Terms and Conditions

Please read the following agreement between you (“Author”) and Light Switch Press, (“LSP” or “the Company”), for your book (“Work”).

LIGHT SWITCH PRESS SERVICES
Services to be performed by Light Switch Press will be governed by the Terms and Conditions. LIGHT SWITCH PRESS OWNS THE RIGHT TO THE WORK CREATED BY LIGHT SWITCH PRESS, (cover design, interior formatting and associated files). Using LSP files without written permission or purchasing your files, including cover design, to publish your book yourself or with another publisher is strictly prohibited and punishable by law.  In addition, using LSP files without written permission or purchasing your files may result in an author’s permanent ban from Amazon, Barnes & Noble and EBay.

FILE UPLOADING AND BOOK INFORMATION
Once you upload components of your book, and your book is accepted for publishing, your book goes into production after 24 hours, meaning we start the creation process after 24 hours. ONLY upload or provide FINAL content for your book, including: description, title, manuscript; you may also include: author bio, author photo, cover photo, cover idea and subtitle. If you feel you’ve uploaded or provided something incorrect, you have 24 hours to notify LSP. Any changes or edits requested by the author after the 24 hour grace period are subject to editorial fees.

POD PRINTING
The author unit cost for soft cover books with black and white interiors are printed on demand (POD) with page count between 18-1,200. Books are created at 6x9in and referred to as “Small Paperback”. Small Paperback books with 106 pages or less have a minimum cost per unit of $3.99. Small Paperback books with 108 or more pages are $2.40 for the cover and $0.015 per page. There is a minimum order of 25 books per order. Shipping and handling costs will be billed at the time books are ordered. Prices subject to change. Example: Your 6x9in, 112 page book will cost $4.08 to print.

ROYALTIES
Authors receive a 50% royalty through the LSP distribution network on all e-books sold and a 50% royalty for all paperback books sold. Royalties are paid monthly with a balance of $50 or more, by request, by paper check to the address on file, or via PayPal. To request your royalty payment, email info@lightswitchpress.com with your preferred payment method, along with your address or PayPal information. If your monthly royalties are under $50 for the month, those sales carry over to the next month’s royalty period. Once your sales total reaches $50 or more per title, you may request a royalty payment. After royalty reach $50 and are mailed out, your sales total for the next pay period reset back to zero. Royalty amounts are updated on the 15th of the month, or the next business day, and reflect the prior month's sales for both print and e-book sales. In the event that an author’s book is no longer in publication and royalty amounts for that book do not reach $50, no amount will be paid. Royalty amounts are based on the profit from a book or e-book being sold, not the retail price of the book.

Authors may purchase books to sell on their own, keeping 100% of the profit. For example: your 106 page book may be purchased for $3.99 each; if you sell your book for $12.99, your profit per book would be $9.00 per book.  

Authors may apply any unpaid royalty amount towards printing books, marketing, editing, and publishing services (excluding digital ad CPC advertising), with a 15% credit in buying power. For example: if an author has $100 in unpaid royalties, they would receive $115 in buying power towards their next purchase.  

E-Books
Your sales payments for e-books are based upon a formula of the Retail Price of your book and the Delivery Charge (ranges between 30-35%) of governed by the Sales Payments Agreement with individual sites and businesses. Delivery Charges are based on the overall book size; books with a large number of images will have a higher Delivery Charge. How Book Sales are Calculated and Credited? Your sales dollars through LSP are calculated monthly and include all sales accrued during that period. All sales are credited at 50% of the sold price of the book MINUS the Delivery Charge. For example, an author would receive an estimated royalty of $3.46 for each e-book selling at $9.99.

Paperback Books
Your sales payments for paperback books are based upon a formula of the Retail Price of your book, the Wholesale Discount and the cost to produce your book. These payments will be governed by the Sales Payments Agreement with individual sites and businesses. How Book Sales are Calculated and Credited? Your sales dollars through LSP are calculated monthly and include all sales accrued during that period. All sales are credited at 50% of the sold price of the book (this may vary - see below) MINUS the Wholesale Discount and Production Cost; which will be determined prior to printing, please see PRINTING PRICES. For example: your 106 page book with a production cost of $3.99 is sold at Barnes & Noble for $12.99; Barnes & Noble will buy your book at $6.49; minus the production cost of $3.99 leaving the profit from a book sold at $2.50; your 50% royalty for that paperback book would be $1.25.

