News & Updates

The TurnKey Publisher's Blog has been launched! This information resource will cover current subjects and topics relating to the publishing industry that traditional publishers and associations do not want to acknowledge or discuss.

I have completed the first draft of the upcoming book “TurnKey Publishing”. It hasn’t been the easiest endeavor but I am happy to say that 90% of the book is written. The last 10% will be filling in holes I left out and refining the content.

I am to the point where I will be soliciting feedback from my editor and other business associates on the book. I hope to have this book published in the 2nd quarter of 2008. I am not going to say which month right now. It is still too soon for that.

The next milestone I want to hit is having a strong 2nd draft. I want this version to be reasonably close to the final product. Whereas the first draft is largely laying out the outline structure and fleshing out each chapter, the 2nd draft is where the book should come together. That is because I will be getting feedback from advisors and my editor. I hope to complete the 2nd draft by the end of March 2008.

The Current State of the Publishing Industry

by Matthew S. Chan

Let me begin this introduction by saying that I love books. I am avid buyer and reader of many types of books. I like business books such as economics, marketing, branding, real estate investing, motivational, and self-help books. It is my favorite way of gathering and researching new information. And so, for many years, I have been both a customer and outside observer of the publishing industry.

My Introduction to the Publishing Industry

Looking back at my personal and professional history, it was inevitable that I would eventually become both a publisher and author. The seeds were planted early on. I received my first rejection letter in high school from MCA Publishing in January 1984 when I had proposed the idea to write and continue the adventures of Commander Cain and the Battlestar Pegasus from the original Battlestar Galactica TV series.

In 1998 and 1999, I was a minor contributor to "Get Certified and Get Ahead" by Anne Martinez. I have to admit I was pretty jazzed at seeing my article and name in print within the 2 books. I still have the books as professional souvenirs. In 1997, I made my first and only attempt as a contributing writer for chapters within a technical manual based on Microsoft's Internet Information Server product. I did a terrible job and I voluntarily resigned from the project weeks later. However, elsewhere, I did see my contributions and name credited within the 1998 version of the Proxy Server Manual of Microsoft Press' Internet Information Server Training Kit.

These early experiences taught me that the world of traditional publishing was very tough. Not only was it tough, it did not pay well and it was very difficult to get even the smallest amount of credit and recognition for my work. As much as I liked books and contributing to them, it was mostly a thankless job. The biggest reasons why my peers did it was for the professional credibility and bragging rights that came with it. It was cool to be published then. It is still cool to be published today.

The Rules of Publishing are Changing

However, the rules to get into the publishing industry are different today than it was in years past. Before, it was nearly impossible for anyone to become an author, much less a publisher. Being in publishing meant you either had to have a lot of capital to work with and you had to learn to play with the big boys. If you wanted to be an author, you had to be really good at writing and have some inside industry connections. Fortunately, this is no longer true. I am living proof of this. I have no affiliation or contacts with anyone in traditional publishing.

Technology Advances and the Internet are Changing the Publishing Industry

Through the power and pervasiveness of the Internet, Internet companies like Amazon, Google, and eBay have made it easier than ever for ordinary people to easily and affordabley promote and sell their products to the general public. We are no longer dependent on book distributors and bookstores to sell books.

Through the technology advances of printing, duplication, and office software, most individuals can now have their books produced and printed without the involvement of any traditional publisher.

Audio and video publishing is now possible for individuals because of the growing affordability of the CD and DVD manufacturing process.

Traditional Media is Being Wrecked

Online news sites and bloggers are wrecking havoc on the traditional newspaper industry. Downloadable music websites are wrecking havoc on the traditional music industry. YouTube is wrecking havoc on the video industry. The list goes on. Similarly, the phenomenon of independent self-publishers and micro-publishers are wrecking havoc on the traditional publishing industry.

Many Traditional Publishers are Blind Elephants

Many traditional publishers do not like this. They are largely blind elephants and do not how to respond. Self-appointed, independent publishers and authors are producing cutting-edge works bypassing the traditional publishing industry. Through accelerated self-publishing techniques, it is now possible to go from concept and idea to finished product to retail distribution within 45 days vs. 12-18 months with most tradtional publishers.

Traditional publishers have their heads in the sand. As I said, they are blind elephants lumbering along. They only see what is today, they cannot see what is happening now and coming ahead. Line line employees I have interacted over the years are blind and will not wake up until they realize that the traditional publishers they are working for are losing money and begin to lay them off. Looking for the next big-seller will continually to be more expensive and more difficult. The long-tail will eventually wittle them down. There will be fewer places these employees can work in unless they can adapt, become more entrepreneurial, and create value in the new publishing industry as Amazon has.

More Publishers & Authors are Needed in the New Publishing Industry

Through the Internet and long-tail demand, there is a need for more publishers and authors to deliver cutting-edge works, not the frequently outdated, behind-the-curve material that is often delivered by the traditional publishing industry. The traditional publishing industry is in trouble but they don't know it yet. But they will. And when they do, for many, it will be too late. There are many up and coming, innovative players in the new publishing industry that will put the nails in the coffin of many of the traditionalists.

Does that mean all the traditional publishers are obsolete? No. Does this mean that traditional publishers will entirely disappear? No, not entirely. Traditional publishers will still have a place albeit much smaller over time. But like how the Cable TV industry has splintered the original 3 TV networks into the so-called 500 channels and how satellite radio is splintering the mainstream radio audience, traditional publishers and distributors will become smaller and less signifcant over time. The time will soon come when they will be begging for the business of independent and micro-publishers such as you and I.

