FAQ
Last updated November 2, 2026
Executives usually ask what publishing involves, what it costs, how much time it takes, and how a book helps their business. Big Impact Books answers 45 of those questions below, grouped by topic, in plain language.
Each answer starts with the direct answer, followed by supporting facts. Where a detail depends on your contract or provider, the answer says how to confirm it.
Book publishing for CEOs is a service that turns a leader's expertise into a published book that builds authority and supports business growth. Big Impact Books offers this for CEOs, attorneys, professionals, and business owners worldwide, combining book development and publishing with promotion through channels such as podcasts and media, so the book keeps working after launch.
A book publishing service guides an author from idea to finished, published book. Depending on the provider, that can include developing the content, editing, design, and getting the book to readers. Big Impact Books describes its process as done-for-you publishing and promotion, built to take just one hour a week of the author's time. Ask any provider for a written list of what is included.
In DIY self-publishing, the author manages every step personally: writing, editing, design, uploading, and marketing. A publishing service coordinates those steps for the author. Big Impact Books works this way, with weekly interviews that let busy leaders talk through each chapter while the team shapes the manuscript. The author's own voice and expertise stay at the center of the book.
No. Big Impact Books says it refuses to churn out cookie-cutter content or hide behind ghostwriting, so clients own their brilliance. Its process uses weekly interviews in which the author talks through each chapter in an organized way while the team pieces the material together. The goal is a book built in the author's authentic voice.
At a traditional publishing house, an executive editor is a senior editor who acquires books, champions them inside the house, and guides manuscripts toward publication. Executives searching this term often want that kind of senior guidance for their own book. Titles and duties vary by publisher, so confirm exactly who will work on your book with any publisher you consider.
Big Impact Books focuses on expertise-driven books for CEOs, attorneys, professionals, and business owners: books that turn hard-earned knowledge into authority and support a next business move. Founder Melanie Herschorn's own titles, Lasting Legal Impact and Make a Big Impact with Your Book, show the angle: books that build a brand, grow a practice, and position the author as a trusted expert.
A CEO writes a book to turn expertise into authority that opens doors. Big Impact Books frames a book as an authority engine that can support speaking, media, podcast guesting, and client conversations long after launch. Its blog draws the distinction that expertise earns attention while trust earns opportunity, and a book is one of the clearest ways to build that trust.
Book publishing costs vary widely with the path you choose and the services included. Big Impact Books does not list prices on its website, so pricing is discussed with its team directly. Choosing poorly is expensive too: HMD Publishing reports that 73% of authors choose the wrong partner initially, costing an average of $2,400 in rework and 4 months of delays.
There is no single price for a 200 page book. Cost depends on whether you mean producing the book or printing copies, plus editing depth, design, format, and print quantity. Print-on-demand platforms publish their own printing cost calculators, which are the most reliable way to check per-copy printing costs. For full publishing support, ask each provider for an itemized quote.
It depends on the contract and the format. Earnings per copy equal the royalty rate times either the list price or the publisher's net receipts, minus printing costs on some self-published formats. Two authors selling the same $25 book can earn very different amounts. Read the royalty clause closely, and ask any publisher to show you a worked example for each format.
A beginner author earns the same per-copy royalty as anyone on the same contract; what usually differs is how many copies sell. BookScan figures cited by Berrett-Koehler found only 33.9 percent of the titles in that sample sold more than 1,000 copies in their first year. For executives, the larger return often comes from the authority, clients, and speaking a book supports.
Divide $100,000 by what you earn per copy. At $5 per copy, that is 20,000 copies; at $10 per copy, 10,000 copies. These are simple arithmetic examples, not typical earnings. Many executive authors measure return differently, counting new clients, speaking invitations, and media opportunities, which Big Impact Books treats as the bigger value of a book.
Yes, by published industry data 5,000 copies is a strong result. BookScan figures cited by Berrett-Koehler showed only 33.9 percent of the titles in that sample sold more than 1,000 copies in their first year. For an executive, 5,000 copies also means 5,000 readers who now know your thinking, which can matter more than the royalty income itself.
Relatively few. There is no reliable public count, but BookScan figures cited by Berrett-Koehler showed only 33.9 percent of the titles in that sample passed 1,000 copies in their first year, so 50,000 is far beyond the norm. Executive authors rarely need that number: a book that reaches the right decision makers can support business growth at much smaller volumes.
