Starting a small aviation publishing company

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I am thinking about starting a small aviation publishing company, based in the UK.

I am trying to gauge the startup and running costs of such an enterprise.

As I understand it, mainstream aviation publishers typical have print runs of 2000-5000 for each title? They normally pay authors about £1000-3000 per title + a box of books for them to sell themselves? They also have substantial production and warehousing costs.

My company would be very niche, specialising in titles that are usually not commercially viable for mainstream publishers.
Production would be mainly in-house, or by virtual teams, to keep costs low, with distribution via companies such as Lulu, Blurb, Amazon etc which offer buyers a choice of Print-on-demand or electronic format. Costings would be based on sales (print +ebook) of around 500 copies for each title.

I would like to feature specially-commissioned original artwork, but photos may have to be public domain or volunteered. Obviously, I couldn't afford to send a print copy of the book to everyone who allows their photo to be used, it would have to be an ebook version.

Titles would feature the less glamorous aircraft types, helicopters, and various aircraft companies and operators: Mitsubishi MU-2, Agusta A109, New Aircraft for 2022, Sikorsky Aircraft since 1909, NAVAID Calibration Aircraft Around the World, Fugro and its Aircraft, Flying Units of the Spanish Air Force: Aircraft and Lineage, etc...

Legal contracts with authors and artists are something I don't have any experience with.

I wonder if I could get away with a production budget of £2000-2500 for a 50 page A4 book and pro-rata for longer titles?

Comments are welcome!


Regards,

John
 
Unless you intend this as a sort of "hobby" I would do almost anything in the world right now rather than start a publishing house.

If you insist on considering it, dont even think about it unless you have very convincing answers to >

1) Who will write these books ?
2) Why would they want you to publish them ?
3) Why will you make money where they have been rejected by bigger publishers ?

You will NOT sell 2000 copies of the books you`ve mentioned above, without a big marketing and distribution network
I`d say 100 to 300 is realistic (if they are VERY good books). Assuming a sales price of under £20 GBP each,
the author might get £0.70 a book, so thats £70 to £210.

I do not think that is even vaguely commercially viable even as a semi-hobby idea.

My advice is, think of something else. Sorry to be negative, but that is what I would want someone to tell me
if I were considering it.
 
It can be done, especially now. I would contact publishers currently involved in publishing aviation titles. I've been in book publishing for some decades but not in that niche. However, certain basic costs can be determined.

Cost for printing. I am now contacting various printers to get costs. My company is moving into hardcovers, along with the softcovers we usually publish.
Art costs? Contact the artists you like and ask them.
Writers. There are various ways payment can be arranged. Contact some published authors and actual publishers.

Make sure you speak to actual people on the phone. I cannot stress that enough. Emails can turn into a jumbled mess quite quickly. Speak to someone and take notes. My company, that is, the company I work for, started with a small sum and grew. Be polite. Make sure you ask for permission before asking any questions. Be prepared to hear from some people that "I'd rather not discuss that" even though they will help with other matters.

Make a list of all the steps required to get from point A to point B. I can assure you that I was in the same boat and simply called and called until I got my questions answered. I have no degrees in anything by the way.

Legal advice. Do not be afraid to call "Copyright" Attorneys. That is, those familiar with publishing in any medium. Do not be afraid to ask how long they've been in business or to ask for references. References meaning others you can contact who've already dealt with them. They can write your contracts for artists and writers and most importantly, explain them to you.
 
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I don't get Calum's pessimism. Here in Finland any reasonable Finnish-language (and there are only 5+ million Finnish speakers in the world) military aviation book sells hundreds of copies.
 
While the following applies to all books, I thought it would be instructive to others here.

"According to Publishers Weekly, unit sales of books have risen every year since 2013, and while the increases are small on their own — at 2% or 3% per year — it’s something of a surprise that numbers continue to climb even as digitization increases. Last year, print book sales rose more than 8.9%."
 
If this is still a live query please feel free to get in touch. I run an aviation micropublisher in the UK, Aviation Books Ltd. Our website is www.bombercommandbooks.com

I am happy to talk you through the trials and tribulations: the company is ten years old this year.

Drop me a line at aviationbooksuk(at)gmail.com
 
AviationbooksUK said:
If this is still a live query please feel free to get in touch. I run an aviation micropublisher in the UK, Aviation Books Ltd. Our website is www.bombercommandbooks.com

I am happy to talk you through the trials and tribulations: the company is ten years old this year.

Drop me a line at aviationbooksuk(at)gmail.com
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I congratulate you on having survived 10 years of crisis.

I wish I could offer you some of my titles, but I only write about fighters.

If you are interested in publishing any of my kinders on paper...



https://www.amazon.com/Libros-Justo-Miranda/s?rh=n:283155,p_27:Justo+Miranda&language=es



https://www.goodreads.com/author/list/1101322.Justo_Miranda
 
Aviation and aerospace publishing needs a Medici--a patron to fund many copies of many titles for the sake of civilization--a billionaire who would not care if they sold or not.

Lots of cheap aviation books would be a form of evangelism and outreach to inspire youths to get into aerospace...that and putting old cockpits into playgrounds.
 
publiusr said:
Aviation and aerospace publishing needs a Medici--a patron to fund many copies of many titles for the sake of civilization--a billionaire who would not care if they sold or not.

Lots of cheap aviation books would be a form of evangelism and outreach to inspire youths to get into aerospace...that and putting old cockpits into playgrounds.
Click to expand...
The Medici never used their own money in patronage works, they used the money of others, the only way to get rich in any era.

