How the YouCaxton Publishing Model Works

We help authors publish professionally by supplying the specific services they need—editing, design, production and distribution—without forcing packages or taking control of their work. This page explains how our model operates in practice.

We are a professional publishing services company

We provide the editorial, design, production and distribution expertise required to bring a book to market. You remain in creative control; we make sure the book meets trade expectations and is straightforward to buy, ship and account for.

You retain creative control and copyright

You keep the copyright in your work. Where we need permission to manufacture and distribute, we use a simple, non-exclusive licence limited to that purpose. There is no assignment of rights.

ISBNs & registration with Nielsen: our default (and your option)

• Default: We supply a YouCaxton ISBN free of charge and register the book with Nielsen BookData with YouCaxton as the publisher of record. This lets us manage distribution routes and royalties cleanly and keep your metadata accurate.
• Author option: You may use your own ISBN. In that case you’ll need to register with Nielsen yourself. Even when YouCaxton is listed as publisher, we can register you as the distributor where appropriate.

Why this helps: correct registration and clear roles make ordering, stock movement and royalty accounting simpler across wholesalers, retailers and libraries.

Your project plan: itemised, custom, visible online

After a discussion about your goals, we set up a customised Project Sheet on our website. Each step is itemised and quoted so you can ask us to complete a task—or do it yourself—and follow progress online.

Each stage includes an approval checkpoint (to be signed off by Author email) before we move on.

Staged payments tied to sign-off points

We agree staged payments: typically 50% to begin, and 50% when you sign off your final press-ready proof. This aligns payments with clear milestones and approvals.

Editing, production and printing are separately priced

• Editorial work is quoted separately—rightly so, because it can be a major cost and varies with the manuscript.
• Pre-press (design, typesetting, file preparation) is itemised, so you see exactly what you’re paying for.
• Printing is charged separately and we print to order (POD, short-run digital or litho) to suit your needs and cash flow.

Tools to plan your budget

Use our two on-site calculators to estimate pre-press costs and print costs. These estimates help you prepare for an initial free consultation, where we confirm the plan and refine the quote.

How we collaborate

Our designers and print managers work in close collaboration with you at every stage. We advise on good practice (titles, covers, metadata, Thema codes), produce trade-standard files, and manage distribution steps so your book is easy to order and fulfil.

No contract required by default

We do not require a formal contract by default. If you would like one, we will provide a simple agreement that reflects the project plan, approvals and deliverables.

Next steps

• Review our FAQs for concise answers across editing, design, printing, distribution and marketing.
• Use the calculators above to sketch a budget, then book your free consultation.
• We’ll set up your Project Sheet, agree milestones and move to first approvals.