Rock Hill, SC

Corks, Cooks, & Books — our shop and wine bar — is open, and every Warren title is on the shelf.

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How we publish

We are a hybrid
publisher. Here is
what that means.

You invest in your book. We invest our editors, designers, thirty-eight years of trade relationships, and worldwide distribution. You keep the rights, and you keep a far larger share of the royalties than a traditional house would give you.

The three models

Traditional, self,
and the middle.

Most writers only ever hear about two of these, and are surprised by what the first one actually pays. Here is the honest comparison, including the parts that are not flattering to us.

Traditional

The publisher pays for everything and owns the book.

Rights
The publisher
Royalty
Under 5%
Who pays
The publisher

You usually need an agent, who takes a cut of the advance and sometimes of the royalties. If a house accepts you, it acquires the rights. Advances are a few thousand dollars far more often than they are six figures, and they are increasingly not offered at all. Royalties are typically under 5%. The publisher controls editing, cover, and marketing — their word is final, because it is now their book.

Self-publishing

You pay for everything and keep everything.

Rights
You
Royalty
100%
Who pays
You

You are your own publisher: you find and finance the editor, the designer, the illustrator, the printer, and the marketing. The upside is real — all the royalties, total control. So is the downside. Self-published books are notorious for typos because they were edited badly or not at all, and a cover done as a favor reads as a cover done as a favor. Readers do judge it.

This is us

Hybrid

You invest. We invest. You keep the rights.

Rights
You
Royalty
50–100%
Who pays
Shared

A hybrid publisher is selective — we accept under 20% of what is sent to us, which is what separates this from a vanity press that will print anything. You contribute to the cost of production. In return you get professional editing and design, Ingram distribution, and marketing support, and you keep 100% of the rights and a royalty split that runs from 50% on retail sales to 100% on copies you sell yourself.

The process

Five steps
from file to shelf.

The same sequence for every book we publish. Where a step needs a decision, it is yours to make — we will tell you what we would do and why, then do what you decide.

  1. Visualization

    We agree on what the book is before anyone touches it.

    The first conversation is about your book as an object: format, length, audience, what it should feel like in a hand. If this is your first book, we walk you through what each of those choices costs and buys. Nothing is commissioned until we are describing the same book.

  2. Editing

    Structure first, then sentences, then commas.

    Our editors work in passes — substantive editing for structure and flow, copy-editing for the line, proofreading last. They also handle citations and clear permissions for anything you quote. You see and approve every change.

  3. Design

    Cover and interior, custom, and yours to approve.

    People do judge a book by its cover, and a cover that looks homemade caps your sales before the first review. Every Warren interior and jacket is designed from scratch for the book it belongs to. You see proofs and sign off before anything goes to press.

  4. Distribution

    Listed with Ingram, fully returnable, worldwide.

    Every title goes into Ingram's catalog marked fully returnable, which is the status a bookstore needs before it will order a copy. That is what puts a Warren book on a shelf in Charlotte, in Blackwell's, and in a library system in Queensland.

  5. Partnership

    The book is out. We are still working on it.

    Publication is the middle of the job, not the end. Every contract includes marketing, and our team keeps working the book afterwards — reviews, signings, press, retail placement. Warren titles have sold anywhere from a few hundred copies to a few hundred thousand.

Services

What we actually
do to a book.

Included in a publishing contract, and available on their own if you have a project that only needs part of the way there.

Editing

Substantive editing
Structure, organization, and the flow of the writing itself. This is the pass that decides what order the book happens in and what is missing from it.
Copy-editing
Sentence by sentence: line editing, sentence structure, grammar, and punctuation.
Proofreading
The last read before press — grammar, punctuation, spelling, and page layout, on the laid-out proofs rather than the manuscript.
Citations and permissions
Referencing, and clearing the rights to anything you quote directly. Necessary, tedious, and a common reason a first-time book gets held up.

Design & illustration

Cover design
Custom for every title. Readers do judge a book by its cover, and a professional one is the cheapest sales advantage there is.
Interior design and illustration
Typesetting, layout, and original illustration. Children's books are laid out spread by spread with the illustrator and the author together.
Cover and promotional copy
Titles, subtitles, taglines, flap copy, back cover copy. The two hundred words that sell the book in a shop.

Digital & audio

E-books
Conversion and listing through Amazon Kindle and Kindle Unlimited, where our authors see the most benefit. Picture books are the exception — their layouts do not survive the format, so we do not sell you one that will disappoint you.
Audiobooks
Recorded in a sonically controlled professional studio with studio direction and editing, then listed on Audible, Amazon, and iTunes. Authors receive 75% of net audio royalties.

Development

Book development
For a good idea that is not a manuscript yet. We clarify the central theme, build a structured outline, identify the audience, and edit as the book comes together.
Ghostwriting
When the story is yours and the writing time is not. Available as part of development or on its own.

Marketing

Getting it into
somebody's hands.

Every contract includes basic marketing. These build on it. Prices are what they are — a marketing budget is part of publishing a book, and it is better to know that at the start than to find out afterwards.

National marketing

$2,300 first month

A custom press release blasted weekly to over 5,000 media outlets, and the follow-up when they answer.

  • A professional press release written around an angle specific to your book and its market
  • Blasted to 5,000+ radio, TV, print, and blog outlets weekly — at least four blasts, more if response is thin
  • Every media lead discussed with you, confirmed, and scheduled
  • Review copies shipped on request — 30 books and shipping included

National marketing, month two

$1,265 second month

A new release, a new angle, a different 5,000 outlets.

  • A fresh press release on a new angle
  • Weekly blasts to a different 5,000+ outlets, minimum four
  • Leads discussed, confirmed, and scheduled
  • 20 additional review copies and shipping

National marketing, continuing

$995 per month after

The same campaign, kept running.

  • A fresh press release each month on a new angle
  • Weekly blasts to 5,000+ outlets, minimum four
  • Leads discussed, confirmed, and scheduled
  • Review copies not included at this tier

Book boost

$1,200 one-off

For a title that is already out and deserves a second run at the shelves.

  • A professional press release on a fresh angle
  • 15 hours of placement calls and emails to bookstores, media, and social contacts

Micro marketing

$300 one-off

The smallest version that still does something.

  • A professional press release on an angle specific to your book
  • 5 hours of placement calls and emails to bookstores and media

Audiobook production

$3,500 per title

Studio recording, direction, editing, and listing. Voice talent quoted separately.

  • Recorded in a sonically controlled professional studio
  • Studio direction and professional editing
  • Listed on Audible, Amazon, and iTunes
  • 75% royalty to the author on net audio receipts

Social media

$450 per month

Your channels, kept alive by someone whose job it is.

  • Setup for up to two social accounts
  • Eight posts a week on your author page
  • Four posts a week into relevant groups

Additional reviews

$250 one-off

Three reviews come with every contract. This buys more.

  • Your book sent to at least three further reviewers chosen for its market

Event planning

From $400 per event

A launch party or signing, run by us. Venue and vendor fees are separate.

  • Research, consultation, and e-invitations
  • Set-up, management, and vendor support on the day
  • Press release and media blasts where they help

Consultation

$80 per hour

Marketing or social media, by the hour, custom plans on request.

  • Marketing strategy
  • Social media strategy

Custom plans and materials — posters, bookmarks, banners, author websites — are quoted on request. Call us on 704.900.0236.

Talk to us

Still deciding
which of the three
is yours?

Call us. We will tell you honestly if a different route suits your book better — we have sent writers to agents before, and we would rather do that than take on a book we cannot serve.

Talk to us first Or read the submission guidelines