(Library Genesis) LibGen is one of the sources most frequently used; its origin is Russian, and it was created during the first decade of the 2000s. It is a pirate site that provides access to millions of novels, comics, and even scientific articles. With similar functionality, Z-Library, Open Library, Sci-Hub, and Anna's Archive give access to a wide range of books, articles, and other resources, often bypassing paywalls and copyright restrictions. Some sites, like Z-Library, limit the number of titles that may be downloaded for free daily. Open-Library operates on a lending model, allowing a 2-week borrowing for each book.
 
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publiusr said:
Aviation and aerospace publishing needs a Medici--a patron to fund many copies of many titles for the sake of civilization--a billionaire who would not care if they sold or not.

Lots of cheap aviation books would be a form of evangelism and outreach to inspire youths to get into aerospace...that and putting old cockpits into playgrounds.
Click to expand...
https://boxartden.com/reference/gallery/index.php
 
publiusr said:
Lots of cheap aviation books would be a form of evangelism and outreach to inspire youths to get into aerospace...that and putting old cockpits into playgrounds.
Click to expand...
Not really.
A. They have to want to read.
b. Interactive websites would do more,
c. Old cockpits at playgrounds would be a financial disaster. It is not practical to make them safe.
 
Byeman said:
Not really.
A. They have to want to read.
b. Interactive websites would do more,
c. Old cockpits at playgrounds would be a financial disaster. It is not practical to make them safe.
Click to expand...
A thief is always a thief even if he has a party card, is president of an NGO or webmaster.

The origin of these bad commercial practices is in the television of the sixties: the public became accustomed to not paying in exchange for being the victim of all kinds of ideological propaganda.
 

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Justo Miranda said:
A thief is always a thief even if he has a party card, is president of an NGO or webmaster.

The origin of these bad commercial practices is in the television of the sixties: the public became accustomed to not paying in exchange for being the victim of all kinds of ideological propaganda.
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Huh, how is that even related to the topic.
 
Byeman said:
Huh, how is that even related to the topic.
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Unfortunately, the issue of massive copyright theft is not an off-the-topic issue, it is the real cause of fewer publishers having the courage to publish books that have no chance of becoming best sellers. It stole Wingspalette to extinction and steals Pinterest without any problems. This is not an opinion, nor a conspiracy theory, I have already provided evidence of this in the forum when they stole my drawings.

https://www.secretprojects.co.uk/threads/really-weird-aerospace-patents.276/page-3#post-725889
 
That's what killed my Skomer site. Got fed up with drawings etc being nicked and used without a by your leave. Now any drawings I post are covered in watermarks, which while they can be removed, it will be a pain in the arse for the remover and 'signatures' in the drawing I can use to identify them.

Ask permission and all these get removed. You'll also get a lovely, crisp and scaleable eps rather than a raggedy low res png.

Chris
 
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CJGibson said:
That's what killed my Skomer site. Got fed up with drawings etc being nicked and used without a by your leave. Now any drawings I post are covered in watermarks, which while they can be removed, it will be a pain in the arse for the remover and 'signatures' in the drawing I can use to identify them.

Ask permission and all these get removed. You'll also get a lovely, crisp and scaleable eps rather than a raggedy low res png.

Chris
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I always allow the free publication of my drawings when asked to do so by modelers, writers, comic book writers and video game creators. It's good for fans, creates new readers, and generates useful contacts. No one is going to get rich from this.:)
 
Copyright infringement is a serious problem. I have sent take-down notices to infringing sites. Copyright just means right to copy. If you do not have the legal right then you will be subject to legal action under the law.

Asking permission seems to be a forgotten skill online.
 
alberchico said:
https://the-decoder.com/amazon-is-still-struggling-to-stem-the-flood-of-ai-generated-fake-books/
Thought I would post this here. There is a huge epidemic of aviation books popping up on Amazon with lazily slapped together cover art that makes it obvious it's AI slop. These books are giving the self publishing industry a bad name and are making it harder for obscure aviation writers to stand out and have their works noticed.
Click to expand...

No surprise. A company I will not name was taking Wikipedia articles and republishing them as books.

People who think they are living in "the future" should not be surprised. The law of the jungle applies. New predators out to make a quick buck will continue to appear. New writers will be noticed but this takes time. The internet has greatly multiplied the number of fake and real outlets for everything. Again, if you are doing quality work you will be noticed.
 
alberchico said:
https://the-decoder.com/amazon-is-still-struggling-to-stem-the-flood-of-ai-generated-fake-books/
Thought I would post this here. There is a huge epidemic of aviation books popping up on Amazon with lazily slapped together cover art that makes it obvious it's AI slop. These books are giving the self publishing industry a bad name and are making it harder for obscure aviation writers to stand out and have their works noticed.
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Your post is not well understood.

Am I an obscure author after having published forty-five books with seven publishers and in three languages?

Are you saying that my twenty-six Amazon-Kindle books are made with AI?

Are you saying that my drawings handmade with Rotring and colored with Enamel are AI?

Are you saying that my books are an epidemic?

I would appreciate clarification of these statements.
 
Justo Miranda said:
Your post is not well understood.

Am I an obscure author after having published forty-five books with seven publishers and in three languages?

Are you saying that my twenty-six Amazon-Kindle books are made with AI?

Are you saying that my drawings handmade with Rotring and colored with Enamel are AI?

Are you saying that my books are an epidemic?

I would appreciate clarification of these statements.
Click to expand...

I wasn't referring to you at all. I was simply pointing out that Amazon is getting flooded with sub par garbage like this that is making it harder for others books to get noticed by the casual reader.

612TczZf26L._AC_UF1000,1000_QL80_FMwebp_.jpg




Why did you think I was referencing you in any way ? I simply decided to add the article about AI slop to this thread since this was a discussion of the current state of the publishing business.
 
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