What's the going rate for a pro to format an ePub?

[Wetdogeared]

I realize that this question may be personal or confidential, and you may not want to divulge your rates, but I am curious as to what the going rate would be for a contractor to produce an ePub eBook.

• Assume a publishing company wants you to format at least one ePub per day, for each working day, for a certain number of ePubs, say fifty
• The source is relatively clean HTML but would likely require further cleanup.
• Stylesheets may or may not be provided and, if present, would also require further cleanup.
• Some may include a limited number of images, perhaps at chapter headings.

I would be interested to know what the rate, or range of rates, a professional would charge for formatting such ePubs.

*note*

Or, is this question too simple since the books vary in length, some have more complex layouts than others, some may contain images and depending on whether they want the same layout (look & feel) in each ePub.

I could make an anonymous poll of rate ranges if that would be preferable.

If this is inappropriate in the Sigil forum, or should be moved to the ePub forum, please let me know.

Thank you.

[Nate the great]

For most ebooks (depending on file length and quality of source content): $100 to $200

I could throw in a Kindle edition too, for not much more.

[HarryT]

Originally Posted by Nate the great

For most ebooks (depending on file length and quality of source content): $100 to $200

I could throw in a Kindle edition too, for not much more.

That seems awfully cheap to me. One could probably do the formatting in an hour or so, yes; it's the "clean-up" part of it that concerns me. If that means "proof reading" then that's a very time-consuming (hence expensive) process.

[Nate the great]

Originally Posted by HarryT

That seems awfully cheap to me. One could probably do the formatting in an hour or so, yes; it's the "clean-up" part of it that concerns me. If that means "proof reading" then that's a very time-consuming (hence expensive) process.

Most don't want to pay for the 20+ hours of proofreading, Harry, so I don't do it. Heck, a lot of big name publishers don't want to pay for it anymore.

Pay me and I will do the proofreading.

[Wetdogeared]

Originally Posted by Nate the great

Most don't want to pay for the 20+ hours of proofreading, Harry, so I don't do it. Heck, a lot of big name publishers don't want to pay for it anymore.

Pay me and I will do the proofreading.

So this sounds like two-tier pricing then, one which includes proofreading and the other not.

If the publisher requires output of at least one ePub per day, and it could require 20+ hours to proofread, then there aren't enough hours in the day.

Do publishers usually pay per ePub or do some pay by the hour?

[EowynCarter]

Originally Posted by Nate the great

Most don't want to pay for the 20+ hours of proofreading, Harry, so I don't do it. Heck, a lot of big name publishers don't want to pay for it anymore.

Pay me and I will do the proofreading.

Now, that would explain the state of some e-books.

[DaleDe]

Originally Posted by EowynCarter

Now, that would explain the state of some e-books.

It the source file(s) is/are proof read already then the conversion proof read should not be required. A quick cursory look will spot formatting and other conversion errors.

[Wetdogeared]

In general, would the ePub just have to pass epubcheck, or would the contractor be responsible for testing their output on several devices?

[Nate the great]

Originally Posted by Wetdogeared

So this sounds like two-tier pricing then, one which includes proofreading and the other not.

If the publisher requires output of at least one ePub per day, and it could require 20+ hours to proofread, then there aren't enough hours in the day.

Do publishers usually pay per ePub or do some pay by the hour?

If you're hiring an outside contractor then the price is usually quoted before the job. With rare exceptions the quoted price is the fixed price.BTW, I do spot check the ebooks quite carefully.

How fast would you want the ebooks to be done? Rush jobs cost more.

[Nate the great]

Originally Posted by Wetdogeared

In general, would the ePub just have to pass epubcheck, or would the contractor be responsible for testing their output on several devices?

I would confirm that it passed EpubCheck before I handed it to you.

There's no practical way to check all devices. I mean, I'm the only one I know who could do it, and it would simply take too much work.

[Hitch]

Originally Posted by Wetdogeared

So this sounds like two-tier pricing then, one which includes proofreading and the other not.

