Hybrid Publishing (A Guest Post)

We’ve all heard about traditional publishing and independent publishing. But what do you know about hybrid-publishing, an approach that blends the two? Author Claire Isenthal’s first novel, The Rising Order, was an Amazon bestseller. The New Order is her second novel and the final installment in her thriller series. She shares what she learned trying the hybrid-publishing model.

Regardless of what some industry professionals might tell you, hybrid-publishing is gaining more popularity and exposure, especially the reputable presses who are releasing notable titles. And why shouldn’t they? They give authors desperately sought autonomy, and most importantly transparency into the black box of publishing. An author can finally feel like the master of their own destiny along with the support of trusted professionals, and why shouldn’t that be celebrated and legitimized?

So, what’s the problem? Well, it comes at a cost…literally.

The most important consideration when determining whether you want to go the hybrid publishing route is ensuring you select a very legitimate hybrid publisher and not a vanity press. There is a distinct difference between the two – mainly that a vanity publisher will try to accept your manuscript and money without offering any sort of editorial or design services in exchange. A true, legitimate hybrid publisher will be equally invested in ensuring your product is set up to succeed.

The hybrid-publisher who I ultimately contracted with was Greenleaf Book Group. There were many reasons for this decision, but mainly it was the professional quality of their staff, their rigorous selection process for which manuscripts to accept and publish, and the success of other titles they’d worked on.

Based on my own personal experience, I laid out some other benefits and considerations of going the hybrid-route to de-bunk many of the circulating hybrid myths:

● Complete autonomy when it comes to your work. Greenleaf Book Group provides their own project manager who essentially serves as your ‘go-to’ and liaison with all other teams (editorial, design, marketing, etc.) throughout the entire publication process.

● Experienced professional staff. Greenleaf’s design team was top-notch and so were the editors who I collaborated with throughout the process.

● They offer a full suite of marketing options. In full transparency, I don’t think the Greenleaf marketing team or services were anything to write home about. However, for my debut novel I certainly didn’t have the capacity or knowledge to do this myself and I learned a lot about which marketing methods were effective. The services I found most beneficial for my debut were the following: Amazon Bestseller service, Goodreads giveaways, securing trade publication reviews, NetGalley set up. Other services they offered that I didn’t find worth the investment were their podcast pitches and their Amazon Ads services. NetGalley also did little to secure many reviews before publication.

● Distribution. Some hybrid publishers have the distribution support that self-publishing lacks. Greenleaf has a sales team that is responsible for going out and pitching your books to various brick and mortar stores (if you decide not to go with their print on demand service). With that being said, a huge amount of the heavy lifting still fell on my shoulders to visit and establish relationships with local bookstores who would carry my book. I think all in all they got me into maybe eight Barnes & Noble stores, and various outlets that remained a black box because they couldn’t report back on what those locations or venues were (Greenleaf doesn’t own that retailer data). The only way I was truly able to see if purchases were being made outside of B&N and Amazon, was Bookscan numbers and only a small percentage of bookstores report back those sales numbers.

● Cost. Greenleaf Book Group, as one of the more reputable and premium hybrid-publishers, can cost anywhere from $30-$50k without any sort of printing costs included. There are a number of other hybrid-publishers who my author friends have considered and had similar estimates, with $30k maybe being on the higher end.

● Education. Greenleaf taught me so much about the world of publishing and the publication process. It didn’t feel as if I was some insignificant piece in a giant machine. Their teams were patient, experienced and informative as they guided me through every critical step of bringing my book to life. Most importantly, they were transparent and realistic throughout the entire process, and they didn’t make false promises about what would be possible to achieve as a debut author.

Ultimately, the second installment of my thriller series released on 4/29 and with this being my second novel, I’m still in the publishing data gathering phase. Greenleaf was a huge launchpad to my author career, and I know I would not be where I am without them. But I’ve changed my expectations to view it as exactly that… a long-term investment that will very likely not yield any short-term return. For that reason, and because I have so much more experience this time around, I made the decision to self-publish my most recent release to see if I could make more money going this route. I used many of the same editors and designers, but contracted them freelance. This is still pricey, of course, but I firmly believe if you want your product to be compared among traditionally published authors, you cannot cut corners on editing or design.

Most importantly, one unexpected joy of being a published author is the friends and network I’ve grown along the way. None of these relationships would have happened or been possible without a published novel. I have friends who have self-published, been traditionally published with big and small houses, and gone the hybrid route. Every single one of us is able to commiserate about this grueling journey because there are pros and cons to each method. Regardless of your own individual choice, every book is a learning experience and a new opportunity to grow and build your author brand. I’ve gradually come to see that what’s most important is not the publication route you decide on, but that you continue writing.

Claire Isenthal lives in the suburbs of Indianapolis with her husband, their soon-to-be three children, and their mutt. She graduated Magna Cum Laude from Purdue University and worked in Big Tech for almost a decade before leaving her career in digital advertising. Visit her website or follow @claireisenthal on Instagram or Twitter.

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