Henry Baum | Self-Publishing Review

About Henry Baum

Author of three self-published novels and one traditionally published (Soft Skull Press, Canongate, and Hachette Littératures). Recipient of Best Fiction at the DIY Book Festival, the Gold IPPY Award for Visionary Fiction, and the Hollywood Book Festival Grand Prize. He lives with his wife Cate Baum in Spain. He's the founder of SPR.

Where to Find an Editor for a Self-Published Book

Take a look at our editing packages here.

There’s been a lot of talk on this site about why editing is important to the quality of self-published books, and how poor editing is the reason self-published books are not taken seriously. One could imagine the impulse of some writers: well, the book’s already been bought, so what does it matter if there are some typos inside – the sale has already been made. Bad impulse – if you’re at all interested in generating good reviews and for gaining any kind of reputation to sell books in the future.

OK, […]

Henry Baum2020-02-21T06:47:00+02:00May 20th, 2009|Categories: Resources|Tags: Book Editing Tips|

On Demand Titles Surpassing Traditionally Published Books

Publisher’s Weekly reports that publication of on demand titles surged past those released by traditional publishers in 2008 – a pretty clear signal that self-publishing is gaining as an outlet, as the publishing industry becomes narrower and narrower in their criteria for traditionally published books. However, this could also be a case of more people learning about self-publishing options, not just about the submissions process for traditional publishers. The fact that self-publishing is gaining credibility is also a factor, as is the publishing industry’s lack of resources for publishing new work. The PW article has this mysterious quote:

Kelly Gallagher,

[…]

Henry Baum2011-10-08T20:35:32+02:00May 19th, 2009|Categories: News|

Two New Publishing Developments with Scribd and Smashwords

The new publishing paradigm continues to grow. Smashwords, which is one of the best places for self-publishers to sell ebooks – as well as convert an ebook to a number of different formats – now has a platform for publishers with multiple titles.

Smashwords helps book publishers make the transition to ebooks, and offers an attractive alternative to traditional online retail outlets because it pays publishers 85 percent the net proceeds from sales of their titles. Ebooks are sold to customers DRM-free and multi-format, making them readable on any e-reading device…

The Smashwords service is free to publishers. Each publisher

[…]

Henry Baum2011-10-08T19:07:23+02:00May 18th, 2009|Categories: News|

An Interview with Brad Grochowski of Authors Bookshop

On the heels of the story about Indie Reader, which led to some controversy, here’s an interview with Brad Grochowski, the man behind the site Authors Bookshop – a site that allows authors to list and sell books. Authors Bookshop is one of the best indie-friendly places online. Check out the site and visit Brad’s blog, Indie Bookman.

Self-Publishing Review: What is AuthorsBookshop and why did you start it up?

Brad Grochowski: AuthorsBookshop is an online bookstore that specializes in independently published books. It is also a community of authors and publishers who have chosen the indie […]

Henry Baum2011-10-08T19:07:39+02:00May 18th, 2009|Categories: Interviews, Lead Story|

The Two Wings of Self-Publishing

Self-publishing seems to fall into two separate camps:

1. Those who want to use self-publishing as a stepping stone to being traditionally published.

2. Those who don’t care about the traditional system whatsoever and want to sidestep it.

The vehement reaction in the Publishing Renaissance debate against traditional publishing makes me want to write about the second. And this post might just get me into trouble. I wrote a comment on that post that I enjoyed the debate, but it’s been kind of weighing on me. It’s weird to be on the side against self-publishers, as I’m such a staunch […]

Henry Baum2011-10-08T19:08:49+02:00May 17th, 2009|Categories: Features, Lead Story|

Self-Published Writers Receive IPPY Awards

The IPPY Awards are in and a number of self-published titles have been included:

5. Popular Fiction
Gold (tie): The Dyodyne Experiment, by James Doulgeris and V. Michael Santoro (Synergy Books – A Book Pros imprint that costs $8000 to publish with advanced PR and distribution) and Peak Experience, by Bud Connell (ARC Publishers – the writer’s imprint, not ARC Publications out of the UK)
Silver (tie): A Plague of Scoundrels, by Jon Cory (Komenar Publishing – not s-p) and Do The Math: A Novel of the Inevitable, by Philip B. Persinger (iUniverse)

9. Juvenile/Young […]

Henry Baum2011-10-08T19:09:07+02:00May 15th, 2009|Categories: News|

In Defense of IndieReader.com

Since putting up the IndieReader post there’s been some criticism of the service. Some people criticize IndieReader itself, while one person criticized me in an email for even giving IndieReader a platform. The way I see it: IndieReader is a development in self-publishing, it’s news. It’s up to writers, to some degree, to determine if it’s a good idea or not. I have actually been critical of IndieReader in that past – citing that it’s very expensive next to a place like AuthorsBookshop, which only charges $30 or so to be listed on the site.

I don’t think IndieReader […]

Henry Baum2011-10-08T19:09:37+02:00May 15th, 2009|Categories: Publisher Reviews|

Amazon Enters the Publishing Business with AmazonEncore

The impulse about Amazon is to think that they’re a monolithic corporate entity that may be up to no good. This is the root of a lot of the criticism of the Kindle, which people criticize as possibly monopolizing the ebook market: consumers will be forced to buy books from only the Amazon outlet. This is what happens when a retailer enters the world of technology. Given that Amazon allows Kindle books to be read on the iPhone, they are at least not forcing people into buying their own device.