How to Publish a Coffee Table Book: The essential guide to taking your book from idea to publication

By Tapiwa Matsinde

If you are a content creator, entrepreneur, or professional who wants to publish a coffee table book, this essential guide will show you exactly how to go from idea to publication.

Whether you're looking to self-publish or land a publishing deal, you'll learn all that goes into creating a memorable, statement coffee table book

• Language: English
• Publisher: Shoko Press
• Release date: Dec 26, 2022
• ISBN: 9780995470699

Book preview

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First published in the United Kingdom in 2022 by Shoko Press

How to Publish a Coffee Table Book © 2022

Tapiwa Matsinde

All Rights Reserved.

No part of this publication may be reproduced or transmitted in any form or by any means, electronic or mechanical, including photocopy, recording or any other information storage and retrieval system, without prior permission in writing from the publisher.

ISBN 978-0-9954706-9-9

The author is not responsible for content on linked external sites or recommended resources. The author does not guarantee that following the information will lead to success, and cannot accept responsibility for any loss or damage resulting from following the information provided in this publication.

About the Author

Tapiwa Matsinde is an author, storyteller, curator, mentor, and blogger. She has published several books using the traditional publishing and self-publishing routes. Tapiwa’s award-winning blog atelier 55 formed the basis of her debut illustrative book Contemporary Design Africa. Based on her experiences Tapiwa has written How to Publish a Coffee Table Book as a guide to help other content creators, professionals, entrepreneurs, and writers who want to publish their own coffee table books. She lives in London, UK.

Contents

About the Author

A Coffee Table Book: a definition

Author’s Note

Introduction

Preparing Yourself for the Process of Publishing a Coffee Table Book

Why Turn Your Content into a Coffee Table Book?

The Reasons Why You Should Not Turn Your Content into a Book

The Realities of Publishing a Coffee Table Book

Why You Need to Mentally Prepare Yourself for the Process of Publishing a Book

Finding the Time to Publish a Coffee Table Book

Planning Your Coffee Table Book

What Will Your Coffee Table Book be About?

Why it is Not a Good Idea to Publish Straight from Screen

Doing Your Market Research

Help, There is a Similar Coffee Table Book Already Being Published!

Choosing the Best Time to Publish Your Coffee Table Book

How Will Your Coffee Table Book Be Structured

Structuring Your Coffee Table Book

Your Coffee Table Book Specifications

Content Considerations

Finding and Selecting Images

Producing the Text

Ghostwriting

Costs of Publishing a Book

How Much Does it Cost to Publish a Coffee Table Book*

Pricing Your Book

Publishing Options Available for Your Coffee Table Book

The Publishing Landscape: A Brief Overview

The Global Book Publishing Industry

Traditional Publishing Versus Self-Publishing

About Traditional Publishing

What is the Role of a Literary Agent?

What is the Role of a Publisher?

Creating and Submitting Your Coffee Table Book Proposal to a Publisher

Creating a Proposal – What to Include

The Contract

Royalties

Advances

Rights

Copyright

About Self-Publishing

The Publishing Process, What to Expect

What to Expect When Working with a Publisher

What to Expect When Self-Publishing

Output

Printing

Digital Publishing

Distribution

What is an ISBN and Do You Need One?

Publishing Services

Promotion

Why is Promoting Your Coffee Table Book Important?

Planning Your Promotional Strategy

Pre-Launch

Metadata

Search Engine Optimization (SEO)

Your Author Profile

Promoting Your Book to the Press

Peri-Launch

Book Launch Events

Post-Launch

Working With a Publicist

Some Other Things You May Want to Think About

Last Word

Resources

References

Image Credits

Book Production and Publishing Process Checklist

Publishing Toolkit

A Coffee Table Book: a definition

The term ‘coffee table book’, used throughout this publication, collectively refers to books whose subject matter is usually non-fiction lifestyle, such as photography, interiors, fashion, cooking, beauty, art, design, architecture, and so forth.

Other names for coffee table books are illustrative books, artbooks, cocktail books or lifestyle books. More than decorative props, coffee table books have served to document contemporary culture, delving into subjects ranging from portraits by celebrity photographers, to behind-the-scenes looks into couture fashion houses, to travelogues of places that most people can only dream about, adding to the coffee table book’s desirability.

