publishing because i can.

publishing.services and being a publisher

This is really important. I am both a small publisher and provide publishing services. There is a distinction between the two, and you need to know it.

Publishing services - whether with me or someone else - means that a specific service is delivered for a specific fee. I do what you pay me for, and not any more or less. (For example, I don't correct grammar or spelling during eBook conversion.) Someone providing publishing services gets paid by the author.

A publisher instead takes a percentage - usually a majority one - but handles much, if not all, of the business aspects without involving (or bothering) the author. The publisher would hire both copy and line editor, cover artist, etc without payment from the author. The author is paid an advance against royalties (most of the time) and royalties are paid out to the author through the sale of the book to the general public. The publisher makes money from sales of the book to the public.

Publishing.With.Alliteration.Ink

As a general rule, I am not open to novel submissions as a publisher. If you insist, query by e-mail. Do NOT send any of the text.

I am interested in anthology proposals. Detail the theme, if any, proposed length, editor, and any writers already attached to the project. Having an included tagline and elevator pitch will increase your chances of me being interested. Please take a look at my standard contract for a story in an anthology to get a sense of the financial model.

I do not pay advances against royalties at this time.

Query via e-mail at steven.saus@gmail.com

Publishing.Services

I offer critiquing services, eBook conversion and digital distribution. But wait.

Before we go any further, we need to talk about something. There are a lot of scammers out there. A LOT.

You need to make sure that the person or organizations charging you are giving you a good value for your money. Is it something you could do yourself? Is it simply something you don't want to do? Or something you don't know how to do? I just had an individual pay me for burning CDs — simply because he had the money to spare, but not the time. That's an informed decision — as opposed to someone not letting you know how easy it is to burn a CD anymore.

Because writers often demand these services, and the powers-that-be often tell them to do it themselves, it leaves the fledgling writer at the mercy of the scammers. That's crap.

So I'll offer these services, and gladly take your money. I'll tell you how much it really costs, and what I'm charging you and why. And if you decide that you want to keep giving me money, I'll be thrilled — because I know I'll have earned a fair wage. If you decide you can do it yourself, I'll also be thrilled — because I'll know that you're not falling prey to scammers.

digital.distribution

Alliteration Ink will provide a la carte distribution services to the four major digital bookstores (Amazon, B&N, Kobo, and the iBookstore) and my own web store.

What's needed?

The eBook file (in ePub and/or Kindle format) - You can provide this to me, or I can convert it for you. Your choice.
A new ISBN. If you are only distributing to Amazon and Barnes & Noble, you do not need one. You can obtain one yourself or through me ($25, flat). Use a different ISBN than the one for your print edition.
The cover art as a separate file, the smallest side no smaller than 700px. JPG, GIF, or PNG, please. If you do not have cover art, I can subcontract that if you like.
A contract and statement of rights. That is, a statement saying that the file is yours and your responsibility.
Some money. I charge $15 ($10 of this is non-refundable) for getting each book to each store, and 4% of gross reciepts for each book at each storefront. There is one exception - if I distribute your book to any of the other stores, you have the option of listing it for free (and 4% gross reciepts) at my storefront.
Paypal or physical address For paying you, naturally.

Some (hypothetical) FAQ's:

