Frequently Asked Questions




When are royalty checks mailed out?

Royalty checks are mailed out quarterly of each calendar year. Each quarter ends at the last day of the following calendar months: March, June, September, and December. Royalty checks will be mailed out by the 15th of the month following the end of each quarter. Thus, royalty checks will be mailed out by April 15th (for the March quarter end), July 15th (for the June quarter end), October 15th (for the September quarter end), and January 15th (for the December quarter end).


Why should I choose Wasteland Press?

The prices you are quoted are for printing services only! Thus, it is our job to market your book in order to make money. So, we work for you, not against you! Additionally, you can sell your free copies and earn your investment back. No one in the self-publishing industry offers you such services as well as a chance to earn your initial investment back. Also, we provide professional publishing design at no extra charge regardless of the plan you choose! Our publishing plans include all of the following at no extra charge: professional cover design (we design your cover and DO NOT use cover templates), professional formatting service (we format your book by adding headers, pagination, and give your book that extra professional flair that will present your book in the same manner as all the big publishers), and one-contact Customer Service! We challenge you to find a better deal!


Can Wasteland Press convert my book to Kindle eBook?

Yes, we do! We create a Kindle eBook to go along with your printed book with all our plans at no extra costs. Kindle eBooks are by far the most popular electronic books in the industry and we will make it available along with your printed book on amazon's marketplaces. We can also make your book available through other eBook marketplaces like Apple iBooks and Barnes and Noble's Nook for an additional fee.


Does Wasteland Press use high-pressure sales techniques?

Never. We are a customer-service-oriented company. When an author inquires about our services, we provide information and allow it to sell itself. We will never follow up with unwanted phone calls, e-mails, or any other means of contacting you about your intentions to publish with us. We want you to feel confident that you made the right choice in publishing with Wasteland Press by giving you honest answers to all your questions. We take pride in being an ethical business that fully discloses the entire publishing process.


Am I required to know a lot about computers?

Not at all. All you need to provide is a .txt-based file (MSWord, InDesign, etc.) of your work and let us do everything from there. Some of you may want to design your own cover. We have set up all technical requirements for designing your cover here. Otherwise, we will design the cover for you free of charge!


Can I use my credit card to pay Wasteland Press?

YES. Credit card payments are accepted. Wasteland Press accepts the following credit cards: Visa, Mastercard, and American Express. You can also pay by check or money order (must be payable in U.S. funds) by printing an order form and mailing it to the attached address.


What about my ownership rights in the work?

You retain full ownership and copyright, so you can sell the same work elsewhere. Also, you can cancel your contract at anytime. Thus, if a big house publisher wants to pick up your work, you you are free to ask us to delete your book from our system, without any penalty or fee!


Can I sell my free copies to others?

Absolutely! Remember you own the copyright of your book. Once you have your free copies, you can do whatever you like with them. Give them to your family and friends and even sell them to your readers for profit!


Who determines the price of my book?

Pricing is determined by the author with the assistance of Wasteland Press. In other words, we give you a price range for your book, and you choose the price within this range. Let’s say your book is 100 pages. We will give you the retail price range of $5.95 to $15.95. To decide your book’s retail price, you will need to consider the following two factors: 1) Royalties: The higher the price of your book, the more royalty you will receive when we sell your book out in the marketplace. 2) Competition: What is the price for similar books in your book’s genre? If you charge too much for your book, will the retail price encourage a potential buyer to look elsewhere?


How can I promote my book?

The best promoter of your book is, in fact, you. Only you, the author, truly knows the passion and insight of your book. You are the only one who knows how many countless hours you have spent on your book and how much it means to you personally, as well as what you believe others will feel about it too.


How much will it cost to reorder my book after I have sold my initial copies?

The price of reordering your books is obviously dependent upon how many you order, just like the difference between ordering the Platinum Plan versus the Gold Plan. However, your book order will always be at least 50% off our suggested retail price. There is no hidden extra cost when you reorder. We want to empower you to make money selling your books, because the more successful you are, the more successful we are! Please note: These discounts can be offered only for our non-color, conventional paperback copies sold within the United States. Color books and books sold outside of the United States cannot be offered this same discount because of the high cost of production of these books.


Does Wasteland Press use templates when designing my cover?

No, we do not. All our covers, ranging from the Basic to the Ultimate Plan, are custom designed and are uniquely individual. There are no extra costs associated with this feature with our publishing plans. We want your book to be professionally designed. After all, your book cover reflects as much upon our publishing company as it does on you. It is therefore very important for us to design your book cover professionally!


What is the turnaround time for the publication of my book?

Most conventional paperback books take 2-3 weeks to set up and publish. Our full color books and conventional hardback books take around 3-4 weeks to set up and publish. It usually takes around 2-4 weeks for your book to start showing up in the global marketplace, i.e. Amazon.com and other third party retailers. Therefore, if time is a factor in getting your book produced, we are second to none in our industry!


Can I use my purchased ISBN and my own publishing label?

Yes, you can. All you need to do is inform us of your own ISBN number and the label you would like to use for publishing your book upon submitting your materials for publication. However, you will need to register your title information with Bowker, since we are not the publishing label.


How can I calculate what my royalty will be for my book?

If someone purchases a book directly from Wasteland Press, you will receive your royalty percentage based on the full retail price of your book. If your book is sold through a third party retailer, a standard discount of 55% is given to the distributor/retailer for your book to be sold in their marketplace. Thus, you will receive your royalty percentage based on the amount of money we received for the sale of your book, which is 45% of the full retail price of your book. For example, if your book is being sold for $10.00 through our website and your royalty percentage is 30%, you will receive a royalty of $3.00 per book sold. If your book is being sold for $10.00 through amazon.com and your royalty percentage is 30%, you will receive a royalty of $1.35 per book sold. This can be calculated simply by taking the retail price of $10.00 and multiplying by 45% (since 55% is going to the wholesaler/retailer) and multiplying that sum by 30%. Thus it would be $10.00 x 0.45 x 0.30 = $1.35.

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