Author’s Note

Hi, my name is Tapiwa. In January 2013, at the start of a brand new year, I had been blogging for two years and two months and was looking at ways to monetize my blog and become more visible in my industry. A book was one option that interested me. Inspired by fellow bloggers who were publishing books, I took a leap of faith and began the process of writing and producing my own. Later that year, in December 2013 to be exact, I landed and signed a traditional publishing deal with a leading artbook publisher to write my first book, Contemporary Design Africa. Then, in 2016, I self-published my second book, Fashion Illustration Africa.

The idea of writing a book had always been lurking in the deep recesses of my mind, but I never really thought it was possible until I began writing my blog. I knew nothing about the publishing industry and did not have a journalistic background in the traditional sense, so I found myself learning the ropes as I went along (something I suspect many of you reading this have found yourselves doing too). Now, having been through a challenging, yet highly rewarding process, I am sharing my experiences and tips in this straightforward, practical guide to creating and publishing a coffee table book to help those of you who are looking to do the same. It’s the kind of guide I wish I’d had when I started.

I should point out that this is not a book about how to write a coffee table book, but rather a guide to the process of creating and publishing one. Whilst the information contained in this book focuses on content creators, whom I categorize as bloggers, social media platform owners, video content producers, podcasters, writers, artists, and photographers, amongst others; it applies equally to anyone in any number of industries who wants to produce a coffee table book. Remember, everyone’s journey is different, so what worked for me may not necessarily work for you, but I am confident you will find the information useful in getting you on your way.

Tapiwa Matsinde

Introduction

So, you have been creating content for a while and are now thinking you might turn your hand to print or, at the very least, a more comprehensive digital publication. But where to start and what to do?

No matter where in the world you are, publishing a coffee table book has never been easier. The relative ease of self-publishing has empowered people from all walks of life to bring their stories and individual perspectives to print and digital formats.

Blogging gave birth to the content creator, which, in turn, paved the way for the creation of some inspiring, diverse and original books that might otherwise never have seen the light of day. And you do not need to have a popular or influential blog, social media platform, video channel or podcast read, viewed or listened to by millions each month to produce a coffee table book. My blog was certainly nowhere near as widely read as that, and outside of my niche I am a relatively unknown content creator. What I had, though, was conviction about my subject. I spotted a gap in the market for deeper information on my niche, was clear about my objective, and could communicate this. Thankfully, my publisher agreed.

Some content creators are fortunate enough (depending on your view) to have a publisher approach them first. The rest of us, however, need to take matters into our own hands and either self-publish or contact publishers directly with a proposal for our idea. I did the latter after realizing that, if I wanted to publish an artbook, daydreaming about a publisher contacting me with a deal was likely to get me nowhere. I needed to get in front of them and show why my niche was important and why my blog was worthy of becoming a book.

I also explored the alternative publishing options that were available to me should I fail to secure a publishing deal, or choose not to accept the contract offered.

Taking the initiative calls for a lot of self-belief, along with a [healthy] dose of realistic expectations to balance things out, but one thing I was certain about was that blogging had allowed me to hone my writing and research skills, and deepened my knowledge of my industry. In the process, this had boosted my self-confidence to tackle a much larger project, such as publishing a book. I was more than ready, or so I thought…

I underestimated just how challenging putting a book together and the whole publishing process would be, even with a publisher guiding the way. So before you embark on the journey, you do need to ask yourself if it is truly something you can do and want to commit to.

PART ONE:

Preparing Yourself for the Process of Publishing a Coffee Table Book

Creating and publishing a coffee table book takes a high level of focus and commitment. This is especially true if you are self-publishing, as you will be taking on most, if not all, the roles that are normally undertaken by a traditional publisher.

In this section, we will look at preparing yourself for the task ahead and examine:

The reasons why you want to turn your content into a book and the reasons why you should not

Managing your expectations

Getting yourself into the right frame of mind

Being realistic with the time that you can dedicate to the task

Having clarity in these areas will serve to increase your chances of a) starting it, and b) completing it.

So…