Publishing a book for the first time raises a lot of questions. Some are practical. Some are about rights and money. Some exist because the publishing industry has a history of making things more confusing than they need to be.
This page answers the questions we hear most often from authors at every stage of the process. If your question is not here, call us or send an email. We will answer it directly.
Yes. When you publish through Digi Book Studio, you retain full ownership of your intellectual property. We do not claim co-ownership of your manuscript, your cover design, your title, or any other element of your book. We do not require exclusivity agreements. We do not take a percentage of your future earnings. Your book belongs to you before you work with us and it belongs to you after.
Self-publishing means you own your book, control your pricing, keep your royalties, and make every publishing decision yourself. A self-publishing service company like Digi Book Studio provides the production and distribution services you need to publish professionally. You pay for services. You keep everything else.
Vanity publishing means a company charges you to publish your book but retains some control over your rights, your pricing, or your distribution. Vanity presses often charge high upfront fees, lock authors into exclusive agreements, and take a percentage of royalties in addition to service fees. Some vanity presses are marketed as traditional publishers but operate on an author-pays model.
The distinction matters because it determines who benefits from your book's success. In self-publishing, you do. In vanity publishing, the publisher does.
Yes. We encourage it. Purchasing your own ISBN through Bowker registers you, or your publishing imprint, as the publisher of record in the global Books In Print database. This gives you full control of your title's metadata, distribution relationships, and publishing identity.
If you do not have an ISBN, we can purchase one on your behalf and register it in your name. We do not use free platform-assigned ISBNs that list Amazon or any other retailer as your publisher of record.
Yes. We publish books under pen names regularly. Your legal name is required for tax and payment purposes on our end, but your book can be published under any author name you choose. Platform accounts at Amazon KDP, IngramSpark, and other distributors can be set up to display your pen name as the author of record.
Your book remains published and available to readers. Your platform accounts belong to you. Your ISBN is registered in your name. If we have set up distribution accounts on your behalf, we transfer full access to you at any time upon request. There are no exit fees and no contractual obligations that prevent you from managing your book independently after publication.
Send us your first 1,000 words and we will assess your manuscript at no charge. Our editors review your submission and provide a written recommendation within two business days. The assessment covers the type of editing your manuscript needs, the reasoning behind that recommendation, and a quote for the service.
Turnaround times depend on your manuscript length and the level of editing required. As a general guide: proofreading takes 5 to 7 business days per 60,000 words, copyediting takes 7 to 10 business days, line editing and copyediting combined takes 10 to 14 business days, and full developmental editing through proofreading takes 3 to 5 weeks. Rush turnaround is available for proofreading and copyediting. Contact us before ordering to confirm availability.
No. Professional editing refines your writing without replacing it. Your editor's job is to make your manuscript work better for readers while preserving the voice that makes your book yours. You review every tracked change and accept or reject each one. Nothing in your manuscript changes without your approval.
Yes. You can update your manuscript, cover, or metadata at any time after publication. File updates on Amazon KDP typically reflect within 24 to 72 hours. Updates distributed through IngramSpark to other retail and library platforms take 4 to 6 weeks to propagate. We handle post-publication updates as a standard service for authors we have published.
Microsoft Word (.docx) is the standard format for all editorial and production work. If your manuscript is in Google Docs, export it as a .docx file before submission. If your manuscript is in a different format, contact us and we will advise on the best way to prepare it for submission.
You receive two to three cover concepts based on your design brief. Each concept explores a different creative direction. You review them and provide feedback. Revisions continue until you approve the final design. There is no cap on revision rounds and no additional charge for revisions.
If you have an existing cover design you want to use, we review it for print and digital technical requirements before submission. Common issues include incorrect color mode, insufficient bleed, low-resolution images, and fonts that are not embedded. If your existing design meets all technical requirements, we submit it as-is. If it requires technical corrections, we handle those as part of the production process.
Trim size depends on your genre, page count, and distribution targets. The most common sizes are 5" x 8" for literary fiction and memoir, 5.5" x 8.5" for trade fiction and nonfiction, and 6" x 9" for business, self-help, and academic titles. Your Publishing Specialist will recommend a trim size during the production planning stage based on your specific book.
Yes. Print and eBook formats require different file specifications and are produced from separate files. We produce both from your source manuscript as part of our publishing packages. If you are publishing in print only or eBook only, we produce the file for the format you need.
Your book can be distributed to over 40 retail and library platforms worldwide, including Amazon, Barnes and Noble, Apple Books, Kobo, Google Play Books, IngramSpark, OverDrive, Scribd, Hoopla, and Bibliotheca. The platforms we submit to depend on your publishing package and distribution preferences. Your Publishing Specialist will recommend a distribution strategy based on your genre and target readership.
Royalties vary by platform, format, and price point. On Amazon KDP, eBooks priced between $2.99 and $9.99 earn a 70% royalty. Print royalties are calculated as your list price minus printing cost minus the retailer's margin. On IngramSpark, eBook royalties are approximately 40% of list price after distribution fees. Print royalties through Ingram depend on the retailer discount you set. We provide a royalty projection for your specific book before you set a price or choose a distribution path.
You keep 100% of the royalties paid by retail platforms on your book sales. We charge for publishing services upfront. We do not take a percentage of your ongoing royalties. What the platforms pay you is yours.
Amazon KDP typically reviews and publishes new titles within 24 to 72 hours of submission. IngramSpark takes 3 to 5 business days for new title setup, after which distribution to retail partners begins, individual retailer listing times vary from a few days to a few weeks. Apple Books, Kobo, and Barnes and Noble typically list new titles within 1 to 2 weeks of submission.
Print on demand means your book is printed when an order is placed. There is no upfront print run, no inventory to store, and no minimum order requirement. When a reader orders your book through a retail platform, the platform sends the order to a print facility, the book is printed and shipped directly to the reader, and you receive a royalty for the sale. You never handle inventory and you never pay for books that do not sell.
The primary difference is accountability and structure. At Digi Book Studio, every service is handled in-house by our own team. You have a dedicated Publishing Specialist as your point of contact from consultation through launch. Pricing is transparent and itemized before you commit. Revisions are included in our quoted prices, not charged as extras.
Companies like Hemingway Publishers and Aspire Book Publishing frequently outsource production to third-party contractors, bundle services without itemizing what each costs, and charge additional fees for revisions, file conversions, and distribution setup. Authors often discover the real cost of those services after they have already committed to the project.
We have been publishing authors since 2013. Our process, our pricing, and our team are built around what authors actually need, not what generates the most add-on revenue.
Request a free consultation through our website or call us directly at 443-247-5514. Tell us where you are in the process, manuscript in progress, finished draft, edited and ready for design, or ready to publish. We will review your project and recommend the right package and timeline for your book.
Yes. We work with authors worldwide. Our distribution network covers global retail and library platforms. Payments from retail platforms are made in the platform's local currency or in US dollars depending on your account settings and location.
We publish books across all genres and categories, including fiction, nonfiction, memoir, children's books, poetry, business, self-help, academic, religious, and illustrated titles. Our editors and designers are assigned based on genre experience.
There is no minimum word count for eBook publishing. For print, the minimum page count for perfect-bound paperback is 24 pages. Saddle-stitch binding is available for publications up to 64 pages. Children's picture books, poetry collections, and short-form publications are all formats we work with regularly.
If your question is not on this page, we are available by phone, email, and chat.
Call us: 443-247-5514 Email: kevin@digibookstudio.com Request a Free Consultation; Tell us about your project and we will answer every question specific to your book before you commit to anything.
