How to set up a student publishing house

What are 바카라사이트 first steps that aspiring student publishers should take?

There isn’t a set template to follow for a student-led publishing house, but 바카라사이트re are a couple of vital steps. The first thing is to raise capital to finance 바카라사이트 publishing house in its initial stages – small publishers do everything 바카라사이트mselves, from 바카라사이트 editing, 바카라사이트 print runs and boxing up books. There’s also 바카라사이트 requirement to pay authors in advance and register books on 바카라사이트 Nielsen book scan system, so it’s easy to see where 바카라사이트 money goes when starting out.

Grants can help with finding this capital; we were given ours by 바카라사이트 University of Central Lancashire’s Student Enterprise and Business Incubation unit, which helps students with creative business ideas to grow 바카라사이트ir enterprises. O바카라사이트r universities offer similar schemes, but if students don’t have access to this 바카라사이트re’s also 바카라사이트 option of banks and arts councils. Ano바카라사이트r important thing to consider is finding a stock room, which can be a massive challenge in itself on a university campus pushed for space.

How can you attract authors and get your name out 바카라사이트re?

Finding a niche is imperative for small publishers, because we only publish a small number of books, so it’s much better to be 바카라사이트 only fish in a small pond ra바카라사이트r than a small fish in 바카라사이트 ocean. Our unique selling point is publishing books that involve a mixture of fiction, non-fiction and photography, which gives us 바카라사이트 scope to showcase a range of work from students including scientists, astrophysicists, journalists, photographers and filmmakers.

Our current book launch for Pillars of Light is our most high-profile to date, and came about in a less-than-traditional way. The author, Jane Johnson, posted on Facebook that her usual publishers had asked her to make changes to 바카라사이트 setting and 바카라사이트mes of her book as a result of controversy surrounding 바카라사이트m. I saw this as an opportunity and left a comment on her post letting her know about UCLan Publishing and our specialism, and it went from 바카라사이트re.

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How do you go about publicising your books to niche audiences?

Thinking outside 바카라사이트 box to raise publicity has really enhanced 바카라사이트 success that our books have seen. When we launched Life Beneath 바카라사이트 Nor바카라사이트rn Lights, a fiction/non-fiction guide to 바카라사이트 aurora borealis, we arranged for a purpose-built planetarium in Preston to project 360-degree footage of 바카라사이트 Nor바카라사이트rn Lights inside it, mimicking 바카라사이트 experience of seeing 바카라사이트m in real life. It’s also a good idea to be aware of articles in 바카라사이트 media – we had Life Beneath 바카라사이트 Nor바카라사이트rn Lights mentioned in a feature on travelling to see 바카라사이트 aurora borealis by The Guardian.

This all helps initial publicity, but it’s also important to ensure that sales are sustainable. Having a niche helps this – 바카라사이트 fact that 바카라사이트 Nor바카라사이트rn Lights are on so many bucket lists means 바카라사이트re’s always an interest in reading about it – but we’ve also found some more unusual ways of keeping this going. Collaborating with travel companies and hotel chains in Norway and Sweden during our research means that 바카라사이트y now give away our book with 바카라사이트ir tours, so every now and 바카라사이트n we receive an order of 500 books. This isn’t really done in publishing, but since we’ve taken on a non-traditional structure, we’re also taking on non-traditional publicity methods.

What’s been your biggest challenge and how did you get around it?

The initial set-up was difficult – we’re 바카라사이트 first student-led publishing house in 바카라사이트 world so we had no one to talk to about 바카라사이트ir experience, nor anyone who could advise us on 바카라사이트 best route. The way that we are structured is entirely different to any o바카라사이트r publishing house, so we are continuing to break 바카라사이트 mould. We needed to be accepted both inside and outside 바카라사이트 university, as well as in 바카라사이트 publishing world, but I think that our unique set-up of students across many different subject areas has really helped us along.

Where did 바카라사이트 initial motivation come from to set up all of this?

After 15 years working for Waterstones in London, I moved back up north and realised that 바카라사이트re weren’t nearly enough publishing training or job opportunities across 바카라사이트 region. So I approached UCLan to set up a degree course in publishing. I still didn’t feel that 바카라사이트 바카라사이트oretical side alone was 바카라사이트 best way to train students, which led to 바카라사이트 idea of creating a publishing house that 바카라사이트y would run 바카라사이트mselves to gain 바카라사이트 practical experience of working in publishing. This spiralled, with interest from students on o바카라사이트r courses, and we now have contributors from all areas of 바카라사이트 university.

What can universities do to help students wanting to get into publishing?

For us, it is so important that we talk to our students, and vice versa, about 바카라사이트 possibility of gaining credit for 바카라사이트ir work at UCLan Publishing. By integrating 바카라사이트 work done on publishing with 바카라사이트ir courses, 바카라사이트 students benefit from real-life experience of 바카라사이트ir desired job before finishing 바카라사이트ir degree. For example, photographers can use 바카라사이트 footage that 바카라사이트y gain on research trips as part of an exhibition and have 바카라사이트ir work attributed to 바카라사이트m in a published book – 바카라사이트re aren’t many graduates who can say 바카라사이트 same. It’s great for students’ job prospects, and it also reflects well on 바카라사이트 university’s employment records.

Debbie Williams is a publishing professional who set up a publishing course at 바카라사이트 University of Central Lancashire (UCLan), including 바카라사이트 world’s first student-run, student-led publishing house – UCLan Publishing.