Simon & Schuster is getting in the self-publishing business. Through a partnership with Author Solutions Inc., S&S has formed Archway Publishing, a unit that will offer self-publishing services in fiction, nonfiction, business and children’s categories with the backend powered by ASI, the self-publishing provider acquired by Pearson/Penguin earlier this year.
“Self-publishing has become a viable and popular route to publication for many authors, and increasingly a source of content for traditional publishers, including Simon & Schuster,” said S&S CEO Carolyn Reidy. “We’re excited that we’ll be able to help more authors find their own path to publication and at the same time create a more direct connection to those self-published authors ready to make the leap to traditional publishing.” S&S will refer authors who submit unsolicited manuscripts to the Archway program and will monitor the success of Archway titles.

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S&S hopes to differentiate Archway from other self-publishing programs by offering some exclusive options that include a “concierge service” in which authors will have the chance to work with a dedicated publishing guide who will coordinate each step of the book production process. Working with Speakerfile, S&S has also created the Archway Speakers Bureau to help authors line up speaking engagements. S&S will include Archway (whose name was adapted from a defunct S&S children’s paperback imprint) titles in Edelweiss and also offer authors the ability to create videos and book trailers.
Devu Gandhi of S&S Digital is managing the Archway-ASI relationship for S&S. Fees to participate in Archway vary according to different packages, but in general have the following ranges: Fiction: $1,999 - $14,999; Nonfiction: $1,999 - $14,999; Business: $2,199 - $24,999; and Children’s: $1,599 - $8,499.