If the publisher requires output of at least one ePub per day, and it could require 20+ hours to proofread, then there aren't enough hours in the day.

Do publishers usually pay per ePub or do some pay by the hour?

Only a total wanker would pay by the hour. By the book is the standard, and in fiction, certainly, $200/book is way at the upper end, exclusive of proofing. I don't know anyone in the biz professionally that really offers that as part of a package; it's just too bloody expensive. I have a big honking paragraph in the Production Checklist I give clients that states emphatically that copyediting isn't included in the quote. It doesn't dissuade almost all of them from doing it; but I try to keep it to a low roar, as copyediting post-epub state is a lot different than fixing stuff in Word or OO.

Within reason, the html clean-up is standard stuff. It's one of the reasons I quote by the actual book--I don't have "one size fits all" pricing. However, the original figure by Nate pretty much covers the gamut of fiction at the low end to non-fiction/DIY/self-help books at the higher end, and in my shop, anyway, that includes a Kindle version (MOBI) as well.

HTH,

Hitch

[EowynCarter]

Originally Posted by DaleDe

It the source file(s) is/are proof read already then the conversion proof read should not be required. A quick cursory look will spot formatting and other conversion errors.

No. But some e-book coming from ocr aren't proofread either.

[K-Thom]

Since I'm doing exactly that kind of work professionally for about half a year now (semi-professional for about the last seven years or so), it looks like i'm way too low priced ...

* 100 to 200 US$ (respectively in Euro) would be a dream. Most publishers cringe at half the price.
* Most files are PDF, mostly created out of InDesign, so they need about an extra hour or two to get them "in shape" (did I ever say, I *hate* PDF?)
* ePubcheck is done by me, before delivering the files
* Proofread is only done casually while formatting the files, i.e. I use the Word2007 spell checker which does find a lot of errors and browse the files while working at them. No client I ever had asked explicitely for it, either.
* About all publishers gave me a carte blanche for the stylesheet. I try to stick as close to the original as possible, but then I also know the quirks of different reading software (Stanza being a close "friend" of mine ...), so I usually use a clean, foolproof layout which should work on all major platforms.
* Finally I usually test the ePub in five or six different devices/softwares before delivery. Basic rule: It has to pass ADE and look good there, since most publishers will use the Adobe-DRM scheme (at least in Germany).

And usually it's all individual price arrangements. If I get a huge order for a series with a simple layout, I usually offer a lower price. Those are indeed a welcome assembly-line work which pay off more than a complex one-novel-order.

[Fabe]

Originally Posted by Wetdogeared

• Assume a publishing company wants you to format at least one ePub per day, for each working day, for a certain number of ePubs, say fifty
• The source is relatively clean HTML but would likely require further cleanup.
• Stylesheets may or may not be provided and, if present, would also require further cleanup.
• Some may include a limited number of images, perhaps at chapter headings.

I would be interested to know what the rate, or range of rates, a professional would charge for formatting such ePubs.

For a block of 50 books I would charge $2,000. That's wholesale of course.

I prefer text files rather than HTML, no style sheets, chapter images are okay if delivered in ready to use format. Graphic work is extra. The publishing company also provides a cover of appropriate size and the ISBN-13 number.

The publisher will receive a clean, validated ePub file. - Fabe

[Wetdogeared]

Originally Posted by Fabe

For a block of 50 books I would charge $2,000. That's wholesale of course.

I prefer text files rather than HTML, no style sheets, chapter images are okay if delivered in ready to use format. Graphic work is extra. The publishing company also provides a cover of appropriate size and the ISBN-13 number.

The publisher will receive a clean, validated ePub file. - Fabe

That works out to only $40 per ebook, plus extras. This would imply that you could complete the contract in a more timely manner than the contract specified and would give you an advantage if this contract was put to bid.

This brings up another question. Are contract eBook formatters doing this as a full-time job or are they supplementing their regular income, say as a web designer or some other job?