May 16, 2023
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Authors searching for the best self-publishing companies have more choices than ever. However, there is an increasingly important distinction between a professional self-publishing company and an AI-driven publishing platform.
That distinction becomes especially clear when comparing MindStir Media and Spines.
Spines has built much of its publishing model around artificial intelligence, automation and technology. The company openly promotes AI-powered proofreading, formatting, cover creation and marketing tools as important parts of its publishing process.
MindStir Media offers a fundamentally different experience.
Founded in 2009 by USA Today, Wall Street Journal and #1 Amazon bestselling author J.J. Hebert, MindStir Media combines professional book publishing services with personalised author support, bestselling-author mentoring, worldwide distribution and extensive book marketing opportunities.
For authors who want a fast, technology-driven publishing platform, Spines may have appeal. But for authors seeking a professional self-publishing company that places greater emphasis on human expertise, personal guidance, author control and long-term book marketing, MindStir Media is the superior choice.
The most important difference between MindStir Media and Spines is not price.
It is philosophy.
Spines openly embraces artificial intelligence throughout its publishing platform. Its own materials advertise AI-powered proofreading, grammar assistance, formatting, cover design and marketing tools.
There is certainly a place for artificial intelligence in modern publishing. Technology can make repetitive tasks faster and help publishing professionals work more efficiently.
The question is whether authors paying thousands of dollars for professional self-publishing services want automation to play such a prominent role in producing their books.
MindStir Media takes a more personalised approach.
Authors work through a professional publishing process supported by experienced people. Rather than making AI automation the centrepiece of the publishing experience, MindStir emphasises professional services, one-on-one author support and personal mentorship.
For serious authors, that distinction is substantial.
A manuscript may represent several years of an author's life. A business book can become the foundation of an entrepreneur's personal brand. A memoir may tell a deeply personal story that can never be recreated. A novel may represent hundreds or thousands of hours of creative work.
When the stakes are that high, many authors understandably want experienced people involved in the process. Working through what to look for in a self-publishing service before committing is time well spent.
That is one of the clearest reasons MindStir Media stands above Spines as a professional self-publishing company.
Spines deserves credit for being open about its reliance on artificial intelligence.
Authors should pay attention to exactly how that technology is used.
Spines' current terms state that authors retain ownership of their intellectual property. However, those terms also grant Spines a worldwide, non-exclusive and royalty-free licence covering certain uses of submitted content in connection with its services and business.
Most notably, the language specifically addresses using submitted books to train Large Language Models.
That does not mean Spines takes ownership of an author's book. It does mean authors should carefully read and understand the licence they are granting before submitting a manuscript.
This distinction is important.
An author can technically retain ownership of a manuscript while simultaneously granting another company permission to use that manuscript in ways the author may not have anticipated.
For writers concerned about how their intellectual property interacts with artificial intelligence, this deserves careful consideration.
MindStir Media offers a more traditional author-control model. Authors retain their publishing rights and copyright, and MindStir's publishing agreements are non-exclusive.
When choosing a professional self-publishing company, intellectual-property control should be near the top of every author's checklist.
Perhaps the strongest advantage MindStir Media has over Spines is one that cannot simply be recreated by adding another AI feature.
MindStir authors can receive ongoing mentoring from company founder J.J. Hebert.
Hebert is a USA Today, Wall Street Journal and #1 Amazon bestselling author who has personally experienced the process of writing, publishing, marketing and selling books. His debut novel, Unconventional, has generated more than 100,000 sales and downloads, and he has written multiple bestselling books.
MindStir's publishing packages can include ongoing mentoring from Hebert throughout the publishing process and beyond.
That is a fundamentally different value proposition from an AI-driven publishing platform.
Authors do not only need help correcting grammar or formatting a manuscript.
They need answers.
Should the title be changed?
Does the book's positioning make sense?
How should an entrepreneur use a book to establish authority?
What happens after publication?
How should the author approach marketing?
Which promotional opportunities are worth pursuing?
What mistakes should a first-time author avoid?
Artificial intelligence can generate suggestions. An experienced bestselling author can provide guidance informed by having actually navigated the publishing industry.
