AKW Books

Al Kalar, Acquisitions Editor for AKW Books, sent this note ...

Our company HQ is in the mighty metropolis of Elma, WA ... However, our operation is international in scope. One of our editors lives in northern BC Canada and we've received manuscripts from all continents except Antarctica. Since we deal in eBooks exclusively, our employees don't have to commute to the office, just to wherever they've stashed their computer ... we're a "start up". It took a year to put this organization together and we're very pleased with the response we're getting from the writing community now that we're accepting manuscripts. Our standards are high and ... We offer one of the best and "loosest" contracts in the industry. Authors can still submit their books to more traditional publishers even while we're selling the e-version and after six months, they can leave or duplicate their eBook offerings ... We have two books listed and another that will be available today or tomorrow. We also have contracted for two more that the authors have almost completed ... If someone has self-published, that isn't a disqualifying event as long as the writing is good and the work has market potential.

• We invite authors with completed manuscripts to submit for consideration.
• We pay 50% on net sales (after discounts such as Book Club and volume discounts).
• Our list prices are generally under $5, but the final price is up to the author.
• We do not charge for publication. We're definitely not a vanity press.
• We only contract for exclusive e-rights for 6 months. You can still chase Random House et al. After 6 months, you can stay with us, go elsewhere, or do both.
• We're primarily interested in new authors, but we're not picky if the manuscripts are good. We've been "newbies" ourselves and know how hard it can be to "break into print" without going the vanity route. That's the main reason we got into the business.
• No porn or erotica, please.
• For complete information, go to the company's website.

We also have a blog on how to get published. Most of the advice in it is probably "old hat" to your members. However, if anyone would like to participate in discussions, I'm sure they could enrich the understanding of the "go it alone" crowd. We try to have something new on it every Tuesday.