What’s Your Niche?

There are as many kinds of books as there are people to read them. Well, okay, that’s mathematically impossible, but the point is that there are millions of readers out there with hundreds of thousands of interests. Any one of them, if you find yourself in the position that you can corner the market, will make for a very successful publishing company. Of course, considering this possibility can be as daunting as it is liberating. What you will want to do is just keep your eye and ease open. What are your friends wishing that there was more information on. The ten best quarterbacks? Vietnamese fiction? Whatever it is, do a lot of research into markets and marketability, and – we can’t stress this enough – write up a solid business plan (search for templates and other aides online), and get all your papers in order with your city, county and state as far as what it will take for you to start a business.

Research:

Not only do we insist that you put together a proper business plan, we also verily demand that you do all the research you can about the small publishing industry itself. Read any books that you can find on the topic, so you have an idea about what the most common pitfalls are and you can be prepared for them. You will want to make sure that you are familiar with the ins and outs of the industry as well as all its terms and vernacular before you put yourself out there as a publisher.

Office Setup:

At the very least you will need a computer with a large amount of storage, and an external drive for backups. Other than that you’ll need a good all-in-one printer, an attractive, informational and functional website, and word processing and layout software (such as MS Word and Adobe Creative Suite). If you are setting up shop in your home, do the best you can to have a relatively quiet and dedicated room in which to do your work

Finding Talent:

There are numerous ways to get the word out about your new publishing venture. You are probably already somewhat familiar with a few magazines and other publications that are geared toward writers. Advertise in them to the extent that you can afford. Classifieds in the back are all right, but may not exude legitimacy. Another way to attract attention is to seek out online forums and chat groups where writers congregate. Introduce yourself, tell them what you are looking for, and point them to your website for more information. You may also have specific writers in mind already. If so, contact them either directly or via their agents.

Binding and Printing:

These depend on the size of your venture and what it is that you are trying to accomplish. You may find that you can save money over a relatively short period of time by doing one or the other in-house, or you may feel that your time will be better spent elsewhere. If you are a do it yourself-er, and you want control and flexibility, it is worth noting that thermal (aka hardcover and softcover) binding machines are inexpensive and truly easy to operate. Take a look around and see what other options there are, if even for creating short runs and samplers.

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Category: Business
Keywords: small publishing,small publishing house,publishing house,successful publishing company