I am often asked what sets Tate Publishing apart and why are we able to succeed when others fail.  The answers are simple.  First, we believe in what we are trying to accomplish, a great company, individual, family, really anything needs a great set of values or moorings it can hang onto and believe in.  At Tate Publishing we believe we are changing the world through our books.  That is not something we take lightly, we truly believe our authors are changing the very world we live in.  My parents who founded Tate Publishing had a simple desire, deliver the best books possible to the marketplace and change the world through content and success.  We accomplish this everyday at Tate Publishing.

I want to thank TC and Cathy for their comments over the weekend and this question is for you as you are trying to figure out how to handle and maneuver through the publishing industry.

Now, the questions is whether or not an author should ever pay to have their book or manuscript published? This is an easy answer, an author always pays to have their book published. For example, if Random House approached you as an author and offered you a $1 million dollar advance. You would think that is the best thing ever and by the way you should take it, but it is an advance. The truth is that you won’t see another dime until you have repaid the advance or your book has accumulated enough from your royalties to repay them. So sure you didn’t pay up front, but you and the results from your work are definitely paying for it, just over a longer period of time.

The publishing industry today has many options available to you. You can self-publish, subsidy publish, partnership publish or traditionally publish. All of these are great options, what is more important is for an author to decide what is the best option for them in their situation.

When looking for a publisher, what I would concern myself with the most is not whether or not there is a fee involved, I would concern myself with two things:

1. How selective is the publishing house? A publisher needs to be selective in what they publish, these helps keep the brand quality in tact and makes sure that you won’t be lost in an author pool of ten’s of thousands of authors. This is one of the main complaints about self-publishers, they take everybody! So make sure there is a submission, review and acceptance process. In addition, make sure that if your manuscript is rejected, that you submitted to a publishing house that can give you feedback as to why, this will help you grow as a writer and make your next attempt even better.

2. How does the publisher market, distribute and publicize their products? See my last post, “What does distribution for your book really mean?” for more information about this issue. The most important things to make sure of are the following criteria. Does this publisher stock inventory with retailers, wholesalers and distributors? Is 100% of the publishers book product returnable? Does the publisher pay for every book put into distribution at no cost to the author? Many publishers claim they have great distribution, but your book will only be listed in a database or on websites. Ask these questions and you will make a great decision for your book.

At Tate Publishing we have prided ourselves in offering authors more than any other publisher in the industry. No one comes close to what Tate offers, they try or make claims, but the difference is huge. I would encourage you to read some of my other posts to learn more and please keep your questions or subjects you wold like discussed coming my way! As always I am praying for you and look forward to future discussions.

Ryan Tate

BTW, we are very sad here at Tate Publishing today since the University of Texas beat the University of Oklahoma in football over the weekend!!! We will get you next year longhorns!