made all the necessary changes before the book is laid out (type set). Similarly, ensure that the cover is up to mark and that all text on the cover is properly edited. This can be checked when the final version of the cover is submitted to you for review.
What Payment Options Do You Provide? (How Do I Pay CinnamonTeal For Its Services?)
The following payment options are available to buyers on The Dogears Bookshop: a) Credit/Debit Card, b)Payment by Cheque/DD, c)Payment through a direct deposit into our bank a/c. These details are listed on the invoice you will receive for each service.
For overseas payments, you can choose to pay using paypal. However, there will be a surcharge to compensate for the costs levied by paypal.
We have several extensive FAQ pages covering a variety of subjects and answering questions you may have about us and our services.