The Definitive Difference Between Hybrid Publishing and Self-Publishing

Every so often it’s time to polish up the old comparison post since business models evolve and what was true a couple years ago has already changed and expanded. Also, I’ve been doing hybrid publishing for so long now that I can be guilty of thinking that it’s is more broadly understood than it actually is. So here goes.

How hybrid publishing and self-publishing are similar

• Both are viable pathways to getting a book published.
• In both approaches, the authors pay to publish.
• Depending on the author’s production team, the end product may be equally beautifully produced.

A quick consideration of the spectrum

Hybrid is more different than similar to self-publishing, but it will always occupy a middle space between traditional and self-publishing because it’s an author-subsidized business model, meaning that authors invest. When I think about hybrid publishing companies, I imagine a line with two poles on either side—traditional publishing on one side, self-publishing on the other. Hybrids that have traditional distribution look and act a lot more like traditional publishers, while those whose distribution involves making books available on Amazon’s KDP and IngramSpark will fall closer along the spectrum to self-publishing. Service providers, companies that sell services to authors, with no distribution and wherein the author has complete control (often keeping all or most of their own royalties), are the closest an author can get to self-publishing without totally DIYing it. A final category of business model to watch out for is predatory publishing, companies that indiscriminately go after aspiring authors, often overcharging and with zero motive behind their publishing other than taking money from authors. These companies often call themselves hybrid publishers, but they’re not, and they don’t deserve a place on the publishing spectrum.  

How hybrid publishing and self-publishing are different

• With hybrid publishing, the author is publishing under the publisher’s imprint and the publisher’s ISBNs, and benefiting from the publisher’s expertise and industry relationships.
• The hybrid publisher brings editorial, design, production, distribution, and sales expertise and infrastructure to the relationship. It’s possible, but difficult, for a self-publisher to build a team that will have the level of expertise baked into a hybrid publisher’s existing structure.  
• As long as a hybrid publisher has effective distribution, hybrid published books will be widely available beyond online marketplaces like Amazon and Bookshop. Traditional distribution effectively gets books into bookstores, wholesalers, libraries, and specialty markets, and as such distribution is a key element for aspiring authors to understand before they decide their publishing route.
• Hybrid published books qualify to be reviewed in the industry’s trade magazines, which include Publishers Weekly, Kirkus, Booklist, Library Journal, and Foreword. Many of these outlets also have pay-to-play review options for self-published authors, and hybrid published authors can take advantage of those, too, if their books aren’t chosen to be traditionally reviewed.
• The hybrid published author benefits from the industry expertise of their chosen publisher—its distribution, its relationships, its reputation. These things matter in publishing still, and perhaps even more so than ever because the hybrid space has become so saturated in recent years.
• With hybrid publishing, the author keeps a much higher percentage of their profits than they would under traditional publishing, but much lower than they would if they were self-publishing since when authors self-publish, they keep all the profits.
• Most hybrid publishers at least offer offset print runs and store authors’ inventory in their warehouses. Not to be beholden to print on demand is essential for authors who want to move a lot of books, especially in the first year of a book behing out. For some authors (of lifestyle books, children’s books, cookbooks, or any high-design or four-color books), print on demand is noticeably not on par with the quality of offset, and therefore authors of these kinds of books should tread carefully when thinking about self-publishing.
• Speed to market varies tremendously, as self-published authors can go from a finished manuscript to published book quite quickly (like a matter of a couple months), while a hybrid publisher’s timeline will vary depending on its publishing schedules and its relationship with its distributor.

---

Last week I spoke with an author who’s wrestling with her decision whether to hybrid publish or self-publish. This post is partly inspired by her, and since I’m a self-professed publishing agnostic, I laid it out for her like this:

• Self-publishing is cheaper, but if you want a beautiful book (well-edited, well-designed), you need to pay experts. Doing it on your own will not yield the same results.
• If you self-publish, your book will only be available on Amazon and other online retailers. If you want your book to be in bookstores and you’re self-published, you will have to walk the books into the store and consign, whereas if you hybrid publish (with traditional distribution), your books will get into bookstores and you’ll have a team to support that to happen.
• Your self-published book can be out much faster, but think about what you actually want from the experience because rushing to publish and then thinking about publicity later is the kiss of death. A hybrid publisher, with its built-in timelines and considerations, will ensure that you maximize publicity and marketing opportunities, and (again, with traditional distribution) you will also have your book “presold” (meaning sold prior to publication) to retailers and wholesalers.
• The only place where you can truly go wrong is in a mismatch between your expectations and the reality you choose or create, or partnering with a team or company that’s not aligned with what you want. So ask lots of questions, don’t be in a hurry, resist flattery, and keep educating yourself until you’re ready to take the leap.

---

For any writer/author vetting a hybrid publisher, please utilize the Independent Book Publishers Association’s Hybrid Publisher Criteria (established in 2018 and updated in 2022). This is a checklist to show authors what a reputable hybrid publisher should be offering its authors, and is helpful to weed out companies that are not providing true hybrid services.  

More articles and resources on hybrid publishing:
IBPA Publishing MAP (Models and Author Pathways)
Hybrid Publishing: Everything You’ve Always Wanted to Know (by Barbara Probst)
Hybrid Publishing: Q&A with Brooke Warner
The Risky Business of Hybrid Publishing (by Brooke Warner)
What’s in a Label? (by Brooke Warner)
Hybrid Publishing and the Measures That Matter (by Brooke Warner)