I submitted my book to open books.  https://www.open-bks.com/

They said they liked my book and wanted to set up a zoom.

Here is what the email said

 I am pleased to convey news that we would be honored to publish your fine
novel, and to that end I would like to schedule a Zoom conference with
you sometime next week, if possible, to discuss Open Books’ publishing
procedures, expectations for both the publisher and the author, answer
any questions or concerns you might have, and generally get to know one
another a bit.

I took off a morning of work since the editor lives in London. We met on zoom.

The first question was what kind of contract are you looking for?

I stated a traditional one as there was no indication of open books asking for any other kind of contract.  The editor then proceeded to tell me how wrong I was for expecting that kind of contract.  He did not see how he would see enough books to make $5000 and get any return on a traditional contract.  He went into detail on what it took to get a traditional contract and that I did not have that.

The thing is I would have been open to a hybrid contract. They probably would provide enough benefits for me to pay for what they provide-  audio book, book trailers, and book reviews.

Yet, I can’t stomach the tactic they took. The enticing me to do a zoom so he could do a zoom pitch. 

Here is what their submission page says,

For fiction submissions, please include a cover letter with your contact information, a one-page synopsis, an author bio, the first three chapters of your manuscript and a basic author marketing strategy. Please submit .doc or .docx documents; PDF documents are discouraged unless absolutely necessary to showcase the work.

For nonfiction submissions, please include a cover letter with your contact information, a detailed outline of your project, an author bio, a sample of your writing and a basic author marketing strategy.

A one-page query is acceptable and even encouraged before submitting if you’re not certain your book is a good fit with Open Books or Open Books Academic.

No mention of hybrid contracts. Just the enticement to submit so the editor can methodically do a sales pitch. Tear me down while he expounded on how great open books was.

I did reach out to an author on their author page.  The author did say he loved working with open books. However, he also stated that is just a small press and so has limited reach.

I will most likely go with a hybrid contract through a more local publisher.  One that is upfront.