Leaked
Hachette Document Explains Why Publishers Are Relevant
DECEMBER 6, 2011
With self-publishing tools proliferating and traditional publishing business models in flux, authors, agents and book-industry observers have been increasingly debating the relevance of publishing companies.
In his obituary to the year-long Domino Project, Seth Godin wrote that publishing companies and other traditional players that do not adapt to new modes of doing business will go extinct. Others have suggested the same.
Meanwhile, some authors like J.A. Konrath and David Gaughran have eschewed traditional relationships with publishers to create and distribute their work on their own. In the aftermath to the Book Country self-publishing tool launch from Penguin, some outspoken critics took the announcement as an opportunity to question publishers’ relevance.
Hachette Book Group, one of the world’s largest publishing companies, has a response. In a document leaked today to Digital Book World by someone inside the company, Hachette outlines just why publishers are relevant. The company has shown the document internally to employees and externally to a limited number of agents and authors.
“You have to take a long look at what you’re up to and how you’re changing and adapting,” said a Hachette executive who preferred not to be named and who confirmed the authenticity of the document. “We’re all trying to come up with good messaging.”
The executive explained that the document is a continual work-in-progress and would evolve as the publishing business evolved.
The document in its entirety follows:
“Self-publishing” is a misnomer.
Publishing requires a complex series of engagements, both behind the scenes and public facing. Digital distribution (which is what most people mean when they say self-publishing) is just one of the components of bringing a book to market and helping the public take notice of it.
As a full service publisher, Hachette Book Group offers a wide array of services to authors:
1. Curator: We find and nurture talent:
- We identify authors and books that are going to stand out in the marketplace. HBG discovers new voices, and separates the remarkable from the rest.
- We act as content collaborator, focused on nurturing writing talent, fostering rich relationships with our authors, providing them with expert editorial advice on their writing, and tackling a huge variety of issues on their behalf.
2. Venture Capitalist: We fund the author’s writing process:
- At HBG we invest in ideas. In the form of advances, we allow authors the time and resources to research and write. In addition we invest continuously in infrastructure, tools, and partnerships that make HBG a great publisher partner.
3. Sales and Distribution Specialist: We ensure widest possible audience:
- We get our books to the right place, in the right numbers, and at the right time (this applies equally to print and digital editions). We work with retailers and distribution partners to ensure that every book has the opportunity to reach the widest possible readership.
- We ensure broad distribution and master supply chain complexity, in both digital and physical formats.
- We function as a new market pioneer, exploring and experimenting with new ideas in every area of our business and investing in those new ideas—even if, in some cases, a positive outcome is not guaranteed (as with apps and enhanced ebooks).
- We act as a price and promotion specialist (coordinating 250+ monthly, weekly and daily deals on ebooks at all accounts).
4. Brand Builder and Copyright Watchdog: We build author brands and protect their intellectual property:
- Publishers generate and spread excitement, always looking for new ways make our authors and their books stand out. We’re able to connect books with readers in a meaningful way.
- We offer marketing and publicity expertise, presenting a book to the marketplace in exactly the right way, and ensuring that intelligence, creativity, and business acumen inform our strategy.
- We protect authors’ intellectual property through strict anti-piracy measures and territorial controls.