Review of BookBaby self-publishing: fine overall but the editing was problematic

Writing a book was one of my life-long goals, and I was thrilled to have done so this year, when I published Get After It: Seven Inspirational Stories to Find Your Inner Strength When It Matters Most. I was even more excited to see it hit Amazon in eBook format on August 11^th and then in paperback on August 24^th. Publishing a book was important for my legacy, as I believe that once we die, we are soon forgotten unless we have things by which future generations can remember us. As long as the internet exists, digital copies of my eBook will be available, and that is something that makes me extremely proud.To publish my book, I used BookBaby, which I discovered through CDBaby, my distribution company for my solo music project, Truth Assassin. I went to the BookBaby independent author’s conference in November 2017, writing up my notes and lessons learned, and considering using the company for its publishing services.After the conference, I got in touch with Patrick, a sales representative for BookBaby and we stayed in contact as I was completing my book. Patrick did a great job of keeping me in the loop on costs and timelines, and he was very responsive to my questions, even recognizing my phone number when I would call him.The costs of the services seemed reasonable. They’d work out to something around $3,000 for everything: copy editing, eBook conversion, cover design, paperback layout, ISBN acquisition, and more. Considering I had done some of research to compare, BookBaby’s prices seemed in line with many other services.The first step in the publishing process was getting my manuscript professionally edited. At first, I submitted the first three chapters of my book to an independent developmental editor I found via Service Scape. After a few reviews from friends and colleagues, I submitted my manuscript to BookBaby, which cost me about $1,500.I chose a copy edit, which included line editing, but also comments on structure, story flow, and more, and about seven days later, I received my edited version back from the BookBaby editing team. I was quite disappointed. There was not a single comment on flow or structure, it seemed to be purely a line edit to ensure I used the right format for numerals and the like. The overall comment on the edit read more like a review than a summary of editorial suggestions. I just didn't think my book was that "perfect." I figured I had to have something.I called Patrick and BookBaby and told him of my dilemma, explaining that I was looking for more out of the edit and that I was frustrated that I felt like I paid for a service I didn’t receive. Patrick listened to me thoroughly and agreed to investigate the situation, and I very much appreciated him doing so. A day or two later I received word from Patrick that he had contacted the editing department, which said that “they stand by their edits and didn’t think any restructuring, deletions, etc. were necessary.”“If that’s the case,” I told him, “then I think I paid for something I didn’t get” and requested some money back or a discount of some kind, and again, Patrick was agreeable and offered me a $250 discount on the rest of my purchase. Kudos to Patrick for being great in the process and supportive of my concerns.The rest of the process was superb. For another $1,500, I’d receive a “complex” book cover design, which just means that my cover would have more than one picture in the design, the eBook conversion, print-on-demand service, and everything else that comes with a professional and thorough book publishing.When I received the book cover, I was blown away. I was absolutely thrilled with it considering I had no initial thoughts on the design and my only guidance was to use two of three pictures which I had submitted, including one of me skydiving, one of me playing with my band, and another from my time in the military.The pictures were seamlessly graded together, the color palette was perfect, and I loved the format. My only edits were to change the font of the title and move the title and subtitle around a bit.I proofread the manuscript a few more times and found a few final things that needed to be changed. The BookBaby staff was quick to make the edits and quite responsive to my inquiries. After a few weeks making the last edits and finalizing the cover, it was time to hit go and start the distribution process.A few days later, I found the eBook on Amazon and everything that went along with it. The description of the book I provided to BookBaby was on Amazon word for word, as was the long description and the author bio, all of which I had written using some best practices I found from various blogs and websites. As the eBook was posted, I received another email from BookBaby telling me that my print copies were in the works and that I’d be receiving them soon. About a week later, I received a notification from BookBaby and UPS that my two packages containing 50 books were on the way.When they arrived, I held a Facebook Live video to show the unveiling and drive interest in my book. The books were beautiful, crisp, and clean. And there it was: Get After It: Seven Inspirational Stories to Find Your Inner Strength When It Matters Most. Overall, I had a positive experience working with BookBaby. I will strongly consider using a different editing service while using BookBaby for the distribution and publishing services. If you're interested in publishing a book, consider BookBaby and ask for Patrick.My book is on sale on Amazon. Be sure to get your copy now!