The modern world tends to present most of its inhabitants with a binary choice when it comes to their careers. Barring a lucky few, the majority of people are faced with either pursuing their passions and risking instability or financial uncertainty, versus opting for a more corporate job that may alleviate these concerns but is not as fulfilling.
A lot of people end up trying both and only know the best path for them once they have gained first hand experience with either option. It seems such a crossroads was reached by Naren Aryal in 2003. That was the year he gave up his job as a corporate attorney and co-founded Amplify Publishing Group just outside of Washington, DC.
In the twenty years since Amplify Publishing Group has grown to be a well-established hybrid publisher that offers an array of services to authors looking for expertise to assist them in their self-publishing journey. There are needless to say a large number of companies who do much the same, so in this review, we will take a closer look at their backstory, the specifics of their offerings and whether or not they are worth considering for writers seeking such services to assist with their work.
What is Amplify Publishing Group?
Starting out in 2003 with just a single title, Amplify Publishing group has since grown to be the home to six distinct imprints and is the culmination of twenty years of experience acquiring, producing, marketing and distributing books that serve unique missions and goals.
They describe themselves as being passionate about ideas and voices that need to be heard and their list of authors includes both bestselling authors and writers looking to produce their first professional work, plus everyone in between.
Amplify Publishing Group provides comprehensive writing, editorial, design, production, marketing and distribution services for top-quality books in all genres. As a hybrid publisher, their authors pay an upfront fee for their expertise and publishing services. In return, they retain intellectual rights, maintain creative control and receive an 85% cut of all royalties. Their services include but are not limited to;
- Editorial, Copyediting, Proofreading, Ghostwriting etc
- Design, Cover Design, Interior Typesetting, Infographics
- Publishing via Print, E-Books and Audio
- Distribution
- Marketing and Publicity
These services and offerings are fairly standard for the hybrid publishing model, but it must be said it is particularly helpful the way Amplify Publishing Group have laid this out to provide full transparency for writers, something unfortunately not always found within the industry.
What books do Amplify Publishing Group publish?
As stated above, Amplify Publishing Group are not focused on genre but quality, ensuring that any writer and their book they choose to work with adds to their collection of titles. A selection of which can be found below to add colour to the type of work they are looking to publish.
- The Midlife Male – Greg Scheinman
- Losing our Elections – Jim Spurlino
- Closing the Confidence Gap – Kelli Thompson
- Transforming Disruption to Impact – Doug Bolton
- The Risk Paradox – Alan Ying
- The Art of Travelling Strangers – Zoe Disigny
- Sainted in Error – Glenda Winders
- A Tangled Affair – Anne C Scardino
- Higher Ground – Linda Katehi
- Negotiation Simplified – Jim Reiman
These titles range from business and finance to fiction and self-help, so they truly are open to any and every genre.
It is worth touching on their various imprints too as it is revealing to how broad their publishings are. ‘Amplify Publishing’ for example is dedicated to business and politics whereas ‘Tagged’ is home to various memoirs and non-fiction titles. Having these clear separations under one umbrella is not only helpful to the reader to find the type of book they are looking for, but also to the writer so that they can work with a team who specialise in the genre of their book.
Can writers submit to Amplify Publishing Group?
Put simply, yes they can and any hybrid publisher will depend on the author's submissions to be a success.
Each of Amplify Publishing Groups' projects starts with a submission. If their acquisitions editors are interested in the project, they will reach out to talk more about the writer's goals and needs, provide a professional take on the book or concept, outline the opportunities and challenges that await a book at market, and walk the writer step by step through the publishing process.
However, whilst their acquisitions editors do read every submission that comes their way, they do have a thorough selection process and therefore not all manuscripts are accepted for publication.
What is the submission process for Amplify Publishing Group?
The submission process usually takes a few weeks. The process starts with one of the acquisitions editors reviewing your manuscript or proposal to see if it is a good fit. If it is, they will reach out to schedule an initial phone call and discuss the book idea and goals in more detail. From there, they will potentially follow up with a formal proposal.
Once an author signs with Amplify Publishing Group, the full timeline depends on the genre, production work needed printer turnaround times and book launch strategies.
There are production- and service-related costs that each of the authors will pay. These costs depend on various factors, including the level of publishing support required, the specifications of each book (i.e., hard case versus paperback, page count, trim size, print run size, etc.), and other associated factors.
Before determining a project’s specific costs, they learn about each submission and the author’s goals. If the project seems like a good fit, they will follow up with a customized proposal and pricing.
Any writer wishing to make a submission has to simply fill out the form located on Amplify Publishing Groups website.
What are the alternatives to Amplify Publishing Group?
Broadly speaking, there are three main alternatives for a writer who may be considering the services of Amplify Publishing Group. Firstly, if for whatever reason a writer felt that Amplify Publishing Group did not align with their goals, but still wanted to utilise the hybrid publishing model, they could of course use the services of a similar company. There are many, many businesses that provide likewise offerings for every type of book.
Secondly, a writer could choose to go down the conventional submission route to a traditional publisher. The upside to this would be prestige, potential for financial reward including a stipend and the expertise that comes with working with such an established name.
Finally, a writer could consider fully self-publishing, an increasingly popular option given the plethora of resources that exist online for writers pursuing this option.
Ultimately it will be down to each individual writer and their circumstances to decide which is best and they will have to factor in a number of individual preferences and specificities such as finances, time and schedule etc.
Amplify Publishing Review – Final Thoughts
In conclusion, then, Amplify Publishing Group are unquestionably a hybrid publisher that has established itself as a viable option for writers considering this path. However, there are some things worth considering.
Firstly, the hybrid publishing route itself does have its downsides. If a publisher such as this one, does not accept all submissions, is the upside there over a traditional publisher? Especially given the financial outlay.
Speaking of which, this has not been specified. If a writer makes a submission they may have a lengthy wait to find out if it has been accepted only to discover that the required fee is beyond their budget. Whilst bespoke proposals can be a good thing, not having any guidance on pricing on the website is a barrier to writers.
Lastly, the ease of self-publishing does not make hybrid publishing obsolete, but for many writers, it may provide the best route forwards. Amplify Publishing Group's shortcomings then may be less a reflection of their business, pricing aside, and more a general uphill battle against the self-publishing model.
