This is the PUBLISHING SERVICE INDEX for June 2015. IngramSpark continues to occupy the top spot ahead of CreateSpace and Amazon’s Kindle Direct Publishing (KDP). In fact the top nine positions remain unchanged from last month. Kobo Writing Life enters the top ten for the first time ever and it comes at the expense of Lulu. Kazoo Publishing…
The Authors Guild Ends its Partnership with Author Solutions
The Authors Guild — a US-based organisation that supports working writers — has become the latest in a growing group of publishers and organisations to end its partnership with Author Solutions (currently the subject of a proposed class action lawsuit). The Authors Guild formed a partnership with iUniverse in 1999 to offer publishing services to its membership as part of…
Google Temporarily Closes Play Books Partner Center
Late last week authors began reporting that they could not open a new account on Google Play Books’ Partner Center. Google Play Books is a cross-platform application which allows users to both download and upload books in PDF and ePub formats. Unlike Amazon’s Kindle and Apple’s iBooks, Google Play Books is an open publishing and sales…
Kazoo Publishing Services – Reviewed
Kazoo Publishing Services is an Irish-based company founded by Chenile Keogh and Vanessa O’Loughlin in early 2013. Keogh has more than twenty years experience in the publishing industry including sales and managerial positions with Irish publishers Merlin Books and The O’Brien Press. She also founded Y Books, a general Irish publisher in 2010, though it…
Publishing Service Index: May 2015
This is the PUBLISHING SERVICE INDEX for May 2015. IngramSpark holds on to its number one position ahead of CreateSpace and Amazon’s Kindle Direct Publishing (KDP). Lightning Source (LSI) continues to show gradual slippage. I suspect much of this is now down to new self-published authors to Ingram’s direct channels choosing Spark over LSI or being actively encouraged to go this…
Books-A-Million Launches Publishing Platform with FastPencil
Retailer Books-A-Million has partnered with Fastpencil to launch an online DIY self-publishing platform called BAM! Publishing. The new website will provide tools for cover and interior design, conversion to both print and e-book formats, and distribution to Amazon, Barnes & Noble, iBookstore and the Ingram network. The website will also provide professional editing services. Basic…
Lightning Books Co-Publishing Launches at LBF 2015 (Overview)
The week of London Book Fair (LBF) always brings with it a host of announcements, whether it is a major publisher signing a six or seven figure deal with an author or the launch of a new imprint. With its hundreds of exhibitors, this annual trade show also becomes a home from home for many companies…
Publishing Service Index: April 2015
This is the PUBLISHING SERVICE INDEX for April 2015. This month IngramSpark holds on to its number one position ahead of CreateSpace and Amazon’s Kindle Direct Publishing (KDP). While KDP still holds third place, its has closed the index rating gap considerably on CreateSpace. This is also reflected in a significant decrease in the amount of negative feedback TIPM had…
Google Play Books – Reviewed
What more could a self-published author want? The world’s largest search engine combined with the world’s largest e-bookstore. Google Play Books is a cross-platform application which allows users to both download and upload books in PDF and ePub formats. Unlike Amazon’s Kindle and Apple’s iBooks, Google Play Books is an open publishing and sales platform…
PressBooks – Reviewed
PressBooks is an online publishing tool that lets self-published authors and small publishers create professionally formatted book files for print and e-book editions. The completed files are compatible with all the leading DIY publishing platforms and print services like Amazon’s KDP and CreateSpace, Apple iBooks, Kobo, Nook Press, Smashwords, Lulu, and Ingram’s Lightning Source and…