An Amazing Opportunity for Indie & Self Published Authors
Paperback Roll Out: Now
Ebook Roll Out Estimated Due Date April 2025
Aim of Programme
The aim of the ‘Commissary Edition’ Programme is to enable The Book Dragon and its partner, the Twenty-First Street Publishing Group, to distribute author’s titles, in a ‘Commissary Edition’ directly to those in custody for their reading pleasure. The Twenty-First Street Publishing Group has spent four years researching the industry, consulting with the Department of Corrections and the Federal Bureau of Prisons, sheriffs, wardens, lawmakers, other distributors as well as hundreds of hours with their legal teams to be sure that we provide our author family and inmates, with the best service possible, to serve the literary industry in the most beneficial way for everyone.
The “Commissary Edition” will be different from your original title’s publication. This allows you to keep any exclusivity agreement you have with other vendors (such as Amazon for you who choose that option.) “Commissary Edition” titles only have black covers with the author’s name and title in white font.
All our end goals are the same, to make money doing what we love, support the literary community and to have your books read and appreciated. Our partners are predicting that many of you may be able to make a comfortable living as an author full-time upon the inmate tablet roll-out and we are so excited to be given the opportunity to help make that happen and work with them. This opportunity and programme is exclusive to The Book Dragon in the UK and can only be accessed by an official invitation from the Book Dragon. There is no financial outlay to the author.
The Market Size
There are 2.3 million people incarcerated in the US every year. Direct eBook distribution opportunity to potentially 2.3 million eager readers will be monetarily life-changing for many of us. Over a 20-month period, inmate tablet providers only offering public domain books (all over 76 years old) for $3.99, had a little over $8.8 million dollars’ worth of reading done by inmates via their tablets. Our partners will be offering your titles at the same price, and your titles are what inmates WANT to read so they are predicting great success for all of you. Inmate tablets are updated by their providers monthly, which means if you don’t have your work ready for the first roll out, it will have to wait for the next monthly update.
What Do I Need to Prepare?
You will be asked to complete and prepare the following documentation.
- Word Doc File of Book
- Letter to Reader
- Cover Blurb
- Book Club Questions
- Signed Distribution Agreement
Cover Blurb. Please send your cover blurb to be used for advertising your title as a Word Doc attachment.
Letter to Reader/Foreword by Author. All participating must submit a “Letter to the Reader” or a Foreword for each title. Please submit one for each title or indicate that you would like the same information to be used for all your titles. If not a Foreword, it can be a “Letter to the Reader” that can have background information on the characters in your title, words of encouragement during their incarceration, etc. You may also include your direct contact information for the inmates to reach out for any fan mail, your website, mailing address, review requests for the book, etc. The content is your choice but please make sure it is at least 250 words and different from anything in any other publication of the work. Please be sure to indicate if you have multiple titles that it is the standard for all your titles if you are a publisher submitting for mass publications. Otherwise, please make sure you indicate which individual title the information applies to. All “Commissary Edition” titles for inmate tablet distribution will require this page.
Book Club Questions. Please provide at the least, five to ten Book Club Questions to be added to the end of your book. This will provide for inmates to have book discussions with their loved ones as we are also offering “Commissary Editions” to the public so that friends, family and loved ones can read along with inmates who choose to purchase your titles.
Since we are working together with the Twenty-First Street Publishing Group and state and federal government supervising entities, no exceptions can be made in these requirements (Foreword/LTR, Book Club Questions). The negotiations of the contract by the Twenty-First Street Publishing Group with the USA Prison System have been in the making over the past four years, and we will have to abide by all its requirements or risk not being able to distribute your work.
Confirmation Documentation
Once we have signed your Distribution Agreement and created your Commissary Book File to send to 21st Street Publishing LLC we will then email you a copy of both your Distribution Agreement and the Commissary Book File for your records.
Please note that the format of the Commissary Book File is specifically set out in this way to meet the requirements of the tablet provider. Should you identify any amends please email us with the request. We will then amend accordingly and send you a new file and an updated file to 21st Street Publishing LLC.
How Does the Ebook Programme Work?
Objective: Offer premium literary content to inmates that they can choose to read electronically. This will provide an innovative way to deliver premium literary content to inmates and enhance the incarcerated reader’s experience using inmate tablets for pleasurable reading experiences.
