Who we're looking for, how finished a manuscript needs to be before we can start, and what we genuinely value.

When you can start publishing

We're ready to start publishing before the full manuscript is finished.

The online format makes it possible to release chapters gradually, gather feedback from readers, and grow the book together with its audience. How complete the manuscript needs to be depends on the author's experience and the material already available.

Manuscript readiness

If you've published books before

If you have experience working on books and completed publications behind you, we can start releasing the book from the first fully prepared chapters, without waiting for the entire manuscript.

Before publication begins, the following should be clear:

• the book's topic and audience;
• its structure and approximate length;
• the writing style;
• the plan for the remaining chapters.

If you have experience writing articles

If this is your first book but you have strong articles, talks, documentation, or other samples of your work, we can start collaborating once:

Finished chapters help us judge the structure, the depth of the material, and your style. A draft covering most of the book shows that the key ideas are already in place and the project can be carried through to completion.

What we expect from authors

We look for authors who can work independently not only on the content, but also on how it's presented.

Ideally, an author can:

• edit and improve their own text;
• create practical examples;
• prepare diagrams, illustrations, and other visual material;
• maintain the book after publication and keep it current as the topic evolves.

When needed, we can separately discuss bringing in an editor, illustrator, translator, or other specialists.

Practical experience over formal credentials

What Bookshelf values most is the author's first‑hand experience.

We look for books grounded in real projects, hard problems, decisions made, mistakes, and lessons learned — the kind of insight you can't get from simply retelling the documentation.

The ideal author:

• works deeply with the book's topic;
• can explain not only how to do something, but why a particular solution is worth choosing;
• draws on real‑world examples;
• can show the limitations, trade‑offs, and alternative approaches.

Years of experience are not a formal requirement. What matters more to us is depth of knowledge and the value of the material for the reader.

Using AI

AI can be used as a supporting tool:

• for editing;
• checking the language and clarity of the text;
• spotting awkward wording;
• improving the structure;
• drafting individual elements.

A book should convey the author's knowledge, experience, and point of view. What we value most is exactly what current AI models miss — knowledge that can't be easily found or generated. That's what makes a book genuinely useful to readers.

How revenue is split, why a promotion budget matters, and which terms are agreed individually.

How revenue is split

First, sales taxes, payment‑processing fees, refunds, and other mandatory costs tied to each transaction are deducted from the payment.

The exact share set aside for promotion is agreed individually for each book. One possible way to split the net revenue:

This is an example, not a fixed formula. The promotion share can be higher or lower depending on the author's audience, the promotion channels, the cost of acquiring readers, and the plans for growing the book.

Why a promotion budget matters

Writing a good book is a lot of work. But for the book to keep selling, new readers need to hear about it.

A share of the book's revenue, agreed with the author, is reserved for its ongoing promotion. These funds can go toward:

• paid advertising;
• publications and integrations;
• promoting free materials related to the book;
• creating promo pages and marketing assets;
• experimenting with new reader‑acquisition channels;
• promoting Bookshelf itself, when it helps grow the book's sales.

The promotion budget doesn't have to be spent right away. It can accumulate and be used when the right channel comes along. We try to measure what advertising actually delivers rather than spend the budget just for the sake of running a campaign.

If the author brings their own readers

An author's own audience is a major advantage.

Articles, talks, social media, free tools, open‑source projects, plugins, and other author‑led initiatives can become powerful channels for promoting the book.

Down the road, Bookshelf plans to build out promo codes, referral links, and analytics tools to better understand how each channel contributes to sales.

For authors with a large audience of their own or an established sales channel, individual terms can be discussed.

The Bookshelf subscription

Subscription revenue goes toward developing the platform as a whole:

• infrastructure;
• development;
• promotion;
• building new features;
• maintaining the library;
• operating costs.

While the subscription model is still at an early stage, author payouts from subscription revenue are not calculated separately.

As the subscription grows, this model may change. For example, part of the subscription revenue could be distributed among authors based on which books subscribers read.

Additional costs for a book

Some projects may call for extra investment:

• editing;
• proofreading;
• illustrations;
• technical review;
• translation;
• design;
• additional development.

Such costs are discussed with the author in advance. Depending on the project, Bookshelf may cover them, share them with the author, or recoup the investment from the book's future revenue.

All significant costs and how they are recovered are agreed before work begins.

The author keeps the rights to the book

Bookshelf does not seek to take ownership of the work. The author retains their copyright and can stop publishing the book on the platform under the terms of a separate agreement.

Our goal is a collaboration that benefits both sides: the author earns revenue and gets help growing the book, while Bookshelf gets to expand its catalog and reach new readers.

Terms may vary

Every book is unique. The terms can depend on:

• how involved Bookshelf is in creating the book;
• whether editors, illustrators, or translators are needed;
• the author's existing audience;
• the size of the launch investment;
• the book's format;
• the plans for promotion and growth.

The final terms of collaboration are discussed individually and set out in an agreement with the author.