Our services include formatting and editing your manuscript, book cover design, publishing your book, and making your work available for sale in print and eBook on Amazon and other online outlets. When you submit your manuscript by mail or by email, an editor will read your manuscript and contact you with the services we can offer based on your submission.
Services and Fees (Effective as of January 1, 2026)
Payment in full is required before we can begin work on your manuscript. We accept installment payments, but will not begin work on your project until full payment is received. Please note that to avoid possible rate increases you must complete payment within one year of your submission.
Our Publishing Service includes the following:
Registering your work with the United States Copyright Office. (You keep all copyright ownership to your work. Word Out Books is granted exclusive publication rights.)
ISBN— Every print book sold commercially must have an International Standard Book Number assigned to it. Each edition and print version of a book—for example, a hardcover and a paperback edition of the same book—must have its own ISBN. We will purchase and assign ISBNs to each edition of the book in print.
Prior to publishing your book, Word Out Books will proofread your manuscript and correct basic punctuation, spelling, and capitalization errors. We look for and correct grammar and syntax mistakes, note inconsistencies, and provide other suggestions to improve the quality of writing.
Book cover design. (If you have a specific request for a book cover let us know and we will accommodate your request if possible.)
Publication of your book in both paperback and eBook versions.
Setup and management of sales. Your book will be available on Amazon and other online outlets through Expanded Distribution.
One free copy of your book shipped to the address of your choice.
Publishing Service Rates:
Manuscripts up to 150 pages: $1,700 Manuscripts up to 200 pages: $1,900
Manuscripts up to 250 pages: $2,150 Manuscripts up to 300 pages: $2,400
Manuscripts up to 350 pages: $2,600 Manuscripts up to 400 pages: $2,900
If you think your manuscript will exceed 400 pages please let us know before you send it to us.
If you have a short manuscript (fewer than 80 pages) it may qualify for our Novella rate, which is $1,350.
Note: The length of your manuscript (or page count) will be calculated by Word Out Books. Page count is determined by the number of words per printed page, calculated at approximately 250 words per page. For manuscripts not submitted in standard manuscript format, page counts are calculated using the page with the highest word density and applied uniformly across the manuscript.
Publishing Under a Pseudonym (Pen Name)
Works published under a pen name may require a different copyright registration category, which can affect filing fees or administrative costs. If you would like your copyright registered under a pen name, please let us know and we will confirm the applicable cost and include it in your invoice.
Manuscript Submissions
We prefer submitted manuscripts be typed in standard manuscript format, or in electronic format, but we understand that not every author has access to word processing or typing equipment. Word Out Books is happy to accept handwritten manuscripts, provided they can be easily read. If we cannot read your handwriting, we may ask that you rewrite and resubmit it. Please write clearly. If we can’t read it, we can’t publish it!
Royalties
Royalties for book sales are calculated based on net proceeds after all printing and distribution costs are deducted. Authors receive 80% of the net profit from sales. Payments are issued twice a year, typically in March and September. However, royalties will only be disbursed if the accrued amount reaches a minimum of $100. If the balance is below this threshold, it will roll over to the next payment period until it reaches the required amount.
Authors will receive a biannual royalty statement detailing sales and earnings. If the total royalties remain below $100, instead of a full statement, authors will receive a simplified notification informing them of their current balance. Authors requesting additional royalty reports beyond the scheduled statements may do so for an administrative fee of $10 per report.
Royalty payments will be issued to the name and address specified by the author, either directly to them or to a designated recipient of their choosing. Any updates or amendments to this policy will be communicated to authors in advance.
How To Get Started
Send us a copy* of your completed manuscript.
Include any additional comments, questions or information you’d like us to have.
*VERY IMPORTANT: Please be sure you do not send us the only copy of your manuscript! Manuscripts cannot be returned, regardless of whether we ultimately publish them.
What We Will Do
Once we have received and reviewed your manuscript, and it meets our criteria, we will contact you with an offer to publish your book and the cost for publication. We will enclose a Services Request Form for you to complete and return to us.
Rarely, we must decline to publish a manuscript, usually because it violates one of our publication policies.
Word Out Books does not publish the following:
Books that advocate the commission of crimes or incitement to commit crimes.*
Books that could be considered libelous.
Books designed to allow a person convicted of a crime to profit directly from that crime.*
Books which, in our exclusive editorial judgment, violate the ethical principles of our company.
*Please note that we do accept Urban Fiction for publication.
Invoicing
When we receive your signed Services Request Form we will send you an invoice requesting payment for our publication services. Payment may be made by check, bank draft, or money order. We do not accept credit card payments or cash. Checks/drafts/money orders must be made payable to our parent company, AZ Entertainment Group LLC.
We will begin publication after payment has been received in full. Once publication work has begun, fees are non-refundable. If you wish to cancel publication, please contact us within 10 business days of payment, so that we can process your refund.
Please Note: If we do not receive your payment or a request for additional time for payment within 90 days of our receipt of your manuscript, we will assume the project is a no-go and will securely dispose of the manuscript without further obligation to the author. We cannot keep unpaid manuscripts indefinitely. Again, please do not send us the only copy of your work!
Please let us know if you have any questions regarding our services or fees. We want to help you get your word out to the world with Word Out Books!