06/27/2023
Scribe Media seems to have crashed and burned so quickly and unexpectedly, it has been hard to piece together exactly what happened or is happening in real time. Sadly, the history of the book publishing industry is littered with stories of companies that failed to deliver for their authors. Scribe Media and its leadership are only the latest publishing venture to pull the rug out from under their authors. It’s really disheartening when a partner you trusted breaks their promises to you. If you are one of the authors negatively impacted by the demise of Scribe Media or other underperforming or failed publishing companies, don’t despair.
Authors can rightly ask, how would you feel if you found out that the book you dreamed of publishing is now an uncertainty at best? You may have invested heavily from your savings to bring your book to market. Now that money is gone, you are left in the lurch, and you have no book to show for it. Feelings of anger, sour grapes, despair, and wanting retribution may overwhelm you, yet you have more promising and productive options at hand. The silver lining is there for the taking, if only you can overcome the very reasonable inclination not to trust any publishing service providers. After Scribe Media duped you into believing they were trustworthy, why should you put your faith in another company?
The simple answer is, you shouldn’t trust any company without them demonstrating they can do what you need and will in fact do what they promise. They will have to earn your trust through making and delivering on commitments, and ultimately doing right by you, no matter what comes. How can you sort out which publishing service provider you hear about is trustworthy? Talk to authors. Ask publishing professionals. Listen to people close to you, who you know have your best interests at heart. Raise crucial questions about them.
- How long have they been in business?
- How experienced with independent publishing are the key people in the company?
- What’s their track record with successfully publishing books like yours?
- Can they do everything you require: editorial, design and production, marketing and publicity, legal and permissions, printing and manufacturing, sales and distribution?
- Do they produce high quality products?
- Can they create and distribute audiobooks?
- How do they deal with unusual circumstances or requests?
- Will you be in control?
- Will they make it possible for you to publish your book when you want or need it?
Above all, don’t despair. You wrote or are writing your book manuscript. That’s an accomplishment in itself. You obviously have a dream of what you want to achieve by publishing your book. Keep that vision front and center. Count the cost, as you did before, and make each expenditure count. Refuse to be bullied into making quick decisions or doing things you don’t want to do. And though your faith in your own judgment may be shaken, trust your own instincts.
I think Radius Book Group is the most trustworthy, reliable, comprehensive, and innovative author-centered publisher around. While I may be biased, I am certain that the reality of your experience with Radius will back up my claims. Authors are our most valuable asset and we treat you with all due respect. We are happy to be of service, should you want to partner with us. Feel free to reach out to us at info(at)radiusbookgroup.com and get started!