At start-up PUBSLUSH Press, the magic number is 2,000. That's because if an author submits a book and 2,000 users "support" it, that book will be published.
"We use crowdfunding to let readers choose whats published, and then act as a full service publisher to the authors chosen," said Erin Eber, community director at PUBSLUSH. "Unlike self publishing, PUBSLUSH is centered around quality control (as determined by readers and community support) and the idea that publishing requires cultivation from a qualified support team. This is why PUBSLUSH functions essentially as a legacy publisher, just without acquisition editors."
The process begins with an author submitting 10 pages of his or her book and a summary of the manuscript. From there, the PUBSLUSH community chooses which books to "support," which essentially means pre-ordering, as supporting is a commitment to purchase the book should it get to 2,000 supporters. Users are only charged if the book they support is published.
There are no fees for authors, and PUBSLUSH provides marketing, sales, distribution, editorial, design, etc. Upon publication, authors receive $5,000 and 35% of e-book sales, 20% for direct sales, and 10% for trade sales.
The publisher launched in September and is still waiting for a project to reach 2,000 supporters.