Kindle Direct Royalties
Kindle Direct Royalties: With Kindle Direct, you may earn royalties without your book being purchased. Royalties are determined based on the number of pages read. The amount paid to the author is $0.00135 per page; the minimum number of pages read in a current period must be at least 100 pages to receive a royalty amount. Every 300 pages read in a period count as one book sold. For example, if 200 pages are read in one period, you would receive a royalty of $0.27 but would not receive credit for a book being sold. In one period, if 600 pages were read, you would receive $0.81 and your account will reflect two (2) books sold. For authors enrolled in Kindle Direct, your book will not be available on Barnes & Noble.

Distribution and wholesale pricing. LSP Distribution partners include: Ingram, Amazon, Baker & Taylor, Barnes & Noble, NACSCORP; and in the United Kingdom: Adlibris, Agapea, Aphrohead, Bertrams, Blackwell, Book Depository, Gardners and more. Retailers and Distributors buy your book at a discount so that they may in turn sell it to others. The typical discount for wholesalers, retailers, and distributors is 50%. For example, a bookstore calls and wants your book – the theoretical retail is $16.95. They want 500 at a 50% discount, buying your book for $8.47 per book – if the estimated production cost is $4.12 - your royalty payment is $1.30 per wholesale book sold.

Retail Pricing.E-book pricing is set between $2.99 and $9.99 depending on length and genre of book. Paperback book retail priced is based on production cost of book. Light Switch Press will make your retail price as low as possible while ensuring your royalty amount per book is above $1.00.

Author may sell their own book
Authors may purchase paperback books with a minimum order of 25 books; sell the books on their own and receive 100% of the profit. This includes books selling by hand or off the authors personal site/store. Only books sold through distribution count towards the 100 books sold for free a publishing refund.

SOURCE FILES AND PRINT FILES
Source files are the working files that the graphic designer uses to create and edit your work. Light Switch Press will design your cover based on industry knowledge. Please understand that not all cover ideas are possible, for example extremely detailed characters descriptions or things that do not exist. Print Files, are a non-editable file, and are used to print your book. Print files may be purchased for $199 and may be used by the author for printing of books with a third party printer or creating marketing material. An author electing to purchase the print files for their book will own the rights to the cover and interior files and may print and or publish their book using Light Switch Press files.

PRINTER
LSP does not do any printing and is not responsible for the printers actions or work, including delays. We work with printers to keep your unit cost as low as possible. You, the author, are responsible for the cost of printing your book, as well as any shipping fees when ordering books for yourself. Printing and shipping costs must be paid before we can print your books.

REVISIONS AND CHANGES
The only time the author will be required to pay any editorial fee is if the author requests changes or edits to their manuscript. The author will be notified of these additional charges and they will need to be paid in full before further steps are taken. LSP reserves the right to charge for any changes or revisions requested by the author after the 24 hour grace period from when their manuscript was submitted. Changes are subject to a $60.00 per hour charge, one (1) hour minimum.

Formatting is defined as the general physical appearance of your book layout. Once you upload your manuscript we start formatting your book. Author requested edits to your manuscript (spelling errors, typos, punctuation, changing words, etc.) after the book has gone into formatting is subject to $60.00 per hour charge, one (1) hour minimum. Once your book has gone into paperback format, in addition to hourly charges for author requested edits, authors will be required to pay the $60 printer/distribution setup charge.

TIMELINE
Standard time is 15 business days for your book to appear online. Creation time may be longer in peak times. Authors who elect Expedited Publishing, books are generally created and online within 7 business days. Timelines are approximate. There is a setup time for the printer/distributor of 3-4 days, after which time the author may purchase books to sell on their own. Paperback books can take 2-6 weeks to propagate the distribution network at which time they will be available for purchase online and for in-store availability.

WEB HOSTING AND DOMAIN NAME
If you purchase a web site through LSP, LSP agrees to purchase a standard domain name for the author’s book. Domain names are subject to availability. Authors reserve the right to purchase or bid on exclusive, back ordered, or premium domain names. LSP agrees to host your web site for one (1) year. After the first year of hosting the author will be given the option to renew the domain name and hosting for one (1) year for an annual fee of $140 OR given the option to renew the domain name in the authors name. If the author chooses to renew the domain in their name instead of LSP the author will be responsible for hosting. LSP is not responsible for the author’s web site after the web site is in the author’s name.

