Bobby Nayyar - Publisher of Glasshouse Books Offers Advice
2011 March 5
The ambition, drive, and blind fury you need to go off and start your own business is surely akin to some sort of psychosis. The universe will rebalance itself and, like having a lengthy eye test followed by prescription glasses that help you see into your past and predict your future, you will come out of that phase into something new, which you will hopefully pass on to others.
Indeed, when I started thinking about starting a company, I held on to a clipping of some entrepreneur who gave his top five tips to people looking to set up on their own. I ignored most of his advice, but can certainly relate and appreciate that he had it all right. So here’s my attempt to offer ten tips to people who are thinking about starting their own publishing houses.
1. Aim to have some source of income while you are setting things up.
There is nothing more demoralising than watching your hard earned savings dissolve and seep into your business, especially in those months if not years in which you obtain very little in return for yourself. A business is an investment, all things being well, eventually you should make the money back. In the meantime, we all have bills to pay, if you quit the day job, make sure you have something lined up to generate some income. It will make a big difference to your morale.
2. Spend a lot of time on the creative vision of the company and all design matters.
As mainstream publishers are forced to churn out more and more titles and ape the covers of successful books, design suffers. There is a lot of opportunity in this to stand out and define yourself in an overcrowded market. Also pay a lot of attention to the typesetting of your books – it will make a huge difference to how readers respond to your work.
3. Listen to people.
This process will change your life, and certainly affect your relationships with all those close to you. In the time spent researching and preparing your venture, talk to as many people as possible to get feedback. You’ll certainly find out who your friends are, but you will also get valuable advice, possibly saving you time and money when you take the plunge.
4. Aim to publish 2-3 titles in your first year.
I had the crazy notion that I could publish 10 titles in one year. In the end, Glasshouse published 5 books, which required a mammoth amount of effort and a lot of pressure for those involved. You don’t want to go out and start a company and publish just one book, aiming for two or three will mean that you have a list and a particular remit on display.
5. Embrace all things digital.
Yes, this is the one where you might roll your eyes and say, ‘That’s obvious!’, but digital – from social media to epub – are low cost means of getting your word out to a potentially huge audience. What it requires is a great investment of time and energy, which is still an area where small and medium sized publishers suffer.
6. Get a distributor.
Most businesses start around the kitchen table. I’m certainly very happy to keep my business free and unfettered from office space. However, even I learned very early on that I would need a distributor, not only as a place to store my lovely books, but also to gain a reach to bookshops around the UK and Europe. Also a lot of retailers will not trade directly with a small publisher, it’s to do with invoicing and returns, you might also want to be wary of retailers who do want to trade directly with you. Distributors will take their cut, but they will also generate revenue for you that couldn’t on your own.
7. Always get at least three quotes for a job.
Again, this might sound obvious, but you’ll be amazed at how greatly prices might vary between suppliers. Of course, sometimes it’s not about the price, it’s about the quality of the product and the service.
8. Be ready to change and adapt.
One of the things that a few people had a go at me, when I started out, was that I didn’t have a clear business plan written out. That is a big mistake. Business plans are there for a reason – they help you focus and structure your approach. Like most things, not much will go to plan, so be ready to review how things are going and adapt, and not feel in anyway bad about changing what you are doing. Hopefully, you’ll be trying to do something new, different and experimental – so change has to be incorporated into your plans.
9. Don’t forget your family.
As I wrote in the introduction to 100, ‘Family. There when you need them. There when you don’t.’ My family has been a constant source of support, enthusiasm and have kept me afloat through some difficult times.
10. As long as you’ve got a roof over your head and food on your plate, you’ll be fine.
Look after yourself. It’s easy to get lost and consumed by the processes of your dreams and aspirations, brought scarily to life. There will be ups and downs, but as long as you’ve covered your costs and are looking after yourself, you will be fine.
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