Content Provider: The Twenty-First Street Publishing Group will work in tandem with the inmate tablet provider (CIDNet) to offer the “Commissary Edition” titles we distribute to incarcerated readers, electronically, utilizing inmate tablets.
When an incarcerated reader clicks “Premium Books” on their tablet application, they will be given the option to review the 21st Street Publishing Group’s distribution titles and see what is available in our library on CIDStore. If they click on a title they would like to read, they will be given a prompt to purchase.
The Author will be paid 17% of the retail cost in Royalties via The Book Dragon.
Why is there a delay with the Ebook Roll Out?
Following an early trial of the CIDStore in January 2024 the inmate tablet provider, CIDNet, identified some initial teething issues and concerns in relation to the content of material provided by one Distributor. Feedback was also received around the aesthetics of the store and also how inmates can search for specific titles and genre’s of interest due to upload issues. CIDNet have therefore have taken the decision to temporarily pause the roll out whilst they work on the suggested improvements and reviewing policies. A further meeting is scheduled with CIDNet and 21st Street Publishing LLC in January 2025 to agree a new roll out date. Therefore the estimated date of April 2025 for the programme to resume for Ebooks may be subject to change.
How Does the Paperback Programme Work?
21st Street Publishing LLC have produced trade paperback copies of “Commissary Edition” titles and created a catalog that is being manually rolled out directly to the Prison Institutions. The manual roll out to commence in July 2024. The catalog will be updated as and when further titles are received.
The pricing model is $17.99 per paperback copy, generally. The Author will be paid 17% of the retail cost in Royalties via The Book Dragon.
Authors who are invited onto the programme and do not wish to have their Ebook included can request a separate agreement with a Paperback Only option. Email kirsty@thebookdragon.co.uk for the Paperback Only Distribution Agreement.
To have both formats of your title included please download the Agreement below.
Please Download the Agreement:
All of Our Author Members will be asked to sign a separate Distribution Agreement for this programme, as our current SOR Agreement does not apply to the ‘Commissary Edition.’
A Distribution Agreement must be signed for each individual title. (Please do not extend the Schedule 1 table at the back of the contract and add multiple titles.)
The purpose of the Distribution Agreement is to provide The Book Dragon with the necessary copyright permissions to enable us to release your titles to our partners as a ‘Commissary Edition’. Our partners will then create the Commissary Edition of your book and distribute accordingly to the prison services and inmates’ tablet.
Please send by post a signed copy of your Distribution Agreement to Kirsty McKay, Business Executive, The Book Dragon, 6 West Row, Stockton on Tees, TS18 1BT, United Kingdom. This must be a handwritten signature in black ball point pen. You are able to email a scanned document but please ensure your signature is clear and legible and that you scan the COMPLETE DOCUMENT. Please do not send us just the signed pages.
How do I Apply?
Formal invitations will be sent out once the author’s works have been reviewed by the Smurgle Department Reviewing team and have achieved a minimum star rating of 4 stars.
How much will I receive in Royalties?
The Authors will receive a 17% royalty of the book sales.
How Does The Book Dragon Assess Eligibility?
Our reviewing team use a set assessment criteria and score against the following key areas:
- Editing
- Plot / Scenes
- Pace
- Character Development
- Dialogue
We then balance these scores with the overall potential of a book to be enjoyed and the ease of which the Author can adopt changes where the scores fall just short in any of the key areas.
Once a score has been determined the Author is advised and invited onto the Programme and the Review is published on our website.
Our Star Ratings Explained:
3 Stars: This rating represents a book with untapped potential. While the book may have had some good elements, it fell short of fully realising its strengths. With further refinement the book could be more compelling. Despite its flaws the reader acknowledges that the book had some good qualities and a recommended read for those who are interested in the genre or subject matter.
4 Stars: Signifies a book that is highly enjoyable and well-executed. The reader found the book to be engaging with strong writing, well developed characters and an intriguing plot. It may have a few minor flaws or areas of improvement but overall it left a positive impression. The reader would highly recommend to others and considers it a standout in its genre.
5 Stars: Represents an exceptional book that surpasses expectations. The reader for this books to be outstanding in every aspect, from its captivating writing style to its well-rounded characters and thought-provoking plot. It resonated deeply with the reader, evoking strong emotions and leaving a lasting impact. The reader considers this book a must-read and believes it deserves recognition and praise for its excellence.