WEB DESIGN
Web site consists of: home page, author bio, contact, store and blog. Additional pages and functions can be negotiated separately. If your package includes web marketing: The web marketing material will direct customer directly to your site. Customers will be able to purchase your book via PayPal. These services are intended to be user friendly.

PRINT MARKETING
If you purchase print marketing: Our print marketing is designed to offer another avenue to promote your book. This includes business cards, postcards, and bookmarks. LSP is not responsible for any typography errors provided by the author.

REFUNDS
To receive a publishing refund, authors must sell 100 books (paperback and or e-book) within their first 30 days. The 30 day window is from the time your book is published, not once an author submits their work. In the case of a printing error, items will be replaced. Printing errors do not include wrong or misspelled content provided by the author. The full amount of printed material must be returned to LSP before replacement order is printed and shipped. Please mail to PO BOX 272847 Fort Collins, CO 80527.

WARRANTIES
The Author represents and warrants that he or she is the sole author of the Work or is the owner of the rights to all of its contents; that he or she has not engaged in plagiarism with respect to the Work; that the Work is accurate in all respects, i.e., that if fiction, it represents no real event or person in a way that could be deemed libelous; that if non-fiction, it does not misstate any material fact or omit to state any material fact, the result of which would libel any person or result in a person being placed in a false or damaging light; and that the Work does not infringe upon any statutory or common law right of copyright or privacy of any third party; that he or she is owner or obtained rights of any trademarks and/or trade names associated with the Work; that the Work does not constitute obscenity or hate literature and that the author has the right to enter into this Agreement. The Author acknowledges that they are 18 years or older, and a current U.S. resident.

YOU OWN ALL RIGHTS TO YOUR WORK
The Author acknowledges and LSP agrees that LSP acquires no right of ownership to the Work under this Agreement; that LSP is a provider of limited services only (i.e., publishing services, design services, marketing services, online sales and fulfillment, and web site development) and assumes no responsibility for reviewing or correcting the content of the Work. (Exclusive of any licensed software). The author acknowledges that they own the rights or have obtained the proper license to all provided images and content; the Author agrees that LSP will not be held liable for any infringements caused by the Author or the Work.

LSP OWNS THE RIGHTS TO OUR WORK
LSP owns the rights to the work created by LSP, their employees, and contractors. This includes the print and source files of your cover, formatted manuscript and e-book. Source file is defined by the native file to create the work; in most cases PhotoShop and InDesign. Print files are saved as PDF files. You may purchase the print and source files of your, please see FEES. By purchasing your files, print and source, you are able to setup print and distribution with whoever you choose. LSP is not responsible for adjusting files to meet the specs of printer and distributors outside of the LSP print and distribution network. You may also purchase the print and source files for marketing; please see FEES.

FEES

Print and Source Files
Print files may be purchased for $199 and may be used by the author for printing of books with a third party printer or creating marketing material. Source files and print files may be purchased together for $299, which includes the working PhotoShop file of your cover and the working InDesign file of your interior. LSP is not responsible for any changes to these files made by the author. Purchasing print files or source files does not terminate the agreement and LSP reserves the right to continue distribution of your book.

Editing
You may elect to have LSP edit your manuscript, starting at $.02 per word per round. The author will be sent an invoice and required to pay the amount prior to the beginning of the editing process. One (1) round of editing includes light copy-editing, proofreading, and corrections in grammar and spelling, while preserving your unique voice and style. The edited manuscript will be provided to you with the TRACK CHANGES in Microsoft Word. It is the author’s responsibility read through their manuscript and to accept or reject all changes in the document. We recommend at least two (2) rounds of editing, as well as working with beta readers, for best results. It is important to note that even after multiple rounds of editing, and working with beta readers, that errors in a manuscript are common. After editing is complete, it is the author’s responsibility to make sure their manuscript is complete as possible before submitting the final manuscript to LSP. Prices subject to change.

