a wealth of knowledge at your fingertips

Going it alone is great for some things. Affirming even. Publishing on  your own, not so much. It isn’t fun. If we sign you, you will have a team behind you—and someone right beside you—holding your hand, if need be. Granted, we are small (for now) but then again, so are you.

Self-Publishing Costs & Time 

You don't need a publisher. 

You can self-publish.

 Just know this, self publishing  isn't  cheap—especially if you’re prone to missteps! If you set-out on your own 

this can be a daunting task, but doable. 

But wouldn't you really rather be writing books!?

Depending on the book, it can get quite technical and time consuming. 

The expenses and demands on your time can seem never-ending. 

There is the cover art, and inside art if writing a children’s book, after you find an illustrator and negotiate the price; then content & copy editing, compiling, formatting, learning new jargon & industry standards; acquiring ISBNs, bar codes; printing costs, maintaining inventory, 

sales and marketing, etc., etc., etc...

Marketing your book is where the real work and true costs lurk. 

Our experience tells us, on average, it takes several thousand dollars, 

per title, to get up and running—and vast amounts of man-hours—(more of both) if you don’t know what you are doing.   

This is the reality of it all. 

So, you might consider a +1. 

Self-Publishing +1 

Having (TKG) as your +1 removes the stigma sometimes associated with self-publishing because we are your publisher! We absolutely enhance your credibility as a “published author.” We also foster a synergy placing you under our umbrella of authors. There is an intrinsic value in that. Instead of self-publishing, you are hiring our professional services to do all of the work for you! This is our business, our expertise. 

We also burn the midnight oil and shake the cages of editors for authors we truly believe in. The unfortunate truth is, mainstream publishers receive and return unsolicited material daily and have generally closed their doors (and windows) to unknown writers, no matter how wonderful their material is and that's just a shame.

Once a self-published author starts making noise on Amazon (selling lots of books) mainstream editors will come a courting. That's when you rise to the cat bird seat. Can a lucrative deal be far behind?

Mainstream publishers generally sign only those with massive sales or a "platform." Or in layman's terms, an established author, star celebrity, politician,  athlete, (or mistresses of each), etc. Mainstream editors will not typically be interested in you no matter how good your manuscript is. So where does that leave you?

STILL WANT TO SELF-PUBLISH? 

TKG OFFERS Tutorial Consulting Services.  This service is provided for those authors who wish to self-publish but don't know how. 

We will guide you through the process, step by step, either over the phone or in person. You will retain full ownership and all royalties. You will be fully responsible for editing, illustrations, expenses, cover art and setting up your account, with our guidance. If we perform the actual tasks (create) the forms, paperwork, (paperwork you don't even know exists), editing services, etc., our rates will be adjusted accordingly.

We will not be associated with your book in any way. To wit: You will not have a TKG logo or assigned ISBN or come under our imprint. This will be entirely your work. We can also advise on your marketing strategies. Our role here is to simply assist and advise you on all matters so that you can get your work published. Our fees are based on the work and professional services we provide. You can figure about $800 - $1,500 for our time and expertise. We will not share in your royalties and you will manage all aspects of publishing once we create/build the publishing & marketing sites for you. 

We can accomplish in days what would take you months to do yourself and years to learn--it's a fairly steep learning curve. We accelerate all of that moving you closer and quicker to your royalty stream. 

Self-publishing is the right answer for many people. We are happy to lend our services so that you might escape the red tape, learning curves and general missteps. 

Make no mistake, publishing is labor-intensive 

with great time constraints no matter who does it. 

The marketing alone can challenge and frustrate you. 

We allow you to put all of that aside and concentrate on just 

writing your books, and your day job and your family.

That is not to say, you are relieved from your own marketing efforts and expenses. We can only provide limited marketing services.

Mainstream publishers are now wanting you to submit your own marketing plan with your manuscript.

