Indie publishing means you are responsible for all aspects of your book: writing, editing, layout, cover design, printing, and marketing. That doesn’t mean you do all the work, but you do make sure all key tasks get done. You make artistic decisions, pay production costs, retain all rights to the material, and keep more of the profit than with traditional publishing.

We are totally committed to helping you realize your goals and dreams as an author. We provide you with all the tools necessary to succeed as an independent author, and we stand behind you with editorial and design team members. We provide the opportunity to promote and sell your book and any supporting merchandise in one place, which allows your fans easy access to all of your products.

You have total creative freedom. You are in control of your career. You decide how much help you want in creating your books. You aren’t at the mercy of a publisher’s release schedule and marketing department and the bookstore’s space limitations and turnover rate. You take the financial responsibility (at the level you choose to invest) and creative risks, and then you reap the rewards. Our goal is to support you as much or as little as you choose, while providing a community of artists and direct connection to your fans.

Your submission fee includes one book title in all its formats – paperback, hardcover, and ebook.

The merchandise fee allows you to use the Simplie Indie store to sell any supporting merchandise you may have. It is a one-time fee. Examples of merchandise include tee-shirts, posters, strategy cards, and mugs.

You set the retail sales price of your book. If your retail price is printed on your book, you may not sell your book for more than the printed price. You may, however, sell it for less.

You will be paid 70% of the sales price for products that sell for $1.50 or more. You will be paid 60% of the sales price for products that sell for $1.49 or less. You will receive your payment monthly every month in which you earn at least $5.00.

Simplie Indie would be the publisher of record for your book. Having us publish your book is an inexpensive way to get your book published while retaining your copyright. It is a non-exclusive deal. You may sell your book through any distribution channels you choose. In addition, if you have an offer of a traditional publishing deal, you are welcome to take it. We’re here to assist you in any way we can, not to take away or limit your rights.

IIn order to publish under your own publishing company, you need to register as a publisher with R.R. Bowker, the ISBN agency in the U.S. Then you may purchase your own block of ISBNs to use for your books. Once your registration is complete, you will be able to log in to BowkerLink where you can register your book in the books-in-print catalog. You are welcome to sell your book in the Simplie Indie store.

ISBN stands for International Standard Book Number. It is a unique 10-digit or 13-digit number that identifies books and book-like products published here or abroad. All books published after January 1, 2007 require a 13-digit ISBN.

That depends on your goals for your book. Simplie Indie does not require an ISBN in order to sell your book in our online store.
However, in order to sell your book through traditional book retailers (online or brick-and-mortar) and/or get your book listed in the books-in-print catalog, your book will need an ISBN. In addition, a separate ISBN is required for every format in which your book will be made available: hardcover, soft cover (paperback), ebook, or audio.

ISBNs can be purchased directly from R. R. Bowker, the agency in the United States responsible for assigning ISBNs. In order to purchase them you must register as a publisher through the ISBN agency. They are sold in blocks of 10, 100, or 1,000.
If you do not want to go though the steps to register as a publisher and purchase a block of ISBNs, you can purchase the use of one from Prismatic Publishing, the publishing division of Simplie indie, for $35. Doing so requires you to list Prismatic Publishing as the publisher of your book. But don't worry; you'll still retain your rights. You own the copyright. You can sell your book wherever you wish at whatever price you wish. If you have an offer of a traditional publishing deal, or just want to republish with a different publisher, you are welcome to do so. We’re here to help, not to restrict your creative career.

Bar codes represent the ISBN and pricing information in a manner that can be read by point-of-sale scanning equipment.

At this time, Simplie Indie does not require your book to have a Bookland EAN bar code. However, virtually all traditional book retailers and wholesalers require the books that they sell to display a Bookland EAN Bar Code.

TThey can be purchased directly from Bowker. In order to purchase them from Bowker you need to be registered as a publisher.
If you are not registered as a publisher, Prismatic Publishing will help you obtain a bar code prior to the printing of your book.

No, each published format requires a unique ISBN. Publishing the same title in ebook, paperback, and hardcover requires three ISBNs.

Creating an ebook is an inexpensive way to get your product to market. Your younger fans are becoming more and more technologically oriented and are more likely to carry an electronic reader than a book. That doesn’t mean that printed books are going to disappear, but ebooks offer portability and convenience.

Yes. Selling on Simplie Indie is not exclusive.

You own your copyright, not Simplie Indie, and your copyright retains its protections online. Plagiarism is a problem with any published work, and your risk is no greater online than anywhere else. See the next question about copyright registration.

Registration of your copyrighted book with the U.S. Copyright office provides peace of mind and gives you legal standing if someone does copy your work. You may fill out the forms yourself and submit them to the U.S. Copyright Office, or you may select our U.S. Copyright Registration service and we will do it for you. The process takes 6-12 months for Simplie Indie to receive the Certificate of Registration. The process also requires you to supply us with two copies of your book.

You must be a publisher and have a U.S. office available to answer cataloging questions to submit your book yourself. You can have us pursue an LCCN for you for $60. An LCCN is used by librarians to catalog your book.

We absolutely want picture books. Because they are expensive to print, many excellent products may never be made available to the public except online as an ebook. If later on you decide you want to publish in hard copy, we will help you find the most economical way to do so.

Simplie Indie maintains a standard of family-friendly products. We do not publish pornography, hate-related material, or explicit horror.

No, but that is why we have a community, so you can network and find other people who might be able to offer assistance.

Yes, you can publish with a traditional publisher, but they control the distribution of products and would not allow your book to be sold through Simplie Indie.