Contemporary Publishing

As creatives ourselves, we’ve been on both sides of the table when it comes to putting our work out into the world. We offer our authors the best quality and services possible, while keeping an eye on innovation and changes in the publishing industry.

The contemporary publishing model offers benefits for the success of both authors and publishers.

For Authors

Contemporary publishing often appeals to emerging authors with a small platform and an eye toward growth. Author platforms tend to have multiple elements that feed off one another, such as speaking engagements, consulting services, etc. For these authors, contemporary publishing offers an opportunity to complement their service offerings and/or brand building efforts.

For authors looking for an additional income stream, contemporary publishing models enable them to begin collecting royalties as soon as the book begins selling — instead of after they’ve “earned out” their advance, as in a traditional model.

For Publishers

Publishing is an industry where profit margins are razor thin, even when publishers aren’t offering 60-80% royalties. When an author and publisher invest in the upfront cost of production together, the publisher takes on less financial risk. By offering contemporary publishing contracts, we are able to publish more manuscripts and keep the lights on longer.

We offer traditional contracts on a case-by-case basis — it’s not a 50/50 split. We select the contract that will work best for our author, their goals, and our company.

We offer contemporary contracts as a standard, unless our publisher believes the work warrants a traditional contract.

Some authors request a contemporary contract because it better fits their goals for their book. For example, if an author was planning to use their book as part of a service offering, company/brand building, or to support their expertise in consulting or professional speaking, they might decide a contemporary contract is a better option for them.

No. 

Although contemporary publishers are author-subsidized, they are different from other author‑subsidized models (i.e., self-publishing service providers, vanity presses). Contemporary contracts include the same services as traditional contracts, and publishers must adhere to professional publishing standards. (See a comparison of different publishing models below.)

In order to be considered a hybrid publisher by the Independent Book Publishers Association (IBPA), publishers must meet specific criteria. 

IBPA Hybrid Standards

Our boilerplate contemporary publishing contract calculates an all‑inclusive services package cost based on the same estimated hours and line item expenses we budget for projects completed under traditional contracts.

This total investment is split between How2Conquer and the author, with the author covering about 40% or less of the total investment while receiving over 50% of the book’s royalties post-publication. As the average cost of publishing a book is about $21,000, the author’s investment typically comes out to $8,500 for a book under 250 pages. This is just an estimate.

Our contemporary contracts include the same services as our traditional contracts, covered by the all‑inclusive services package. This includes: author care, project management, editing, production, design, printing, distribution, marketing, and rights and metadata management. 

There are no surprise fees or costs added at a later time.

Read About Our Services

Royalty Projections

We are happy to provide you with royalty projections based on our sales projections. Understand that we don’t have a crystal ball, however, and sometimes things beyond anyone’s control impact how well a book will sell. While we promote all our books as a publisher, book sales are also directly correlated to the time and effort an author puts into promotion. 

Projections are not guarantees.