They will have to learn to cut the fat from their operation and adopt accelerated publishing methods and techniques as I have had to do as an indepedent, micro-publisher. I will continue to refine my techniques and operation quickly becasue small operations can often turn on a dime.

Very Few will Criticize Traditional Publishers for Fear of Being Blacklisted

Very few people will speak up about the truth of how traditional publishers, bookstores, and book distributors work. They can't. They are afraid of being frozen out of the system because they feel dependent. I obviously am not concerned about being frozen out because I have no plans to work with traditional publishers. They are too tough and slow to work with. If I had to beg and plead with them to get my works published, this books series as well as my other titles would have never seen the light of day.

Welcome to The TurnKey Publisher Website!

I invite you to learn more about TurnKey Publishing, the business of independent publishing, micro-publishing, and accelerated self-publishing. I promise you will not view publishing business the same way again.

Matthew S. Chan

The Concept of Accelerated Publishing
by Matthew S. Chan

As the first new titles are being designed, written, and developed for the upcoming TurnKey Publishing series, a concept I will be discussing and describing is Accelerated Publishing. Essentially, I will be describing how to develop a system to turn an idea and concept to a finished product within a matter of weeks.

In traditional publishing, whether it is print or audio books, the lead time and preparation time is tremendously long, often many months and sometimes over a year. However, I have discovered that this does not have to be the case and it is not the case for me.

I have created a system that continues to improve over time for bringing new published products into reality very quickly. That system will be discussed as part of Accelerated Publishing.

People interested in self-publishing will be excited to learn about Accelerated Publishing.  There will be more announcements in the weeks to come.

Why I Regard Myself a Publisher More Than an Author
by Matthew S. Chan

This article is one I have long thought I needed to write and clearly express my “official position” as to why I regard and identify myself as a Publisher more than I do as an Author.

First off, I have no negative feelings attached to the title of being an Author because it is something I have done many times. In fact, I am quite proud that I can include the title “Author” on my resume (or CV). I have obviously written, co-written, and edited many books and audio programs with several more in various stages of development.

However, I identify myself more as a Publisher because it is a larger scope of responsibility I take on than “simply” authoring books. In some ways, the Publisher title is less glamorous. I have to oversee the creation of a body of work whether or not I am the primary author or not. Up to this point, it so happens that I am the most prolific author in my publishing company simply because I have a lot to say and communicate, not because I am not willing to accept more titles from other authors.

I believe it is my responsibility to ensure that the body of work I bring into reality fit in consistently and congruently to the greater whole that represents Ascend Beyond Publishing. Every title must be congruent and synergistic to the greater whole. There is a “greater message and theme” that Ascend Beyond Publishing (ABP) represents. Ascend Beyond Publishing represents optimism, independence, entrepreneurism, strength, decisiveness, unedited truth, and personal responsibility.

Any author or work that does not fit in congruently with these attributes will not be able to be published under the ABP banner.

In the last 4.5 years Ascend Beyond Publishing has been in existence, 19 titles were created and developed. I expect the the number of titles will double in lesser time. As each title comes out, the body of work ABP stands for will continue to evolve and updated with the times.

My responsibility will continue to grow as Publisher. If I do my job well, I hope to make a larger positive impact in the world we live by serving my readership and students well.

Customized Education and Modular Learning
by Matthew S. Chan

In my prior article, I wrote about my larger role and responsibilities as a Publisher for Ascend Beyond Publishing. I continue on that article by sharing the educational model I am employing in my publishing business.

Many years ago, when I was a Technical Trainer and Technical Instructor of advanced networking, technologies, and network operating systems, I became indoctrinated to the idea of customized education and modular learning.

For those of you unfamiliar with the concept of modular learning, it is simply the concept of giving the student the ability to custom create and design their own learning curriculum no matter what the subject matter is.

The fact of the matter is, we live in a society where time is precious and adult education is something we pay for. It takes time and costs money to learn any new subject but each of us have a different view of what we should learn and how much time we should take. The determination of success from our learning comes from the results that come from the execution of our action plans. If we execute and manage our affairs well, we should yield successful results. If we don’t, we have poor results. In other words, we no longer get grades as we did in school. We simply measure results.

As a publisher, I believe in providing tight, singular topics my readership and students can choose from. Comprehensive learners prefer to buy “an entire set”, many others prefer to buy their educational materials “a la carte” or “piecemeal”.

In the TurnKey Investor Series, readers and students can immerse themselves in the TurnKey Investing Philosophy that we created and practice ourselves. Or they can simply pick the individual pieces they want to learn about. Either way, the customer comes away happy.

I have had customers that I have never heard from and swoop in buy entire learning sets in one purchase. I have had many more customers who bought one or two titles and come back to purchase a few more. Clearly, repeat customers are a sign they are happy with what they have read or heard.

There is this myth that most readers or students want a monolothic approach to their learning. I believe that represents a small minority of readers and students. This is why encyclopedias, tomes, and other thick reference books don’t sell as well as smaller, tightly-focused titles. This is why Audio Titles have gained so much ground in recent years co-existing with their print versions.

Outside of the walls of Academia, people want to choose to learn in their own way at their own pace. And so, unlike so many of my fellow authors and educators, I don’t try to create a high-priced “monster master course” that tries to cover everything and anything regarding a subject.

I say to my readers and students, “Choose and create your own education” from our suggested set of offerings.

Customized education and modular learning is the new paradigm. Publishers, authors, and educators had best understand this new learning paradigm.