iUniverse, founded in October 1999, is an American
self-publishing
Self-publishing is the publication of media by its author at their own cost, without the involvement of a publisher. The term usually refers to written media, such as books and magazines, either as an ebook or as a physical copy using POD (pr ...
company based in
Bloomington, Indiana
Bloomington is a city in and the county seat of Monroe County, Indiana, Monroe County in the central region of the U.S. state of Indiana. It is the List of municipalities in Indiana, seventh-largest city in Indiana and the fourth-largest outside ...
.
[Kevin Abourezk]
"iUniverse to move to Indiana"
incoln Journal Star, January 22, 2008
History
iUniverse focuses on
print-on-demand
Print on demand (POD) is a printing technology and business process in which book copies (or other documents, packaging or materials) are not printed until the company receives an order, allowing prints of single or small quantities. While oth ...
self-publishing and a service the company refers to as "assisted self-publishing" which critics say is indicative of
vanity press
A vanity press or vanity publisher, sometimes also subsidy publisher, is a publishing house where anyone can pay to have a book published.. The term "vanity press" is often used pejoratively, implying that an author who uses such a service is publ ...
since authors are asked to pay from to $15,000 for additional services.
Soon after they were founded,
Barnes & Noble
Barnes & Noble Booksellers is an American bookseller. It is a Fortune 1000 company and the bookseller with the largest number of retail outlets in the United States. As of July 7, 2020, the company operates 614 retail stores across all 50 U. ...
purchased a 49% stake in the company. As part of the agreement, Barnes & Noble offered select iUniverse titles both in their online bookstore and at their physical stores.
In 2004,
Amy Fisher
Amy Elizabeth Fisher (born August 21, 1974) is an American woman who became known in the media as "the Long Island Lolita" in 1992, when, at the age of 17, she shot and severely wounded Mary Jo Buttafuoco, the wife of Joey Buttafuoco, with whom ...
's memoir, ''If I Knew Then'', about serving seven years in prison on first-degree aggravated assault charges for shooting
Mary Jo Buttafuoco
Mary Jo Buttafuoco (née Connery; born May 15, 1955) is an American author and motivational speaker. In 1992, she was shot in the face by Amy Fisher, a teenager against whom her husband had committed statutory rape.
Shooting
On May 19, 1992, B ...
, became the best-selling book in iUniverse's history, selling more than 32,000 copies up to 2004.
According to a 2005 ''Publishers Weekly'' article, out of the more than 18,000 titles published by iUniverse until 2004, only 83 had sold at least 500 copies and only 14 titles had been sold through physical Barnes & Noble stores.
In September 2007, iUniverse was purchased by
Author Solutions
Author Solutions is the parent company of the self publishing companies/imprints AuthorHouse, iUniverse, Trafford Publishing, Xlibris, Palibrio, and Booktango. Author Solutions also maintains partnerships with traditional book publishers Simon ...
, the parent company of
hedge fund
A hedge fund is a pooled investment fund that trades in relatively liquid assets and is able to make extensive use of more complex trading, portfolio-construction, and risk management techniques in an attempt to improve performance, such as sho ...
-owned rival
AuthorHouse
AuthorHouse, formerly known as 1stBooks, is a self-publishing company based in the United States. AuthorHouse uses print-on-demand business model and technology.
History
Originally called 1stBooks, the company was founded in Bloomington, Indian ...
.
In 2008, iUniverse operations moved from
Lincoln, Nebraska
Lincoln is the capital city of the U.S. state of Nebraska and the county seat of Lancaster County. The city covers with a population of 292,657 in 2021. It is the second-most populous city in Nebraska and the 73rd-largest in the United Sta ...
to
Bloomington, Indiana
Bloomington is a city in and the county seat of Monroe County, Indiana, Monroe County in the central region of the U.S. state of Indiana. It is the List of municipalities in Indiana, seventh-largest city in Indiana and the fourth-largest outside ...
where Author Solution's headquarters are located.
See also
*
Alternative media
Alternative media are media sources that differ from established or dominant types of media (such as mainstream media or mass media) in terms of their content, production, or distribution.Downing, John (2001). ''Radical Media''. Thousand Oaks, C ...
*
List of self-publishing companies
Self-publishing is the publication of media (e.g. books, music, art) by its author at their own cost, without the involvement of a publisher. However, the author may engage professionals or companies to assist with various aspects of publication, ...
*
Print on demand
Print on demand (POD) is a printing technology and business process in which book copies (or other documents, packaging or materials) are not printed until the company receives an order, allowing prints of single or small quantities. While oth ...
*
Small press
A small press is a publisher with annual sales below a certain level or below a certain number of titles published. The terms "indie publisher" and "independent press" and others are sometimes used interchangeably.
Independent press is general ...
References
External links
iUniverse Official site
{{Penguin Random House
Book publishing companies based in Indiana
Publishing companies established in 1999
Companies based in Bloomington, Indiana
Self-publishing companies
1999 establishments in Indiana