IMPORTANT PLEASE READ
Please do not submit information individually and please use a separate email for each title with the publisher/author’s name and title(s) in the subject line for the documents included in the email.
Please note that No additional information or imagery is included so please do not send your cover file. No exception can be made for cover requirements as per the agreement with the DOC and FBOP.
TYPESETTING REQUIREMENTS – Calibri Body Font 12; No Spaces; No Page Numbers; No Images; Paper Size (Statement Setting); Margins 1cm All Round, No Gutter, Normal; Text Justified; All Chapter Headings Bold, Centred and Font Size 16, 2 Case Returns between Start & End of Chapters, 1 Case Return between Chapter Heading and Text; no Copyright or Dedications / Acknowledgements to be included.
It is essential you complete a Grammar, Spelling & Punctuation Check before sending the file.
Once you have gathered all of the required documents please send to Kirsty McKay, Business Executive at kirsty@thebookdragon.co.uk.
Please do not send manuscripts with editorial issues to us as this will only slow down the process in getting your book formatted and sent to our Partners to download to the catalogue. Please note that every book we allow onto the programme has been fully endorsed by The Book Dragon and must be of a Good Standard so as not to affect the Readers enjoyability and experience. Please do take care when forwarding files to us.
Are there any restrictions on Genre or Content of Titles submitted?
Our Partners have requested that any books that contain the following are not submitted as this would breach the contract arrangements we have in place.
No content with inmate escape, beastiality, prison violence or content that can incite a riot. No pornographic content will be accepted, however scenes of intimacy taking place between couples such as those found in romance novels are permitted.
Please note books that have less than 100 pages will also not be included on the programme.
If you are unsure please send a query onto Kirsty McKay at The Book Dragon so we can review this for you.
FAQ: Our Responses
You may join the Commissary Programme at any time, and you are able to submit further books provided they have been reviewed and assessed as eligible by our Smurgle Reviewing Team.
Children’s illustrated books cannot be included in the programme unless they can standalone with just text and no images. However as part of the partnership working with Twenty-First Street Publishing, the Book Dragon are also selling books on our partners e-commerce platform with all links direct to the Book Dragon Online store to process sales and distribute.
Copyright and ISBN’s are provided by our Partner, Twenty-First Street Publishing and therefore the Author is not required to provide these.
The Book Dragon does have a termination clause in our Distribution Agreement that allows Authors to withdraw from the Programme and thirty days notice must be given.
Our reviewing team are working as quickly as possible to complete the requested Book Reviews for this programme. Please bear with us at this incredibly busy time.
All of the Authors titles will be assessed for eligibility and as each title qualifies the Author will receive an Official Invitation to join the programme. So please don’t worry if you have not heard anything about any additional titles you are interested in submitting.
The Book Dragon... Opening Doors & Opportunities For Indie & Self-Published Authors
Although we have reasonably belief that the Commissary Edition will not breach Amazon’s exclusivity clause, Amazon will not confirm this either way despite several requests made. Instead they refer the Author to their policies. It is therefore the Author’s decision as to whether they wish to include their Ebook or not, and if they choose to come out of the exclusivity agreement with Amazon to enable wider distribution of their Ebook. The Author can still accept the invitation by using the Paperback Only option which does not potentially breach any exclusivity clause with Amazon if they wish and are more comfortable with this option.
Authors are also able to indicate in their Distribution Agreement whether they would like to OPT OUT of their Commissary Book in either format being added to Amazon for sale through our partners 21st Street Publishing LLC.
There will be no negotiation on the contractual terms and conditions contained within the Distribution Agreement. Royalty payments are standardised across all affiliates to ensure a fair and equitable arrangement for Authors no matter where they are geographically located.
Once an Author has completed a 12 month Membership their book will remain in the Commissary Programme without the need for an Author to take out a further 12 month membership.
Authors who reside in the US will be referred directly to Twenty-First Street Publishing to sign up to the programme, these terms for joining do differ from The Book Dragon. The Book Dragon’s Membership & Corporate Fellowship Authors are exempt from this.
Authors who reside in any other Global Word Zones outside of the USA, who reside in the EU or UK will only be able to access this programme via The Book Dragon.
