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Frequently Asked Questions
What is a custom publisher? And how is that different from a self-publisher?
Who owns the rights to my book?
Do I need to copyright my book before sending it to you?
Who is the publisher? Three Bean Press or Me?
What is an ISBN?
What is a Bookland/EAN barcode?
What is an LCCN?
I've completed my manuscript, but I still need artwork. Can you help me?
I've finished my book! What does Three Bean Press need from me in order to publish my work?
I'm worried about the cost of printing. Do you mark up the prices?
Do you use digital or offset printing?
What are the advantages to each?
What kind of printing specifications, such as cover casing, paper stocks and trim sizes, do you offer?
Do you offer print-on-demand services?
Who keeps the files after my book is printed?
Why doesn't Three Bean Press have a royalty program?
Will Three Bean Press help me sell my book?
When am I paid my earnings and how?
What if a large publishing house or literary agent contacts me and wants to buy the rights to my book?
What is a custom publisher? And how is that different from a self-publisher?
Digital technology has replaced some of the traditional methods of publishing, and authors have more options available to them than ever before. Three Bean Press is a “custom publisher"—it's a hybrid that pulls from the very best parts of self-publishing (creative control for authors, turnaround time for titles, authors' ownership of all rights) and traditional publishing (expert design and editing services, distribution and marketing help). Three Bean Press works essentially as a publishing consultant, offering award-winning design and editorial expertise as well as reliable customer service throughout the publishing process. Simply put, we work with and for each client to make their title the best it can be.
Three Bean Press also takes on all of the legwork that usually falls to the "self" when self-publishing—things like getting print quotes, advising on trim sizes and print runs, filing copyrights, arranging for barcodes, etc. In many ways, working with Three Bean Press is like having your own personal staff.
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Who owns the rights to my book?
You do, at all times.
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Do I need to copyright my book before sending it to you?
No. Technically, your book is already your creative property, but copyrighting the material gives authors added legal security that is important. Typically, we submit the paperwork to the U.S. Copyright Office on your behalf, and you will be sent a certificate upon registration. However, if you'd feel more comfortable submitting your work for copyright yourself, you certainly may.
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Who is the publisher? Three Bean Press or Me?
Three Bean Press is the publisher. However, our publishing contract is only valid for the life of the first print run, which means that once your designed and edited work is complete and printed, and you've received the final electronic files, our relationship is over (sniff), unless you've elected for us to help sell your book. Should you choose to reprint your book, we hope you'll consider Three Bean Press first—though you're under no obligation to do so. If you reprint on your own or with a new publisher, you will need to purchase a new ISBN number, as the initial ISBN number reflects Three Bean Press as the publisher.
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What is an ISBN?
It stands for International Standard Book Number. It's a 10- and/or 13-number book identifier that enables booksellers and libraries to bring up your book information, author, price and ordering information, among other things. New ISBNs are all 13 digits. You'll need one of these to sell your title, and we'll get it for you.
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What is a Bookland/EAN barcode?
A barcode that brings up ISBNs. Wholesalers and booksellers require having one on the back covers of the books they sell. When someone purchases your book, stores scan in this barcode at the register, and your book's price and information is accessed from their computer database and transmitted to the register. As with an ISBN, we handle this process for you.
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What is an LCCN?
This stands for Library of Congress Control Number. Not to be confused with a copyright registration, an LCCN is a number created by the Library of Congress that identifies the library's record for a given book. Librarians use this number to access the Library of Congress database and get bibliographic information on a select title. Again, don't worry about this—we'll get it for you.
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I've completed my manuscript, but I still need artwork. Can you help me?
We've compiled a network of talented artists to help authors achieve the look they want for their book. Through our Artists' Database, you can get a feel for their work and link to each artist's own website.
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I've finished my book! What does Three Bean Press need from me in order to publish my work?
We accept manuscript files in a Microsoft Word document or Rich Text document. Please don't try and format your document, that's our job. Images must be supplied either as high-resolution jpegs or tiff files and saved as CMYK. Full-page images should be a minimum of 8"x10" at 300 dpi (dots per inch), while half-page images must be a minimum of 7"x5"at 300 dpi. Get all the details with our Production Checklist.
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I'm worried about the cost of printing. Do you mark up the prices?
No way. We realize paying for the printing of your book is an investment. We've done it ourselves. That's why we've developed a network of printer contacts and have dedicated ourselves to getting you the highest quality book at the best price. We approach each print job as if we were footing the bill, so we only offer printer-direct prices. In fact, we'll gladly show you the bill.
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Do you use digital or offset printing?
We use both. For print runs from 1-500 copies, we typically use digital printing, as it is the method of choice for low-volume printing. When printing higher volumes, we use offset lithography because the unit price of the printed piece goes down as the quantity goes up.
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What are the advantages to each?
For digital printing, every print is identical, resulting in less waste, and there is a shorter turnaround time. For offset, the image quality is high, a variety of printing surfaces (i.e. cloth, rough paper, plastic, leather) may be used, and the overall look of the work generally appears more polished. Also, if you're looking to match Pantone® colors, offset printing provides the best match, as it actually uses Pantone® ink.
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What kind of printing specifications, such as cover casing, paper stocks and trim sizes, do you offer?
Most often, our clients choose hardcover or paperback casing. But if your book calls for something unique, such as spiral binding, we'll make it happen. Because we have relationships with many printers, authors are bound only by their imaginations; we can offer French flaps, cloth covers, onlays, dust jackets, cutouts, recycled paper, perforated pages...you get the idea. That's the beauty of working with Three Bean Press—you're never tied to a standard book format.
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Do you offer print-on-demand services?
Not at this point. We are a small company with exacting standards, and strive to make each book we work on as exceptional and unique as it can be. Print-on-demand services often rely on standard templates and forms, and our designers would rather not work that way. With Three Bean Press, you can, however, choose to print as many or as few books as you'd like.
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Who keeps the files after my book is printed?
You do. You paid us to design and prepare your files for print, so it's only fair that they are yours to keep at the project's end. We'll supply you with an electronic file of the completed work, and you'll be able to print from these files in the future, if you decide to do a reprint.
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Why doesn't Three Bean Press have a royalty program?
Because you pay us, initially, for our creative services and for readying your book for print, and because you foot the printing bill, all returns are yours—and rightly so! The only time Three Bean Press takes a small commission is when we sell your book to bookstores we're affiliated with, sell it through our website, or fulfill orders placed by our distributors. These small percentages help offset the costs of shipping, packaging materials, warehousing, and distributor and web hosting fees.
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Will Three Bean Press help me sell my book?
Absolutely! If you want us to, we'll add your title to our online store, sell it to relevant booksellers and gift stores in our network, and make it available on amazon.com, target.com and barnesandnoble.com, as well as nationwide chains and independent bookstores through our distributors. Our commission structure is as follows: 50% of retail price for sales on threebeanpress.com; 15% of retail price for sales to stores; 6.75% of retail price for sales on online retailers like amazon.com and barnesandnoble.com and through our distributors.
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When am I paid my earnings and how?
Three Bean Press provides you with quarterly statements reflecting all final sales of your book by Three Bean Press and sums received by Three Bean Press for the sale of your book during the quarter. Within 30 business days of your quarterly statement, we will cut you a check or issue a payment through PayPal for the amount you are owed.
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What if a large publishing house or literary agent contacts me and wants to buy the rights to my book?
They absolutely can. Since you own the rights to your book, that's your call. In fact, many literary agents try to stay up on the self-publishing world's new releases for precisely this reason.
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| Do you have a question that isn't answered here? Please call us at 617.584.5759 or email us at info@threebeanpress.com. |
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