| At Cosimo we strive to
make publishing as straightforward and transparent as
possible. Below are answers to the questions we are most often
asked. We hope this information will help you with your
publishing projects. |
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What does your name mean? |
| Cosimo was inspired by
Cosimo de Medici of the de Medici dynasty, who
ignited the most important cultural and artistic revolution in
Western history, the Renaissance. A banker, political leader,
scholar, and patron of the arts, Cosimo de Medici had a
passion for the pursuit of knowledge. He enriched Florentine
life and culture by building palaces and churches and by
sponsoring libraries, where professional scribes copied
classics from antiquity into the finest manuscripts. This
quest for enrichment is the foundation for Cosimo: we are a
specialty publisher of books that inspire, inform, and engage
readers worldwide.
Cosimo’s mission
Cosimo is dedicated to lower publishing barriers, unlocking
valuable content and giving voice to authors, socially
responsible business and civil society. Our mission is to
offer unique books to niche audiences around the world.
Cosimo supports non-profit
organizations
As an extension of our mission, we also support non-profit
organizations that help improve quality of life. We do so by
publishing books which proceeds will benefit their cause,
while highlighting their organization’s work. For example, we
contribute a portion of the sales for the book The Power of
Purpose to The Hunger Project, a global organization committed
to the sustainable end of world hunger.
Click here for a list of organizations that we
support.
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Is Cosimo a publisher? |
| Yes, we are a specialty
publisher, using the latest digital print technology jointly
with the Internet to publish books for niche audiences around
the world and to keep books in print indefinitely. Our unique
approach combines the quality focus of a traditional publisher
with the flexibility and speed of a service provider. |
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What is Cosimo Classics? |
| Cosimo Classics, an imprint of
Cosimo, offers a collection of distinctive titles by the great
authors and thinkers throughout the ages. At Cosimo Classics,
unique classics find a new life as affordable books, covering
a variety of subjects, including Biography, Business,
Economics, History, Metaphysics, Philosophy, Reference and
much more! |
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What is Cosimo Books? |
| Cosimo Books, an imprint of
Cosimo, offers on-demand publishing for innovative authors,
businesses and non-profit organizations: more specifically to
“Cultural Creative” authors who are experts, public speakers,
consultants and academics who want to bring their books back
into print and/or who want to publish new books quickly and
effectively; to businesses that are on the cutting edge of the
economy, and that seek to create quality books to spread their
unique message; to organizations including non-for-profit and
civil society organizations, that want to present their
mission and message in books, reports and other publications,
to their members and larger audiences. Cosimo guides your
publishing project to a successful completion. |
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What is Civil Society? |
| Civil society consists of
those organizations, generally not-for-profits, that, in the
words of leading author Jeremy Rifkin, emphasize
community relationships, cultural diversity, quality of life,
sustainable development and universal human rights.
Not-for-profits fitting this profile are making an
increasingly bigger impact on societies around the world. |
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Who are the Cultural
Creatives? |
| American sociologist Paul Ray
coined the phrase, Cultural Creatives in his book
The Cultural Creatives, how 50 million people are changing the
world indicating American citizens part of a
global audience of over 250 million people in the U.S.,
Canada, Europe and Asia who are interested in health &
science, media & culture, personal development, politics &
society, the environment & socially responsible business. They
represent the source of most new ideas in society and they
operate on the leading edge of cultural change. |
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What type of books
do you publish? |
| Cosimo publishes books,
reports, and other publications for niche audiences: the
topics cover the areas of Health & Science, Media & Culture,
Personal Development, Politics & Society, the Environment, and
Business & Economics. We are dedicated to publishing the
highest quality content and the highest quality finished
product. We reserve the right to reject proposals from authors
or organizations, who don’t meet our high standards. |
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Who publishes
with Cosimo-on-Demand? |
| See answer
here. |
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What
kind of publishing services do you provide? |
| We offer professional
editorial support and state-of-the art book design and
production; we store your digital book files in databases for
worldwide and online distribution; and we offer marketing
expertise in reaching niche audiences. |
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How do the add-on
services work? |
| We have designed publishing
programs to make your choices easier, and to include
everything a book or publication would need. In addition we
offer add-on services including promotional services you may
want to add to your program now or at a later stage.