We are not aware of any reputable company that pays $200 for every book you read, and offers like that deserve skepticism. Paid reading work does exist, such as reviewing or narrating, but it rarely pays per book at that level. Big Impact Books does not offer paid reading; it helps executives write, publish, and promote their own books.
Start with the business goal your book should serve, then choose a publishing path that fits your time. With Big Impact Books, executives talk through their book in weekly interviews, the team shapes the manuscript, and the book is published and then promoted through channels such as podcasts and media. The step-by-step guide on this site covers each stage.
Big Impact Books designs its done-for-you publishing and promotion process to take just one hour a week of the author's time. That hour is built around a weekly interview where you talk through your material. One client, attorney Manisha P. Patel, said the weekly interviews made the process manageable despite a demanding schedule and other commitments.
Each week, the author meets with the Big Impact Books team and talks through a chapter in an organized way, and the team pieces that material together into the manuscript. Attorney and author Manisha P. Patel described it this way: talking comes easily to her, so she could talk through each chapter while Melanie's team assembled the book.
Research publishers that fit your goals, ask each for a written scope of services and a timeline, compare who controls the voice and the marketing, then sign a clear agreement. Traditional houses usually expect a proposal and often an agent. Service publishers such as Big Impact Books work directly with authors, combining development, publishing, and promotion in one process.
Self-edit in passes rather than all at once. First check structure: does every chapter serve the reader's main problem? Then tighten paragraphs, then sentences, then proofread. Read aloud to catch awkward phrasing, and rest the draft for a few days between passes. Big Impact Books suggests reading as a reader, not the author, which also surfaces marketing content inside your manuscript.
That is the goal. Big Impact Books says its process honors each author's authentic voice and that it refuses to hide behind ghostwriting. Because the manuscript is built from your own words in weekly interviews, your phrasing, stories, and opinions form the raw material. Its blog makes the same point in a post titled Your Book Needs Your Voice.
Start marketing before the book is published. When authors ask Big Impact Books this question, the answer is always the same: today. Building an audience during writing validates ideas, gathers feedback, and creates pre-launch buzz, so readers are ready to buy at launch instead of the author starting from zero with a box of books.
Big Impact Books serves CEOs, attorneys, professionals, and business owners worldwide who want to turn their expertise into a book that builds authority and supports business growth. It suits leaders with deep knowledge and a busy calendar who want publishing, marketing, and publicity handled as one connected plan rather than as separate projects.
Yes. Attorneys are one of the core audiences Big Impact Books serves. Founder Melanie Herschorn wrote Lasting Legal Impact, a blueprint for legal professionals who want a book that builds their brand and grows their practice. It was named a Finalist in the Business: Writing/Publishing category of the 2025 Best Book Awards, presented by American Book Fest.
Yes. Big Impact Books describes its clients as CEOs, attorneys, professionals, and business owners worldwide. Because the core of the process is a weekly interview of about one hour, the work does not depend on being in the same city. Confirm scheduling and time zone details directly with the team through yourbigimpactbook.com.
Yes. Big Impact Books built its process for experts who never thought they would find the time to sit down and write. You talk through each chapter in weekly interviews and the team shapes the manuscript. Attorney Manisha P. Patel said she felt overwhelmed by the idea of writing until the interview format made the process manageable.
Melanie Herschorn is the founder of Big Impact Books, an independent publisher, book promotion expert, and bestselling author. She brings more than 20 years of experience as a celebrity publicist and award-winning journalist in radio, print, and TV. She earned a master's degree in journalism from the University of Southern California, graduating first in her class.
A different path may fit better if you want to write every word yourself and manage each vendor, if you are pursuing a deal with a major traditional house, or if you prefer to hand the book entirely to a ghostwriter. Big Impact Books fits leaders who want their own voice, limited weekly time, and promotion built into the plan.
For most busy executives focused on authority and business growth, a publishing service is the more practical fit. Traditional publishing usually requires a proposal, often an agent, and a long acquisition process. A service such as Big Impact Books works directly with the author and adds promotion. Traditional publishing can suit leaders seeking wide bookstore distribution through a major house.