So you don't care if I upload it somewhere? Not particularly. You may not offer the book for less elsewhere - that breaks agreements with the storefronts. As long as you have the same price everywhere (hint - have it end in .99 so that the iBookstore will take it), we're good.
Are you charging a rate for "day labor"? Not really. The uploading fee is strictly paying me for my time. The 4% of reciepts is meant to reflect my time and energy doing some accounting work for you. I believe that on the balance, this will be the cheapest for authors without screwing me over. I may revisit this later if I'm wrong.
How often do you pay authors? Currently, I'm paying quarterly, simply due to time constraints on my time. The good thing is that I will pay you quarterly regardless of how many copies your book sold. Several places (the iBookstore comes to mind) have "thresholds" for payment. I won't make you wait for them. I hope to get the payments up to monthly (or less), but I'd be foolish to promise that now... I simply have too many other commitments.
Why isn't my book up yet? Three possible reasons.
1) I'm one guy, who also has a "day job". Sometimes I get overwhelmed, and while I'm working on improving my scheduling, I do get to everything... eventually.
2) It's the storefront's fault. While getting it up to my storefront is rather speedy, all the others take at least twelve hours. Kobo seems to take 7 business days, the iBookstore approximately 10.
3) They rejected it for some reason.
What if my book is rejected? It depends on whether or not I converted your book, and why they rejected it.
If your book is rejected due to content or legal reasons: I will refund the $5 portion of the fee. Please fix whatever issues there are before starting again.
If your book is rejected due to formatting reasons: If I converted your book, fixing such problems is covered under my guarantee. If I did not convert your book, I will refund the $5 portion of your fee. Please fix whatever issues there are before starting again. (Note: My guarantee applies if I just fix your eBook, which is less costly.)
So do we know why my book got rejected/ Is my rejected book fixed yet? In my experience, getting answers why a book is rejected from the iBookstore is a long process involving multiple e-mails over weeks. (Yes, weeks.) Please be patient dealing with them.
What if I change my mind and don't want to use you any more? You do not need to give a reason to stop using my services. Should you do so, I keep the original $15 fee, we settle accounts immediately, and pull the books from digital distribution. I cannot transfer ownership of the ISBN; however, the eBooks will still be yours².

Query via e-mail at steven.saus@gmail.com

critique.services

Again, you don't need this. But if you absolutely cannot find a critique group (online or off), I will take a look at your 10,000 word or less short story or first chapter of a novel (again, less than 10,000 words) for a non-refundable, up-front fee of USD$40. Query before sending money or manuscripts.

Sarah Hans says: Steve's critiques are always timely and insightful, and cover the range of both grammatical and style elements. In other words, he'll tell you if your t's are crossed and i's are dotted, but he'll also tell you if some aspect of your writing needs improvement, if the perspective shifts are warranted, if the story is too choppy, etc. His critiques are not for the faint of heart, however; Steve is honest and unafraid to point out flaws. Of course, that's what you should want from a critique if you're trying to improve your writing!

Patrick Tomlinson says: Steven Saus is a soulless critiquing robot sent from the future, with no regard for emotions, common human decency, or even a baseline level of social etiquette. He will tell you like it is, using his superior positronic neural network, and crush your dreams and aspirations into a fine dust, which he then uses as a base material to repaint his composite skin to better imitate the authors who are his prey. Oh, and he injects you with radioactive material. He must be stopped.

After Patrick was ~~punished~~ reminded why we were here, he said: Steven Saus has been where you are. He's gone through the steps and has a genuine interest in teaching others to avoid the pitfalls of beginners everywhere. His input can be firm, yet fair. He'll tell you what you need to hear.

Remember: Query First to make sure I have time for your critique. Money up front because you're interested in a good critique, not an ass-kissing when I haven't been paid yet. One item at a time, no more than 10K words because I'm charging you for my time. The price does not go down if you send me a shorter work. Make sure the subject line of your e-mail says CRITIQUE QUERY in all caps.

Query via e-mail at steven.saus@gmail.com

Projects.In.Brief

Eighth Day Genesis: A Worldbuilding Codex
Creating a believable world for your story is a craft. Over twenty authors share their tips and secrets about creating a fictional world. Due out late May 2012

The Crimson Pact
The forces of evil strike across worlds. The forces of good, embodied in the Crimson Pact, must be willing to sacrifice anything to be able to save everything.

Spec the Halls
It's a charity. It's a contest. It's winter holiday-themed speculative fiction that benefits Heifer International.

Freelancer Resource
As more creative types go it alone, it's important to be able to find quality people to help.