This guide covers why authors choose to start their own publishing company, what to watch for, how international rights and print runs factor in, and how the basic options differ across the US, the UK, Germany and Australia.

In traditional publishing, a publisher pays you an advance, covers editing and production costs, and pays royalties on sales. In self-publishing, you fund the production yourself, keep full creative control.

A manuscript assessment — sometimes called a manuscript evaluation or reader's report — is a professional appraisal of your work as a whole. An experienced editor or reader reads your manuscript in full and provides a detailed written report on its strengths, weaknesses, and potential.

The publishing process is the journey a manuscript takes from completion to publication, encompassing every stage of editorial, production, legal, and commercial activity required to turn a piece of writing into a finished, distributed publication.

An advance reader copy — commonly known as an ARC, and sometimes called a review copy or galley — is an early, pre-publication version of a book distributed to reviewers, booksellers, librarians, journalists, and influential readers before the official release date.

A literary agent is a professional who represents authors and their work to publishers. They are the primary gateway into traditional publishing for most fiction and non-fiction authors — the majority of major publishers do not accept unsolicited submissions directly from authors, which means securing agent representation is the essential first step toward a traditional publishing deal.