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What is
publishing-on-demand? |
| Publishing-on-demand (POD) is
an innovative technology that enables the printing of one book
at a time, for specialized audiences, keeping books in print
indefinitely. A book that is printed-on-demand is almost
indistinguishable from a traditionally printed book. With POD,
digital book files are stored in databases and individual
copies of books are printed as they are ordered, reducing two
of the greatest costs in publishing: large print runs and the
need for a warehouse to store books. With POD technology,
titles can reach their audiences faster than ever before; a
process that could take a year or longer with traditional
publishers is now completed faster and more efficiently.
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The
Benefits of on-demand publishing with Cosimo |
- POD enables your books to be available
worldwide 24/7.
- Your books and publications will not go
out-of-print.
- Your books are printed to order, whether
it’s 1, 100 or 1,000.
- No investment in inventory is required:
this will save you thousands of dollars in printing costs,
warehousing, obsolescence and interest costs.
- Getting published takes only a few
months, not a year or more.
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Why should I choose Cosimo to get published? |
- Cosimo combines the quality focus of a
traditional publisher with the flexibility and speed of a
service provider.
- We offer professional editorial support
and state-of-the-art book design.
- We make your book(s) available with
leading online bookstores, as well as with wholesalers in
the U.S. and the U.K.
- Our marketing expertise reaches
specialized audiences worldwide.
- Our fulfillment services are specially
tailored to your needs.
- We offer personal attention guiding you
through the publishing process and beyond.
- We offer attractive discounts and
royalties.
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What does Cosimo provide that a traditional publisher does
not? |
- A flexible alternative to getting
published.
- Speedy publication.
- Immediate worldwide availability.
- Indefinite availability of books, reports
and other publications.
- Experience with reaching niche audiences
around the world.
- A choice of specialized publishing &
marketing services.
- Tailored contracts, and attractive
discounts for authors and organizations for purchasing books
to resell at their own terms.
- Empowerment to publish high-quality
publications without a traditional publisher’s cumbersome
publication process.
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What does Cosimo provide that a printer does not? |
- Design and layout of book, from cover to
cover
- Editorial support
- Marketing and promotional support
- Books availability through various
wholesale channels
- Order processing fulfillment
- Payment of royalties on a timely schedule
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How long does
it take to get published? |
| It takes approximately 90 days
to make your book available for ordering from the time we
receive your complete application. |
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What do your books look
like? |
| Our books are comparable to
the traditionally printed books you find in bookstores and
libraries. We offer paperback and hardcover books, in the
following sizes (in inches): 5x8, 5.5x8.5 and 6x9. We use
crème-white, acid free paper and our book covers are printed
on enamel paper and laminated. Books must be a minimum of 48
pages and no longer than 740 pages. |
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Do you
promote and publicize your books? |
| Yes, we promote our books
whenever appropriate and possible; this includes the setup of
our books within wholesaler databases, online marketing
campaigns, press releases, links with other websites –
anything according to your selected publishing programs. We
also offer you specific marketing tips to enhance your own
promotional efforts. In the end how a book sells is the result
of many factors: interest in the subject, quality of the
writing, and marketing and promotion by publisher, author
and/or sponsoring organization. Another advantage of on-demand
publishing is that the lifecycle of an on-demand published
book is not tied to a short launch period; this offers ongoing
opportunities to continue or renew your “promotional
campaign.” |
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Are your
books available in bookstores? |
| Any bookstore in the U.S. and
the U.K. can find and order our books. An individual bookstore
might store our books, but that is a decision to be made by
each individual store based on demand. In addition our books
are available at leading online bookstores, including
Amazon.com, Amazon U.K., Borders.com, BarnesandNoble.com,
Buy.com, and others, reaching hundreds of millions of readers
worldwide. |
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Can
bookstores and/or libraries order your books? |
| Bookstores and/or libraries
can order our books from our wholesalers; in the U.S. they can
also order directly from Cosimo. For further information,
see book ordering information |
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Who is
eligible to receive volume discounts? |
| Volume discounts are available
to our customers: authors, organizations and businesses, as
well as bookstores, libraries & government institutions. |
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How do I order a book? |
| Cosimo authors &
organizations, as well as bookstores and libraries can
purchase books based on their respective terms.
