They're not a traditional publisher. They love traditional publishers — it's their background — but things are hard for them. They have always been selective in who they will take on, but in today's environment they can afford to take fewer and fewer risks commercially or artistically.
They're not a self-publishing service. Self-publishing services perform a great role: they allow anybody to get in print, and they give the author complete control over their finished book, to market as they please. But however excellent a book might be, it's much harder to make it stand out when it's published alongside anything and everything.
What they are is a hybrid of the two models. RedDoor operates exactly as a traditional publisher in that they market, sell and represent subsidiary rights on a curated list of top-drawer titles. They have a small roster of authors they believe in, and are extremely selective about who they take on.
'Extremely selective' is just that — their business stands or falls by the quality of their list. They publish very few books annually, and they won't take anything on if they can't get completely behind it.
Their authors underwrite the cost of the production process of the UK edition of their book. This is the element they take from the self-publishing model; it shares the initial commercial risk for them, meaning that their sole consideration can be: 'will this be a great book?' It also gives the author immense control over every aspect of the process.
After this point they share the commercial returns equally. They're invested long-term in the book's success through sales and through subsidiary rights representation — another reason that they can only consider titles of genuine merit.
Collaboration is at the heart of what they do. They want their authors to feel involved, informed and fully supported. They are part of the team, all working towards the same goal: making, marketing and selling brilliant books.
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