Entangled Publishing

Unimportant said:

I had no idea that self publishing was now referred to as "indie publishing". I had thought self publishing was self publishing, and indie publishing was publishing was publishing with an independent (as opposed to conglomerate) publisher. I guess I'm still living in the last century ;-)

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The term "indie" has been co-opted by some self-publishers who apparently didn't realize the term existed and was already being used to describe a different kind of publishing. I don't know why. Are they embarrassed to call themselves self-publishers? Self-publishing is self-publishing (whether in e or print), and indie publishing is indie publishing. The two are not the same thing.

Erin said:

I like what I've seen so far, too. Known agents are also submitting & selling to them from the deals I've read on PM.

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I started noticing the Entangled announcements on PM last month and couldn't find much info on the web until now. I'm definitely curious to see what happens once these books reach the marketplace.

Which known agents? Because, IMHO, a start-up epublisher, even the best of them is not going to sell like hot cakes right out of the blocks. And very few 'known agents' other than on at Perkins is going to target a start up epublisher at all....

veinglory said:

Which known agents? Because, IMHO, a start-up epublisher, even the best of them is not going to sell like hot cakes right out of the blocks. And very few 'known agents' other than on at Perkins is going to target a start up epublisher at all....

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I thought the same thing, until I started seeing the deals posted on PM. Here are the agents who have sold to them so far: Holly Root, Michelle Grajkowski, Laurie McLean, and Kevan Lyon (and "lesser known" Dawn Dowdle). Seems most of the deals are 2-3 book deals too.

Erin said:

I thought the same thing, until I started seeing the deals posted on PM. Here are the agents who have sold to them so far: Holly Root, Michelle Grajkowski, Laurie McLean, and Kevan Lyon (and "lesser known" Dawn Dowdle). Seems most of the deals are 2-3 book deals too.

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That's exactly what caught my attention about Entangled too. I wonder if they know some good insider info we're not privy to. It says a lot if agents of this caliber have faith in them before they even open their doors. I'll definitely be keeping my eye on this publisher.

Erin said:

I thought the same thing, until I started seeing the deals posted on PM. Here are the agents who have sold to them so far: Holly Root, Michelle Grajkowski, Laurie McLean, and Kevan Lyon (and "lesser known" Dawn Dowdle). Seems most of the deals are 2-3 book deals too.

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Of the four known agents (I'm not counting Dawn Dowdle), each has made just one deal with Entangled. Only two of these are multi-book deals.

So that's just four deals by reputable agents, out of the 23 deals for Entangled listed on PM. It's interesting that there are any agented deals at all, but they are the exception.

This, from Entangled's website, disturbs me:

We implement the agency model across all departments at Entangled, which means everyone from the copy editor to the marketing director has a financial stake in your book.

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What I am guessing this actually means is that they don't pay salaries--staff, like authors, get a royalty. It's one way for publishers to shift their costs onto others. I am always skeptical of publishers that do this.

- Victoria

Heather Howland's blog has good info that answers some of these questions, if anyone is interested. Mainly the interviews she does with her fellow Entangled people.

http://www.heatherhowland.com/

Entangled's website unveiled today!

http://www.entangledpublishing.com

My book isn't listed up there yet, but my photo is on the author page. I was really pleased to see how great the covers turned out. Most small presses aren't too amazing with their cover design.

Very nice website. Fantastic covers. I've been reading the PM blurbs and their books sound wonderful.

Good luck with your book, Kelley. Can't wait to see your cover.

Erin said:

Very nice website. Fantastic covers. I've been reading the PM blurbs and their books sound wonderful.

Good luck with your book, Kelley. Can't wait to see your cover.

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They do sound great! Their blog will be hosting some giveaways as release time grows near.

Thanks, Erin! I'm really excited to see what they come up with, too.

Congratulations, Ether! They do have first-class covers -- can't wait for yours!

kellion92 said:

Congratulations, Ether! They do have first-class covers -- can't wait for yours!

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They do! And thanks, I'm excited, too.

I'm still really curious about what Entangled's distribution is like. It looks like a really cool business model, but will books published here have a decent chance of making it into Barnes? I don't see listings on the BN website, or on Amazon. While Entangled has talked about being distributed by Ingram, and I think Heather mentioned doing actual print runs (as opposed to POD) when ordered by stores, I'm wondering if this is a likelihood for most of their books or just something that happens once in a while.

EKAnderson said:

I'm still really curious about what Entangled's distribution is like. It looks like a really cool business model, but will books published here have a decent chance of making it into Barnes? I don't see listings on the BN website, or on Amazon. While Entangled has talked about being distributed by Ingram, and I think Heather mentioned doing actual print runs (as opposed to POD) when ordered by stores, I'm wondering if this is a likelihood for most of their books or just something that happens once in a while.

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Entangled has press kits and catalogs for every title being sent to over 300 CRMs. So, like any book carried, it's up to each CRM what they choose to shelve. The first few titles might take some time to get in there, but given who they have on their staff and the contacts those people have, I feel like they'll do well.

(Plus, I'm digging the covers and blurbs that I'm guessing will appear in their catalogs, so. Ultimately time will tell, but I have high hopes.

EKAnderson said:

I'm still really curious about what Entangled's distribution is like.

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It doesn't appear that they have independent distribution. The reason I think this is so is because none of their books are listed with Amazon yet. Independent distributors, such as NBN, Consortium, IPG, etc. get their titles up at least four months in advance. Entangled has a book coming out in July, yet there is nothing on Amazon.