Initial orders placed with Cosimo must be
placed via fax using our order form. Fax to: (212) 989-3662,
or by mail: Attn: Sales Manager, c/o Cosimo Inc, 191 Seventh
Avenue, suite 2F, New York, NY 10011.
Subsequent orders can be placed by email:
orders@cosimobooks.com, by phone (212) 989-3616, by fax or by
mail. |
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What
are your shipping & handling charges? |
| In the U.S. there is a
handling fee of $3.95 per order and $0.50 per copy (up to 50
copies). These orders must be for a single title and be
shipped to single address (no P.O. boxes, please). In the U.K.
we charge a handling fee of $4.95 per order and $0.50 per copy
(up to 50 copies). In Continental Europe, we charge handling
fee of $5.95 per order and $1.50 per copy (up to 50 copies).
For orders over 50 copies, international orders, overnight
delivery, and rush orders, please contact us at
orders@cosimobooks.com
or by phone (212) 989-3616. |
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What methods of payment do you accept for purchased copies or
services? |
| We accept Visa and MasterCard.
Only U.S. residents can issue a check or money order. Cosimo
does not invoice authors or organizations for books purchased.
Payment must be made when your order is placed. Orders paid by
personal check may take a few more days longer to process. |
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How
long does it take for orders to be fulfilled |
- Wholesale Order fulfillment (from receipt
of the order from the wholesaler/retailer to shipment of
book to the wholesaler/retailer) – 2 business days for
paperback/ 7 business days for hard cover.
- Direct Order fulfillment (these are
orders from authors and/or institutional customers) – 10-15
business days; This timeframe can be expedited at additional
charge; orders over 500 copies will be custom prepared.
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When will I receive my
orders? |
| Most customers who buy
paperbacks receive them within one to two weeks, for hard
covers this will be within two to three weeks. |
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Who owns the right
to your books? |
| Cosimo offers tailored
publishing agreements, which will indicate which rights are
being acquired and which rights continue to remain with you. |
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Who owns the
copyrights to your books? |
| The author does. When writing
the book, the author automatically asserted copyright
ownership. Registering with the U.S. Congress Copyright Office
which records this ownership more formally gives better
recourse in case of infringement. You can contact the
Copyright
Office for further instructions. Cosimo can provide
this service for you as an
Add-on service. |
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How are your
royalties calculated? |
| Royalties are defined in many
different ways within the publishing industry. Often royalties
are calculated based on the net proceeds, which the publisher
receives from the sale of each book. This is often a complex
calculation. Cosimo, however, offers a clean and simple
calculation, by paying royalties off the retail price. For
example, if the retail price is $15 and your royalty rate 10%,
you will receive $1.50 for every book sold through our
wholesale channels. |
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How are the retail prices of your books determined? |
| Pricing of a book depends on a
number of factors, incl. subject matter, targeted audience,
format (i.e. hardcover or paperback) and page count. The
retail price is imbedded in the bar code of our books, so
retailers will know how to price each book. The price is
generally not printed on our books. This way you may offer
your book at a price of your choosing. |
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What’s my cost
for copies I purchase? |
| We offer generous discounts
off the retail price, according to a sliding scale up to 500
copies. We also can price orders of over 500 copies at special
bulk sale pricing. Please contact us for specific quotes
orders@cosimobooks.com
or by phone 1-212-989-3616. |
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Do your books have
ISBN numbers? |
| Generally, each of our books
will be assigned the International Standard Book Number, as
required by book sales channels to track and order books. Each
book will also get an EAN bar code on the book back cover,
enabling bookstores to order copies of our books. |
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Do your books have Library of Congress Card Numbers? |
| Cosimo generally supplies a
copy of each of our books to the Library of Congress and
obtains a Library of Congress catalog number. |
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What are e-books? |
| eBooks are books that are
downloadable from your computer or handheld device. |
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How do I submit a
manuscript? |
| Please visit
How to Published with Cosimo. You will need to
complete our
Online Application form. This enables us to
gain a better understanding of your project. In the meantime
you can visit our
Submission Guidelines to see how your
manuscript will eventually have to be formatted in order to be
prepared to create a book. |
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Have a question not
covered here? |
| Please contact us with your
questions or suggestions at
info@cosimobooks.com
or by phone (212) 989-3616. |
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