Sunday, October 2, 2011

How to Start a Publishing Company as a Sole Proprietor

by Lanee' Blunt


Introduction
Self publishing a book allows you to eliminate the middleman which is the commercial publisher to produce the book yourself. A sole proprietorship is a business owned by a single individual. Start a publishing company by operating as a sole proprietorship the start up cost is low; no employees are required and publish books right away with minimum overhead. At the time of publication, Self Publishing Resources reports that 8,000 to 11,000 new publishers enter the field every year and they are mostly self-publishers.


Choose a name for your publishing company before you go to press. If you operate your publishing company under your name and call it John Smith, your publishing company may appear amateurish. A fictitious name will give the impression that you have an established business which is important when applying for printing estimates, ISBN numbers, and asking for paper mill samples.

Apply for a DBA. You have to file a “fictitious name” or “Doing Business As” (DBA) registration form. In some states, you have to register a DBA with the state government or the county clerk’s office.

Acquire a post office box. Your place of business may be your home in the beginning. In a home-office there is room to fill orders and write. Using a post office box as an address on your books and your stationary is acceptable, because even the big firms use P.O. boxes.

Take precautions. A post office box is also a security measure to keep your fans from showing up at your residence. Give your business name and your book title to the post office when filling out the registration card, so they will give you your mail no matter how it is addressed.

Apply for an employee identification number (EIN) with the federal government. Fill-out the necessary forms and send them back to the federal government and they will return it to you with your EIN number. As a sole proprietorship until you hire employees you won’t need to use the EIN as it is not a requirement.

Get your business bank account. This is optional. You can get a business checking account with your publishing company name.

Print stationary. Design a logo that will be easily applicable to your stationary. Have letterhead, envelopes and business cards printed for the new publishing company.

Tips & Warnings
  • You don’t have to worry about your books being out of print, and you can print as many and as often as you like keeping your book in print for many years.

  • Taking-on investors is risky, because the return on their investment may be too slow for them.

References
“The Self-Publishing Manual”; Dan Poynter; 2003
Resource
Self-Publishing Resources.com   






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