Editorial Fee
In the event that the author would like to make edits to their book, including the manuscript and title, after the author has submitted their manuscript and cover content, an Editorial Fee will be enforced. A time estimate will be given to the author, and the amount must be paid in full before edits are complete. The Editorial Fee of $60.00 per hour with a two (2) hour minimum. To submit a request for edits, please contact info@lightswitchpress.com with your book title, author name, and list of edits. To ensure accuracy, please include the full existing sentence and the sentence the new sentence taking its place.

Marketing
Individual marketing collateral fees are listed on the LSP website. You may purchase the print and source files for marketing for an additional $199. After doing so, you may print with the printer of your choice. Prices subject to change.

Expedited Publishing
For $79.99, you book will be created, published and on sites in 7 business days. Edits to your manuscript, including grammar, punctuation, spelling, etc. are subject to additional editorial fees; for this reason it’s important to submit your final manuscript.

FAILURE TO PUBLISH
LSP reserves the right to refuse to publish any book. We are currently not publishing illustrated children’s books, books with excessive images and/or charts, under our free service. If you would like a quote on a children's book please email info@lightswitchpress.com.
Creating duplicate books
Submitting a duplicate of a book will be declined. If you would like to make changes to an existing book published by LSP please use the HELP LINK in your author profile page and select EDITS from the dropdown menu. Author is responsible for paying editorial fees or for catalog removal fees.
Obscene content
Books containing content that LSP deems obscene will not be published.
Poor content
LSP reserves the right to refuse to publish books that we deem poor content; including: writing, content and difficult layout of provided manuscript.

INDEMNITIES
The Author agrees to indemnify LSP and its employees, shareholders, directors, representatives, successors and assigns of and from all and any manner of claims, liabilities, damages, expenses (including reasonable attorney’s fees), awards, and judgments resulting from claims of (i) third parties regarding ownership, libel, slander, plagiarism, privacy, misappropriation, and similar claims arising from publication of the Work; (ii) Author’s breach of any warranty in this Agreement. LSP agrees to notify the Author promptly of any claim for indemnity under this Agreement. LSP may be represented in any proceeding by counsel of its choice; the Author may retain additional counsel at his or her own expense. Any settlement agreement between LSP and a third party regarding a claim covered by the indemnity provisions of this Agreement shall be subject to approval of the Author, which approval shall not be unreasonably withheld. LSP will replace or refund at the customer’s discretion any product found to be defective as a direct result of the actions of LSP.

TERM AND EXCLUSIVITY
This Agreement is non exclusive (the Author can enter into other publishing agreements), and either party has the option to terminate the Agreement at any time, with or without cause. Fees related to other pre- or post-publication services, such as data entry, formatting, composition, and/or corrections or book sales, are not refundable. Fees related to the publication of supplemental printings, and second and later editions of the Work are also not refundable. The author is responsible for the Early Cancellation FEE if the author elects to terminate the contract or agreement. If the agreement is terminated by LSP due to a breach by Author of this Agreement, no fees shall be refunded. The Author retains the copyright for this Work, and no part of this Agreement diminishes the Author’s rights to this work.

NOTICES
All notices to LSP must be sent in writing to PO Box 272847, Fort Collins, CO 80527. All notices to the Author shall be in writing and sent to address on file, by email or online.

COMPLETE AGREEMENT
This written Contract contains the sole and entire Agreement between the parties and shall supersede any and all other prior agreements between the parties. The author agrees that LSP will create, publish and distribute the author’s work until the author or LSP terminates the agreement. LSP reserves the right to update the Terms and Conditions.

LAW AND VENUE
The laws of the State of Colorado shall govern this Agreement. Recognizing the expense, distraction, and uncertainty resulting from litigation of disputes which may arise under this Agreement, the parties have agreed that except as specifically provided herein they shall submit any and all disputes arising in any way under this Agreement to the American Arbitration Association for final disposition in accordance with its rules, provided that the Arbitrator shall have no authority to award punitive damages. Notwithstanding the foregoing, nothing in this Agreement shall be deemed to deprive a party of the right to equitable relief in a court of competent jurisdiction respecting rights to its intellectual property or use there of under this Agreement. Any proceeding under this paragraph shall be brought in the federal or state courts in Colorado. A judgment may be entered in a court of competent jurisdiction based on any award rendered in arbitration or other proceeding conducted by the parties pursuant to this paragraph.

By continuing to publish with Light Switch Press, you acknowledge that you understand and agree to these Terms and Conditions.