Simon & Schuster helps launch self-publisher

[November 28, 2012]  NEW YORK (AP) -- A leading mainstream publisher and a top self-publishing company are teaming up.

Simon & Schuster and Author Solutions Inc. on Tuesday announced the creation of Archway Publishing, which will focus on self-published fiction, nonfiction, business and children's books. Digital technology has helped lead to the proliferation of self-published books, with Sylvia Day and Amanda Hocking among those becoming best-selling authors.

"Self-publishing has become a viable and popular route to publication for many authors, and increasingly a source of content for traditional publishers, including Simon & Schuster," Carolyn Reidy, Simon & Schuster's president and CEO, said in a statement.

"We're excited that we'll be able to help more authors find their own path to publication and at the same time create a more direct connection to those self-published authors ready to make the leap to traditional publishing."

Archway will offer a range of services, from a basic $1,599 package that includes "editorial assessment" and "cover copy review" to a $24,999 "Outreach" program for business books that features an "author profile video" and a reception at BookExpo America, the industry's annual national convention.

Archway places Simon & Schuster in an indirect business relationship with rival publisher Penguin Group (USA), which owns Author Solutions. The CEO of Author Solutions, Kevin Weiss, said that no Penguin officials will be involved in running Archway.

[Associated Press]

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