FAQ's

    Registration:
  1. Is there a registration fee to join PublicBookshelf?
    No. Registration and usage is free to authors and readers.
  2. What is the Author Dashboard?
    Once you register as an author, you will automatically be taken to your Author Dashboard when you log into PublicBookshelf. This screen has links to edit or update the information in your profile. The Author Dashboard shows any books which you have submitted to PublicBookshelf. Each book will have links that will let you: a) Resubmit a new version of the book. b) Alert you if you need to review any legal agreements such as the Submission Agreement. If an offer is made there might be a link to the Publication Agreement if it needs to be reviewed. c) Determine the review and publication status of your book. The status will show as "Incomplete" until the book is published.

    3. Submission:
  3. Can I submit a sample or do I have to submit an entire book?
    We need to see the entire book to make a publication decision.
  4. Do you accept every book submitted for publication?
    PublicBookshelf aspires to provide content that meets certain quality and terms of use criteria. To that end, we do read through each story to make sure the content is grammatically correct, the spelling is correct, and decency standards are met before we will accept a story for publication. Before publication your book will be reviewed again and optimized for online use.
  5. Do you assign the ISBN?
    PublicBookshelf does not arrange for ISBN assignment. If your book has an ISBN number we will include it as part of the book's online information. An ISBN is not required for publication on PublicBookshelf.
  6. Can I upload my own book cover?
    Not at this time. PublicBookshelf will add a book cover prior to publication of your book.
  7. Can the book include illustrations or photos?
    Not at this time. You can submit a book for consideration with illustrations or photos, but they will be deleted from your book prior to the publication of your book.
  8. How long does it take to get a decision about submission? How long does it take to publish a book?
    Publication review can take from 2 to 4 weeks. If an advance offer is made to publish the book, and then subsequently accepted by the author, the book will be published online within another 2 to 4 weeks.
  9. I have tried to submit my book several times, but the PublicBookshelf system does not seem to accept my document.
    For detailed directions on how to submit a document, you should review the Submission Guidelines.
  10. I have submitted by book for review and accepted the Submission Agreement. Why does my status show as "Incomplete" on my Author Dashboard?
    The status will show as "Incomplete" until the book is published.
  11. Can I remove my book from your site at a later date?
    If you want to remove your book, you should email PublicBookshelf with your request.

    12. Earning Revenue:
  12. When will I receive the revenue advance that you offered me?
    It usually takes about ten business days for your revenue advance deposit to be made into your PayPal account. PayPal will send you an email when the deposit is completed.
  13. Do I earn revenues every time someone reads my book?
    You have the opportunity to earn revenue everytime someone looks at your book. We receive advertising revenue from our advertisers when a visitor to your book's screen clicks on an ad. We share a percentage of that advertising revenue with you.
  14. How much will I get paid?
    Just as no one can guarantee how much you will earn in royalties at a traditional publishing house, we cannot guarantee how much you will make in advertising revenues by publishing with PublicBookshelf. A lot depends on how well you promote your book and the popularity of the topic. What we can tell you is you will earn an advance and a percentage of all revenues earned from ads placed on the pages of your book(s).

    15. Payments:
  15. How often can I expect to get paid?
    All revenues are paid through PayPal. Payment is issued within 30 days of the end of the quarter in which your share of the advertising revenues reach $100.

    16. Promotion:
  16. Will my online book be listed on Google, Yahoo and other search engines?
    All books are made accessible by webcrawlers, which is how search engines compile their listings. Please be aware that this is not an overnight event. It may take several days or weeks before a webcrawler picks up your book. PublicBookshelf works to get traffic to your book, but we cannot guarantee traffic or revenues.
  17. Can I have an email address on PublicBookshelf so readers and agents can contact me?
    No. PublicBookshelf protects the private information of all registered users. However, you can include a link to your website in the "More Links" feature that is associated with each book.
  18. Are the books available for order by readers?
    PublicBookshelf does not sell books. The books are read online at no cost to the readers.

    19. Reports:
  19. Is there a report issued to authors so that we can track our accumulated advertising revenue?
    At the current time we don't issue reports to our authors. We track the informsation internally based on the reports we receive from our advertisers. As soon as your advertising revenues exceed your advance by at least $100 in any given quarter, we will make a deposit into your PayPal account. PayPal will send you an email when the deposit is completed.

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