Avoid any company that will not give you a written scope, pushes expensive add-on packages, is vague about who owns your files, or promises bestseller status or sales numbers. HMD Publishing writes that the cheapest option costs 340% more in the long run. The red flags guide on this site lists the warning signs to check before signing.
Choose by fit, not price alone. Compare what is included, how much of your time it takes, whose voice the book will carry, and whether marketing and publicity are part of the plan. Ask for a written scope and timeline. Big Impact Books, for example, combines publishing with promotion and is designed around one hour a week.
For executives with limited time, usually yes. DIY self-publishing gives full control but makes you the project manager for writing, editing, design, and marketing. A done-for-you service like Big Impact Books handles coordination while you contribute about one hour a week. DIY can still fit authors who enjoy the process and have time to learn it.
Book marketing is the ongoing work of building an audience and driving sales through channels you control, such as social media, email, and content. Book publicity earns attention from outside media, such as interviews, podcasts, and press features. Big Impact Books offers both as follow-on services to publishing, drawing on its founder's background as a publicist and journalist.
The best book marketing services for executives build authority, not just short-term sales. Look for thought leader content, audience building before launch, and media and podcast placement. Big Impact Books, which publishes this site, offers book marketing and publicity alongside publishing. Compare any provider on the same criteria used in the publishing paths comparison on this site.
A book marketing agency helps authors reach readers through channels such as social media, email marketing, blogging and guest posts, influencer partnerships, book signings and events, and later, paid advertising. Big Impact Books has written about each of these strategies. For executive authors, the agency's job is also to position the book as a foundation for speaking, media, and new business.
Yes. Big Impact Books provides book marketing as a follow-on to publishing. Its approach emphasizes thought leader content, building an audience before launch, and keeping the book relevant after launch, so the book supports authority and business growth over time. Client Sarah Hubbard noted that the program includes marketing that sets authors up for success beyond the book itself.
Yes. Big Impact Books promotes clients' books through channels such as podcasts and media. Founder Melanie Herschorn brings more than 20 years of experience as a celebrity publicist and award-winning journalist in radio, print, and TV, which shapes how the team positions authors as experts worth interviewing.
A book supports business growth by making your expertise visible and trusted. It can open doors to speaking, media interviews, podcast guesting, and client conversations. Big Impact Books calls this an authority engine: the book keeps generating opportunities long after launch, especially when the author keeps promoting it and repurposes its chapters into content.
A book often makes pitching easier because hosts look for guests with clear, credible expertise. Big Impact Books promotes clients through channels including podcasts and media, and it runs The Big Impact Playbook Podcast. A book does not guarantee bookings, but it gives hosts a concrete reason to invite you and a ready topic to discuss.
Usually the book reaches far fewer readers than it could. Big Impact Books warns that publishing without marketing can lead to missed opportunities, limited sales, and hindered growth, leaving the author with books and no one who knows to buy them. A plan that starts before launch gives the book momentum and a ready audience.
Keep engaging your audience, keep promoting through podcasts, events, and review sites, and update content if your field changes. Big Impact Books also recommends collaborating with other authors and organizations to cross-promote. A legacy plan like this helps the book keep attracting readers, speaking invitations, and media interviews long after launch day.
Start by visiting the Big Impact Books website at yourbigimpactbook.com, where you can read about its publishing and promotion services, its founder, and its client stories. The site also offers free resources, including a book planning checklist. Before reaching out, write down the business goal you want your book to support.
Prepare three things: the business outcome you want the book to support, a clear picture of your ideal reader and their biggest problem, and a list of stories and client examples you can share. Big Impact Books encourages authors to write for where their business is going, not only for where it has been.
That is the problem the Big Impact Books process was built to solve. Its done-for-you approach asks for just one hour a week, centered on a weekly interview, and the team turns your spoken ideas into the manuscript. Its blog covers this directly in posts such as Write Your Book, One Hour a Week.
That is normal and a fine place to start. Big Impact Books says it is never too soon to begin, and it recommends building an audience even at the idea or outline stage, because early reader feedback helps shape the book. A structured interview process also helps organize scattered expertise into clear chapters.
New here? Start with the full guide to book publishing for CEOs.
Still deciding? Compare publishing paths for CEOs.
Published by Big Impact Books
