How We Work

Banyan Tree is a print-on-demand style publisher. This means that we work to produce a quality book economically. To do that, we have taken the best opportunities provided by the Internet and combined them with the new high-tech capabilities of digital printing, namely print on demand.

At Banyan Tree we believe that books deserve the care and attention that traditional houses have conventionally given them. We also believe that the creative author should receive the lion’s share of the profits because no matter how you publish, the author is bearing the brunt of the expense.

We also believe that the creative author should receive the lion’s share of the profits

These two elements together have led us to this: a new version of the custom, independent publishing model.

Our model is based upon collaboration and partnership with the author. We provide high-caliber services and marketing to complement your authoring efforts. Most important, we manage the multitude of pre-publication actions to make your book a success.

Publishing requires an investment of not only considerable time but some finance. With traditional publishing going by the boards, with smaller advances being proffered, the chances of becoming one of the chosen few has made winning the lottery appear to be almost a certainty by comparison.

The obvious benefit of traditional publishing is the lack of any investment in financial terms required by the author. The fortuitous author is placed in the professional hands of an editorial team and then sometimes guided by the publicity department if your book is selected for special treatment.

With self-publishing the entire venture lies on the shoulders of the author. The author pays all the bills and receives all the royalties but absent are the experienced professionals who help make it successful. Banyan Tree fills that gap by providing those professional services.

We maintain high standards regarding the cover and interior design. You have five templates to choose from and then our designer customizes that template to fit the subject matter of your book. We also bring our books to market as quickly as we can without compromising quality.

Comparison Chart

The Budget

Hugo House’s publishing model provides for the highest possible royalties paid to the author. We work with you and in exchange get a smaller portion of the royalties versus traditional publishing contracts.

There is a one-time author engagement fee of $1,875 U.S.

This initial fee covers a myriad of basic costs required to publish the book:

• Cover and interior of your book from templates.
• ISBN numbers and Library of Congress Control numbers
• Listings with the two major wholesalers, Baker & Taylor and Ingram
• On-line listings with Internet retailers such as Amazon.com, Barnes & Noble, and all independent bookstores across the US.
• Possible distribution in bookstores and chain stores (a.k.a. “big box” stores) throughout the United States.
• Your books are also listed online in Canada, the UK, Europe, and Australia.
• How-to coaching on maximizing your exposure on Amazon
• Coordinating and managing all the various elements and entities so that the book’s production and marketing program are run efficiently and effectively.

Potential Additional Costs:

Editing, marketing costs, and in some instances printing are paid by you, the author. These items are presented as a selection of options, through a separate proposal, subject to your approval. This allows you to pick what fits your available budget.

Other possible costs include:

• Publishers Cataloguing in Publication (PCIP) if appropriate
• eBook set up for Kindle, iPad, and Nook. You have the option of maintaining your ebook rights if you do the work of conversion and listing. If you want Banyan Tree to take care of the eBook, we charge $300 for set up fees.

Author Buyback

Author buyback is simply the fee you pay your publisher for purchasing books directly from them. We want our authors to make money on the back end, which means we want you to make a profit on your books if you sell them directly to the public through back-of-the-room sales at a speaking engagement for example. Our author buyback is simple: the cost of printing plus $4 per book. We bid out our large print runs (250 or more), so we get you the best price for printing without sacrificing quality.