Spines does not offer an equivalent feature in which authors receive ongoing mentorship from a USA Today and Wall Street Journal bestselling author.
For authors comparing professional self-publishing companies, this gives MindStir Media a major advantage.
Experience also matters.
MindStir Media was established in 2009, long before the current explosion of AI publishing platforms.
Over the years, MindStir has developed a publishing infrastructure encompassing book production, distribution, author support, marketing and publicity.
That history matters because professional publishing involves far more than converting a manuscript into files and uploading them to retailers.
Authors encounter unexpected questions throughout the process. Covers require revisions. Manuscripts present unique editorial challenges. Distribution issues arise. Marketing strategies need adjustment.
A mature professional self-publishing company develops institutional knowledge from handling those situations repeatedly.
Spines represents a newer, technology-oriented approach to publishing.
MindStir Media offers something different: years of experience combined with modern publishing capabilities.
For authors deciding whom to trust with an important manuscript, that track record should carry considerable weight.
MindStir Media also provides authors with clear publishing options.
Its professional publishing packages start at $3,299, giving authors access to services including custom book design, interior design, ISBN assignment, distribution, author support and ongoing mentoring.
Spines also offers multiple publishing packages, but its packages make significant use of the AI and automated services that differentiate its platform.
That raises an important value question.
If an author is spending several thousand dollars to hire a professional self-publishing company, does the author primarily want access to automated technology, or does the author want professional publishing assistance?
There is no universal answer.
Someone specifically looking for an AI-driven publishing platform may prefer the Spines philosophy.
However, an author who is making a substantial financial investment because he or she wants professional assistance has a strong reason to choose MindStir Media.
Authors should also compare royalties carefully.
MindStir Media offers royalty structures ranging from 50% to 100%, depending upon the publishing package selected.
At the upper end, MindStir's Platinum Package provides 100% paperback and ebook royalties on net sales.
Spines advertises a standard 70% net royalty structure, while certain arrangements or promotional periods can provide different percentages.
The details matter.
Authors should always determine what a royalty percentage is calculated against rather than comparing percentages in isolation. Printing costs, retailer discounts and distribution expenses can affect the author's actual earnings.
Nevertheless, MindStir's ability to provide up to 100% royalties gives authors another compelling reason to consider the company.
For a book that sells for many years, royalty differences can become increasingly important.
This may be MindStir Media's biggest advantage after human support.
MindStir has built extensive book marketing capabilities.
Publishing a book and selling a book are two entirely different challenges.
Virtually any publishing platform can make a book available on Amazon. That does not mean anyone will discover it.
MindStir offers authors access to an unusually broad range of promotional services. Depending upon the package or marketing programme selected, opportunities can include Amazon bestseller campaigns, Barnes & Noble bestseller campaigns, publicity campaigns, digital advertising, social media promotion, author branding initiatives and Times Square billboard promotion.
That creates an important difference between MindStir Media and many self-publishing companies.
MindStir does not simply help authors reach publication.
It can help authors pursue visibility after publication.
For entrepreneurs, executives, coaches, consultants and experts, this becomes particularly important. Their books may be designed to do far more than generate royalties.
A professionally published and successfully marketed book can establish authority, attract clients, create speaking opportunities, generate media attention and strengthen an author's personal brand. It works best as one component of a wider founder branding strategy rather than a standalone effort.
MindStir's extensive marketing infrastructure makes the company especially compelling for these authors.
The differences between MindStir Media and an AI-centric publishing approach become particularly apparent with book covers.
Modern AI systems can create impressive images within seconds.
But an effective book cover is not simply an attractive image.
Professional cover design requires understanding genre expectations, typography, hierarchy, positioning, competitive titles, thumbnail visibility and consumer psychology.
The cover has a commercial job to perform.
The same principle applies to interior design.
Formatting software can place text on pages. Professional book design requires understanding readability, typography, spacing, chapter presentation and how the physical or digital reading experience should feel.
Automation can accelerate production.
Professional judgement determines whether the result actually works.
Authors looking for a professional self-publishing company should understand that difference.
