Is it worth it to pay to publish? Six ways to recoup your investment, beyond the bookstore

If you’re thinking of investing money in publishing your book through a hybrid publisher or by self-publishing, you’re likely trying to work out whether you’ll get a strong enough return on investment to make the endeavour worthwhile. And rightly so: publishing a book to a professional standard is a significant investment, especially if you are considering using a ghostwriter.

Most authors think online and in-store book sales will be their primary revenue stream, an understandable but overly limited assumption. There are many other ways in which your book-publishing venture ca... keep reading


New guidelines in the Chicago Manual of Style are an enlightened step forward

This week the Chicago Manual of Style (CMOS) announced the changes that will be made to its upcoming new edition, which comes out in September. As an editor, a publisher, and a progressive idealist, I am applauding one of those changes in particular: approval of the use of the singular pronoun they.

The English language is one of the most shape-shifting languages in the world. Every year, English speakers add new words to the lexicon and repurpose old ones. Some of these innovations are widely adopted and become part of the language; others fall by the wayside. Ther... keep reading


Press Release: LifeTree’s “Vaporized” by Robert Tercek Wins Prestigious International Business Book Award

Premiere hybrid publisher LifeTree Media accepted the getAbstract International Book Award 2016 with author Robert Tercek at the Frankfurt Book Fair on Wednesday, October 19, for Vaporized: Solid Strategies for Success in a Dematerialized World. The book was one of four titles chosen by the getAbstract team from more than 10,000 English and German non-fiction books to receive the only international business related book award at the Fair.

Vaporized offers business success strategies for companies facing the threat of dematerialization in the digital economy. Call... keep reading


Maggie Langrick shortlisted for 2015 Tom Fairley Award for Editorial Excellence

LifeTree Media is proud to announce that our very own Maggie Langrick was shortlisted for the 2015 Tom Fairley Award for Editorial Excellence, a peer-reviewed award given out annually by Editors Canada.

Maggie, who is LifeTree’s Founder and Publisher, earned the nomination for her work on Shell: One Woman’s Final Year After a Lifelong Strug... keep reading


How to drive your nonfiction book up the bestseller lists

Every author would love to plop the words “bestselling author” alongside his or her name. But what does this term really mean? The definitions of a “bestseller” are changing in the age of digital publishing.

The New York Times is the gold standard of bestseller lists in North America but recently, more authors are citi... keep reading


Traditional vs. self-publishing – and an alternative to both

Last week, my favourite book industry blogger Jane Friedman posted an update to her popular infographic breaking down the major routes to publishing. It is shared with permission here, but you might also want to check out her original post at janefriedman.com.

She names those four routes as traditional publishing, fully assisted ... keep reading