What Is Hybrid Publishing? The 11 IBPA Criteria Explained

Quick answer: Hybrid publishing is a model in which the author pays toward the cost of producing the book, and the publisher still behaves like a publisher: it chooses what it accepts, publishes under its own imprint and ISBNs, handles editing, design, production and distribution, and pays the author a higher share of sales than a traditional contract does. The Independent Book Publishers Association (IBPA) sets out 11 criteria a hybrid publisher is expected to meet. A company that charges fees but meets few of them is a service provider or a vanity press, whatever it calls itself.

Disclosure: Harmony Publishing is a self-publishing company, so we sell services in the same market this guide describes. The criteria below are IBPA's, quoted from its published list, and we have tried to describe every model fairly.

What "hybrid" means

The word sits between two older models. In traditional publishing the publisher pays every cost, owns the risk and keeps most of the sales income, and the author is paid a royalty. In self-publishing the author is the publisher: you pay for editing, cover design and printing, you hold the ISBN, and you keep the sales income. A hybrid publisher shares the cost with the author and shares the work, and in return it is supposed to pay the author more than a traditional royalty.

IBPA defines a hybrid publisher as one that uses an author-subsidized business model for the majority of its business. It says hybrid publishers behave like traditional ones in every other respect, and that regardless of who pays for editorial, design and production, it is always the publisher that is responsible for producing, distributing and selling a professional-quality book.

The 11 IBPA criteria

IBPA first published a list of nine criteria in 2018 and expanded it to 11 in 2022. A hybrid publisher is expected to:

1. Define a mission and vision for its publishing program.
2. Vet submissions, rather than accept every manuscript that arrives with a payment.
3. Commit to truth and transparency in its business practices.
4. Provide a negotiable, easy-to-understand contract for each book published.
5. Publish under its own imprint or imprints and its own ISBNs.
6. Publish to industry standards.
7. Ensure editorial, design and production quality.
8. Pursue and manage a range of publishing rights.
9. Provide distribution services.
10. Demonstrate respectable sales.
11. Pay authors a higher-than-standard royalty.

Two of these are easy to test before you sign. Ask whether the company turns manuscripts down, and ask whose name is on the ISBN. If the answers are "never" and "the author's", you are looking at a service provider, which is a legitimate business but a different one.

Hybrid, self-publishing services and vanity presses compared

Question	Traditional	Hybrid (IBPA criteria)	Self-publishing services	Vanity press
Who pays for production?	The publisher	The author, in whole or in part	The author	The author
Does it accept every manuscript?	No	No, it vets submissions	Usually yes	Yes
Whose imprint and ISBN?	The publisher's	The publisher's	The author's, normally	Varies, often unclear
Who keeps the sales income?	The publisher pays a royalty	The publisher pays a higher-than-standard royalty	The author, less the retailer's cut	Varies, often weak
Is distribution the company's job?	Yes	Yes	Set up for you; sales are the author's job	Often promised, rarely delivered

For the last column, read our guide to how to spot a vanity publisher and the comparison of vanity press and self-publishing.

Why the label is contested

Because "hybrid" has no legal definition, any company can use it. In April 2022 the UK's Society of Authors and the Writers' Guild of Great Britain published a report, "Is it a Steal?", on hybrid and paid-for publishing services, which looked at companies charging authors while presenting themselves as publishers. IBPA's 2022 revision of its criteria was published alongside a position statement responding to that report. The practical lesson is the same on both sides of the Atlantic: judge the company by what its contract obliges it to do, not by the word on its website.

Questions to ask a hybrid publisher before you pay

• What proportion of submissions do you decline? Can you show me a book you turned down, and why?
• Whose imprint and whose ISBN will the book carry, and who owns the files and the cover when we part?
• What exactly does the fee cover, and what is excluded? Are editing, proofreading and cover design inside it?
• What rights are you asking for, for how long, and how do I end the contract?
• How will the book be distributed, to which wholesalers and retailers, and who handles returns?
• What royalty do you pay, on which figure (list price or net receipts), and how often do I receive a statement?
• What did your last ten authors sell? Will you put me in touch with two of them?

Our own publisher reviews use the same questions, and each review page shows what authors say about the company.

Is hybrid publishing right for you?

Hybrid can suit an author who wants a publisher's imprint and a managed process, and who is prepared to pay for it. It is the wrong fit if you want full control of your rights and files, or if the fee is more than you can afford to lose, because sales are never guaranteed under any model. If you would rather stay the publisher of your own book and buy only the services you need, that is self-publishing, and you can see how it works step by step, compare the self-publishing packages, or read how it measures up against the other route in self-publishing vs traditional publishing. Whatever you choose, an ISBN registered in your own name is what keeps the book yours.

Frequently asked questions

What is hybrid publishing?

A model where the author contributes to the cost of publishing, and the publisher acts as a real publisher: it selects manuscripts, publishes under its own imprint and ISBNs, and pays a higher-than-standard royalty. IBPA lists 11 criteria for it.

Is hybrid publishing the same as vanity publishing?

No, if the company meets the criteria. A vanity press accepts almost any manuscript for a fee and leaves the author with little distribution or sales support. The difference lies in selection, standards, contract terms and results.

How much does hybrid publishing cost?

It varies widely between companies and depends on the services included. Ask for a written, itemised quote and check what is excluded before you compare two offers.

Do hybrid publishers pay higher royalties?

IBPA's criteria say they should pay a higher-than-standard royalty, because the author has paid toward production. Check the contract to see which figure the royalty is calculated on.

Who owns the rights in a hybrid contract?

It depends on the contract, which should be negotiable and easy to understand. Read the rights clause, the term and the exit terms before you sign, and ask a publishing lawyer or an author body to look at it if you are unsure.

Is Harmony Publishing a hybrid publisher?

No. Harmony Publishing provides self-publishing services, where you choose the services you need rather than hand the book to a publisher's imprint.