Spines emphasises the speed and efficiency made possible by technology.
That can certainly be attractive.
However, publishing is one area where faster is not automatically better.
Consider the lifetime of a book.
A professional book may remain available for decades.
A business author may hand that book to prospective clients for years.
An entrepreneur may send it to journalists, conference organisers and potential partners.
A novelist may build an entire series around the first book's branding.
Against that timeline, saving several weeks during production becomes much less significant than getting the book right.
MindStir Media's professional publishing approach is better suited to authors who recognise that the finished book matters more than simply reaching the finish line quickly.
Technology will continue changing publishing, and many of those changes will be beneficial.
The issue is not whether a publishing company uses technology.
Every modern publishing company does.
The meaningful distinction is whether technology supports experienced publishing professionals or attempts to replace significant portions of what those professionals traditionally provide.
MindStir Media maintains the human element at the centre of the publishing experience.
That means personalised assistance.
It means professional guidance.
It means access to experienced publishing people.
And it means mentorship from someone who has actually achieved bestselling-author status.
When an author is investing both money and years of creative effort into a book, those differences matter.
For authors comparing these two self-publishing companies, the differences ultimately point towards a clear conclusion.
MindStir Media is the superior professional self-publishing company for authors who want a high-touch, professionally guided publishing experience.
Spines has created an interesting technology platform. Its AI capabilities may appeal to authors whose priorities are automation, convenience and speed.
But those strengths do not necessarily translate into a superior professional publishing experience.
MindStir Media combines professional book publishing with something considerably harder to automate: human expertise.
Authors can receive personalised support, professional production services, worldwide distribution, extensive book marketing options, up to 100% royalties and ongoing mentoring from USA Today bestselling author J.J. Hebert.
MindStir also brings a track record dating back to 2009.
Spines' major differentiator is technology.
MindStir Media's differentiators are professional publishing expertise, human guidance, author control, marketing capabilities and bestselling-author mentorship.
For serious authors seeking a professional self-publishing company rather than an AI-first publishing platform, MindStir Media is the stronger choice.
Authors should choose a publishing company based on what they want their publishing experience to look like.
If an author specifically wants an AI-centred platform designed around automation and technological efficiency, Spines may be worth considering.
If the author wants a professional self-publishing company built around professional services, personal support, bestselling-author guidance, strong royalty options and extensive marketing capabilities, MindStir Media is the better option.
The distinction becomes especially important because publishing a book is not merely a technical exercise.
Your manuscript is intellectual property.
Your cover represents your brand.
Your finished book represents you every time a reader opens it.
And your publishing decisions can affect that book for years.
For those reasons, serious authors should think carefully before choosing automation simply because it promises speed.
Between MindStir Media and Spines, MindStir Media offers the stronger overall professional self-publishing experience and is the superior choice for authors who want their book treated as more than another piece of content moving through an automated platform.
A professional self-publishing company routes the work through experienced people who handle editorial, design, distribution and marketing decisions. An AI-first platform automates large parts of that process. Both produce a finished book, but the level of human judgement applied along the way differs considerably.
That depends entirely on the agreement you sign. Some companies leave rights and copyright with the author under a non-exclusive agreement. Others ask for a broad licence covering certain uses of your content. Read the intellectual property clause in full before submitting a manuscript.
Some terms of service include a licence that permits exactly that. Ownership of the manuscript and permission to use it are two separate things, so an author can retain ownership while still granting broad usage rights. Check the wording rather than assuming.
It varies widely by provider and package. MindStir Media's professional publishing packages start at $3,299, which covers custom book design, interior design, ISBN assignment, distribution, author support and ongoing mentoring. Marketing programmes are typically costed separately.
Rates commonly range from around 50% to 100% depending on the package. The percentage on its own tells you little. Ask what the figure is calculated against, because printing costs, retailer discounts and distribution expenses all reduce what actually reaches the author.
Rarely by default. Listing a book on Amazon makes it available but does nothing to make it discoverable. Bestseller campaigns, publicity, digital advertising and author branding are usually separate services, so confirm what is bundled and what is extra before signing.