What they are saying to is, "How do you plan to market your book?" The truth is, with so many wanting to publish, they simply can't afford to spend advertising dollars on unknown authors.  

Make no mistake,

 they are in the business of making money, pure and simple. 

We offer a TKG advertising co-op where our authors pool their ad dollars from time to time giving us more buying power.  We have purchased thousands of dollars of prime ad space (print and online) for just $100 each!  That's the power of synergy. You can participate in our marketing ad pool or not but only after we've signed you and placed you under 

our publishing list umbrella.

As a self-published author you're pretty much on your own.  For more information marketing your book, if you're going the self-publishing route,  you'll have to pay for our vast expertise consulting services. 

Make sense? 

Author, Illustrator & Chemistry 

If your book requires illustrations, and if you decide to find your own illustrator, this is one of the most challenging yet rewarding parts of putting a book together.  Be sure you have “chemistry,” the good kind. You’ll know it when it’s right. When this person takes your imagery and commits it to paper, and their efforts put a smile in your heart, that’s it! For this is when your story comes alive…so, restating the obvious, if you are not in love with your illustrator move on until you are. 

Bring out the best in each other—collaborate, listen, trust.  

FRONT MATTER 

Be sure to thank the appropriate people who have meant something to you in your life. Those dedication and acknowledgement pages truly are cherished by those individuals you mention in print. It sort of lets the world know of these unsung heroes, and the quiet, 

albeit marked influences, they’ve had on you. 

RECOUPING COSTS 

As a word of caution, many self-published authors never recoup their costs. Many call themselves writers, but they are not. Just jotting down imaginations or experiences, does not a writer make. It is often proclaimed to 'write what you know.' We prefer you 'write what you feel.'

We offer something no other  publishing company in the world offers.  While it is not our job to fund your dreams, we do make it possible to give you back all of the publishing services fees you paid us upfront. Once we publish you, we give you 100% of your earned royalties until you are paid back. Once we are in equilibrium, only then do we begin sharing in your success. We're pretty proud of our innovative business model. Try finding that with any other publisher.

GREATNESS

Don't be blinded by your greatness.  

Many manuscripts are just not interesting or relevant or have limited appeal. Characters are flawed (and not in a good way) or under developed. The author's POV is obscured or jaded and so many other things. Some authors lack drive, creativity, or patience. We never break the spirit of our authors, but we do crack the occasional whip.

 (Not necessarily a "Shades" inference.) 

How will your book rise to the attention of the masses? If you have a lottery or gambling mindset, you might want to rethink your strategy."HOPE IS NOT A STRATEGY." It takes a lot of work to become nationally recognized, if ever. Your book may be the best ever, but unless people find it, talk about it, and buy it, it doesn't matter. Just keep a realistic thought in your head. Every author who graces us with their manuscript believes theirs is the best story ever told!  Can you imagine?

FULL DISCLOSURE 

Please be advised you can do all of this on your own. Crazy right? Yeah, I know. And yes, there is a self-publishing learning curve. It just sort of depends on your time horizon, budget, interest, and level of comfort.

Without  “gatekeepers” (editors/publishers) a lot of inferior material is being published. Saturation makes it harder for readers to find you.

There are many fee-based services on the Internet that will be happy to assist you. One client we signed had previously tried an online publisher and had never, not once, spoken with a person. She now speaks with our publisher on a regular, if not daily, certainly weekly basis. Her sales have eclipsed the average, reaching into the thousands for her 1st and 2nd editions but primarily as a result of her efforts in promoting her book 

with guest lectures, etc. 

We hope the successes of our TKG family of authors

 includes you one day too.

We are an exciting and growing concern, 

making our way in this industry 

with incredible people on both sides the page.

We offer something pretty special—the face-to-face, personal touch!

 (A smile, a lent ear, a pat on the back, a kick in the butt, even a hug or a handkerchief, goes a long ways sometimes.)

 We chose a close family dynamic over a corporate mantel model.