Author’s World

Authors enter a new world when they self-publish their books. Welcome to Groep 7 Drukkers en Uitgewers and we trust we will make your journey an enjoyable experience.

All books can be self-published. The types of books in which Groep 7 have assisted the self-publisher with the preparation, include among others:

• Books filling a gap in the market e.g. training material for preschool teachers, mathematics, musical instruments, aviation, ethics, law, health, etc.
• Southern African history, border wars, defence force, police force, environmental, well known people and memorable events the author has knowledge of.
• Christian books with a large variety of subjects.
• Unique experiences or adventures.
• Fiction, romance, fantasy, etc.
• Poetry.
• Children’s books, colouring books.
• Legacies of families or individuals without profit as objective.

Traditional Publishers:

The first thought an author might have is to find a well-known publisher to publish their book.

Publishers do market research to establish what readers want and then print books to meet their needs. Unfortunately, only a small percentage of manuscripts they receive are published.

Self-publishers:

If your book is not published in the traditional way, you can self-publish. You can even decide to follow this route from the start with the following advantages:

• You don’t have to convince anyone that your book needs to be published.
• The copyright and distribution rights remain yours.
• You remain involved in all 7 steps of the publishing process.
• Books can be printed within weeks of writing and completion of editing.

Groep 7 has developed a unique system for the preparation and printing of quality books for the self-publisher without the necessity of a huge capital outlay. The added advantage is that everything is done under one roof, enabling us to manage time and quality.

This also means that the author has the choice to do some of the preparation of the book, and we can provide advice. Alternatively, Groep 7 staff can do it professionally at reasonable cost.

We Invoice the services we provide to our authors, and all data and documents remain the property of the author. The author can thus go to any other printer/publisher/institution at any time to distribute their book. We keep all data on our database for corrections, but if we are requested to remove it altogether, we do so.

The 7 Steps of self-publishing are:

Step 1.  Writing.

Step 2.  Editing and Translating.

Step 3.  Typographical Layout (Typesetting).

Step 4.  Book Cover Design.

Step 5.  Printing and Binding.

Step 6.  Distribution and E-books.

Step 7.  Marketing.

The 7 Steps of Self-Publishing in a Nutshell

Groep 7 assists with the preparation and printing of cost-effective and quality books for the self-publisher. This affords the author the opportunity to do their own preparation. The author is welcome, at any time, to make use of the advice and professional services that Groep 7 offers. The copyright and all documents remain the property of the author.

1. Writing – The author emails the manuscript in electronic format to Groep 7 for evaluation and quotation on editing. (R350, 5 working days).
2. Editing – It is especially important to be done by a professional and qualified editor and is therefore the costliest part of preparation. (4-12 weeks).
3. Typesetting – Done professionally in InDesign from R11,50 per page or basic MSWord finishing from R4,50 per page. (1-3 weeks).
4. Cover Design – Professional design from R600. We can advise and the client provides a press quality PDF. (1 week).
5. Printing – Groep 7’s printing department guarantees quality and time management. A proofbook is printed (2 working days) and approved by the author, before we execute an order. Books are printed on demand. Book orders 2-1000 (3-10 working days).
6. Distribution – Groep 7 can take care of packaging, shipping and administration of orders on behalf of authors (see agreement).

• Writer’s sales (printed books).
• Website Bookstore (printed books).
• Bookstores (printed books).
• E-books at www.kobo.com
• Amazon.com – preparation of documents for author to self-publish.

7. Marketing – The self-publisher does their own marketing, however Groep 7 can assist on any of the following:

• Links to author’s books on Groep 7’s online bookshop and Kobo to use in marketing on social media.
• Availability to bookshops (see conditions).
• Posters (printed and electronic format) for book launches.