Another disturbing aspect of this company is this on their About Us/Booksellers:

Entangled Publishing print titles will be available for order through Ingram. Please contact them directly if you’d like to stock our titles.

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This suggests a POD business model. Booksellers aren't interested in this type of arrangement because they are loathe to wait for a book. When they go to order, it means they want it yesterday. Ingram appears to be merely printing and fulfilling individual print orders, and they aren't doing print runs. This is costly to the author because the print book will more than likely never enjoy many sales.

Entangled has press kits and catalogs for every title being sent to over 300 CRMs. So, like any book carried, it's up to each CRM what they choose to shelve. The first few titles might take some time to get in there, but given who they have on their staff and the contacts those people have, I feel like they'll do well.

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Press kits are nice, but most CRM's simply toss them out because they're inundated with them. There is nothing better than sales reps who pitch their catalogue and having the weight of a distributor to open doors. I can attest to doubling our footprint since going with Consortium. It's nearly impossible for a small press to make a big enough impact selling on their own.

Lastly, someone mentioned Laurie McLean selling one of her authors to this company. I noticed that she's on their Advisory Board, so this could be seen as a conflict of interest.

They may be a great choice for ebooks, but I don't see how they are able to get their print books to market.

Entangled Publishing is Looking for Experienced Editors, Publicists, and Cover Artists
Posted on Jun 30, 2011 in Announcements | 3 comments

We’ve added several editors, publicists, and cover artists to our team already, but we’re always on the lookout for more as we continue to acquire the most amazing manuscripts. Specifically, we are looking for experienced YA, romantic suspense, and contemporary editors (no paranormal or fantasy editors needed at this time!), publicists, and freelance cover artists interested in joining our team.

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More info:
http://networkedblogs.com/jQuKl

One thing that sets Entangled Publishing apart is the fact that every author is assigned a publicist. Tell us what an author can do to promote him/herself.

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http://networkedblogs.com/jEoIO

Publishing models are changing. I appreciate so many watchdogs looking out for writers, but I'm interested to see what the innovators do. We all know that even the big guys can't guarantee bookstore placement, and as ebooks become more important, what BN does becomes less important.

Good luck to Ethers and Entangled -- it's very exciting.

kellion92 said:

We all know that even the big guys can't guarantee bookstore placement

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But as mentioned above, the big guys have the sales force, presence, and know-how to get their catalogs to the distributors and into the stores. Having your book with a smaller press might mean a bigger fight and you might get your book into a physical store; because of the lack of floor space, however, having your book with one of the Big Six gives you a better advantage over an independent or smaller press. It's not impossible, just a lot more difficult.

as ebooks become more important, what BN does becomes less important.

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Erm...considering B&N is the only physical bookstore at the moment that distributes its own branded e-reader and has its own dedicated e-book store online, I'm not sure that came out correctly.

I meant the physical bookstores of BN, of course. Based on my observation, books published by big 6 that AREN'T picked up by BN struggle more than those published by small press that don't expect to be carried and have alternate marketing plans.

*shrug* Entangled doesn't publish my genre anyway. I'm just impressed with them so far. Publishing needs new business models so I don't find it "disturbing" when new publishers diverge from the way things have been done. Innovation is good and often comes from entrepreneurial companies.

Being with one of the Big Six is no longer a guarantee of shelf space. In fact the amount of shelf space is becoming increasingly scarce and I know Big Six authors who do NOT have shelf space in B&N.

They make more room for bigger sellers and 'stuff' - less room for variety. Sad but true.

But they still have the money for other things smaller publishers might not - trailers, tours (virtual or real), advertising on book review site, viral marketing, stuff like that.

Christine N. said:

But they still have the money for other things smaller publishers might not - trailers, tours (virtual or real), advertising on book review site, viral marketing, stuff like that.

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This is true, and I feel Entangled knows their limitations and are doing their best to work within them and push as much as they can. I'm still in the early stages as my book isn't due out until December, but I know things are getting done for me and for others, and I have zero complaints so far.

As for how many titles will end up in bookstores? Well, we'll see. They do have people pushing for it, though, as well as for foreign rights, movie rights, etc. (Yes, this includes actual person-to-person pitches, not just catalogs and the like. I can't say much more than this without saying too much.) I get why people are skeptical, but for a small press I think Entangled has both the drive and the staff to be awesome.

Got a rejection today from them, very fast response time, about a week. And I'm thinking this is their form? Damn I wish they would have gave me a bit more, so I know what didn't quite work, so I could work on it lol

Thank you for querying Entangled Publishing. I think you have an awesome premise on your hands here, but the sample pages of (Novel) didn't quite draw us in. We're passing with regrets.

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AlishaS said:

Got a rejection today from them, very fast response time, about a week. And I'm thinking this is their form? Damn I wish they would have gave me a bit more, so I know what didn't quite work, so I could work on it lol

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Sorry, AlishaS.

And all that being said, if I had a YA Romance, I might submit it to them. I've had good sales with my Samhain books, the majority being ebook sales. Romance seems to lend itself to the ebook phenomenon.

Bookstores just ain't what they used to be. Not that I don't want to have a book in one, mind...

Hi Ether,
Congrats on the publishing contract with Entangled!
You must be so excited.
Just wondering if you (or anybody else who is on sub) wouldn't mind sharing your query/sub stats.
I have a full out with Heather. It's only been five weeks, but the webside says 4 weeks for 'queries and requests' so I assume they mean fulls also?
Cheers in advance.

Congrats ether! I've discovered Entangled recently and everything I've read looks good so far. I'm seriously considering a submission to them.