Publishing with Streamroots

Over the past few decades, the book publishing business has experienced a radical metamorphosis, thanks primarily to self-publishing giants such as Amazon. Prior to Amazon’s dominance, the key role of an imprint label was to identify authors of excellence and actively promote them, literally creating out of nothing a platform of influence for those writers.

Today, traditional publishers are only interested in developing authors who have a preexisting platform of substantial consequence. Promotion is no longer one of their primary offerings. As an example, even major authors can no longer expect publishers to pay for book tours. 

At Streamroots, we aim to revive content-driven book publishing. Our goal is to bring to market high quality content in a wide range of Christian genres, including fiction, nonfiction, children’s books and Bible studies.

INDUSTRY STANDARDS

A book deal with a major publisher typically includes the following royalty schedule:

• 25% of the sales price of all digital versions
• 7.5% of the paperback sales price
• 10% of hardback sales price up to $5K; 12.5% from $5,000 to $10,000; 15% after $10,000

In exchange, publishers have historically covered all costs to produce, including editing, formatting, layout, graphic design, cover design and print costs. Marketing is typically determined on a case-by-case basis; however, as stated earlier, unless the author already has significant influence, his/her chances of getting signed are negligible. 

OUR OFFER

Because Streamroots is new to the publishing world, we are facing the reality that we need great authors just as badly as they need us, perhaps even more so. As a result, we’re flipping the royalty schedule on its head! Instead of receiving royalties in the 10% range, you’ll get compensated directly, and then pay Streamroots: 

• an annual fee of $100, and
• 10% commission of all profits from digital, paperback and hardcover sales annually. 

This offer requires you to cover all primary publishing expenses, including editing, formatting, layout, graphic design and cover design, as well as any marketing costs. So now, you may be asking, if I’m paying for all this myself, why bother with a label?

THE STREAMROOTS ADVANTAGE

In the publishing world, few things stand out so remarkably as a book that looks unprofessional. As a first-time author, you may complete your manuscript unaware that your countless hours of work were compromised in the final stretch due to poor editing or an unappealing cover. With this in mind, here are several advantages to consider when deciding on DIY vs Streamroots. 

• High Quality: When compared to self-publishing, your finished product will simply be better! It will have gone through a professional, industry-standard proof-reading and copy-editing process, and the cover design will be carefully crafted with eye-catching graphics tailored to your genre. 

• Label Prestige: While the industry has changed, signing with a label is still considered an advantage, as it is the mark of high quality content. 

• Email Blast: Your title will be sent to our private mailing list of over 500 personal friends and family members. 

• Website Inclusion: Your book will be featured on our publishing website, Streamroots.org, and an author’s page will be created for you.

• Production Discounts: We’ve developed relationships with industry experts around the world who offer outstanding quality services at significant savings. These connections will save you thousands of dollars in the publishing process.

• Management: We will inform you on all aspects of the production process, keeping you updated and guiding you through your areas of responsibility. You won’t be fumbling in the dark. 

• ISBN Costs Covered: As your publisher, we will provide your ISBN, a savings of up to $125 per product. Since a separate ISBN is needed for each product (paperback, hardcover, etc.), this could save you $375 or more. (Note: The ISBN which Amazon provides for free makes your book non-transferable, preventing you from selling your book outside of Amazon.)

• Marketing Advice: We’ve invested considerable time and resources testing numerous advertising opportunities, and have discovered the winners and losers. We will share this information with you so you can make informed decisions about marketing.

YOUR JOB

You will be responsible to:

• Setup your own Amazon accounts for KDP and Author Central:
• KDP: https://account.kdp.amazon.com/ 
• Author Central: https://author.amazon.com/home 
• Export your completed manuscript in docx format. If you wish to create your own layout, we will share with you our recommended platform/software.
• Setup and initiate any marketing campaigns. (We will share our recommendations with you.)

YOUR COSTS

These are the approximate costs for publication:

• Editing: $300 (up to 40,000 words)
• Cover Illustration: $300
• Layout: $100-$1,000 (Varies greatly depending on interior images. Layout can be done yourself if you have your own software. We will share our recommendations with you.)

Streamroots currently uses Amazon for POD (print on demand) services, and we will reevaluate this offer when we migrate from Amazon book printing. In the meantime, if you’re interested in submitting your manuscript for review, email us at info@streamroots.org.  We look forward to hearing from you!