Crowdfunded publishers, and how to vet one

The terms below are quoted from each company's own pages where we could open them on October 25, 2026, and from reporting by Publishers Weekly and Writer Beware where we could not. Terms change; read the current contract before you sign.

Three models, and the one you run yourself

"Crowdfunded publishing" covers different deals. What matters is who holds the money, who publishes the book and who owns the rights afterward.

What happened at Unbound

Unbound's own about page summed up the model: "Authors present a pitch, you pledge, and when the goal is reached the book is written" (Unbound, archived). Writer Beware says the company, founded in 2011, "styled itself the Kickstarter for books" and published "hundreds of books over more than a decade" (Writer Beware, June 6, 2025). Then, in the order Writer Beware and Publishers Weekly report it:

1. December 2024. Unbound told authors it did not have the money to pay royalties.
2. March 2025. It went into administration and "almost at once was sold, with all its assets, in a pre-pack deal" to a new company, Boundless Publishing, "at a fire-sale price of £50,000." Supporters who had pledged for projects Boundless dropped "would not be refunded."
3. May 2025. Boundless described Unbound's unpaid royalties as "goodwill payments" and wrote, "We simply do not have the cash at the moment to make further historic goodwill payments."
4. August 2025. Boundless "entered liquidation and stopped conducting business." Publishers Weekly reported that when Unbound collapsed it owed £657,000 to 238 authors and agents and £391,000 to nearly 8,000 customers who had pre-ordered books, that "Authors published by both Unbound and Boundless will have their rights automatically reverted," and that "Any remaining cash will go to the liquidator rather than to creditors or authors owed money" (Publishers Weekly, August 5, 2025).

The lesson is not that crowdfunding is a scam. It is that readers' pledges and authors' royalties were exposed to one company's finances, and when the company failed, both were lost. Ask any crowdfunded publisher where pledge money is held before your book is published. If your rights are tied up in a failed publisher, getting your book rights back covers reversion.

Inkshares, from its own terms

Inkshares describes itself as "a book publisher that has readers, not agents or editors, decide what we publish" (Inkshares FAQ). Its FAQ and publishing terms say:

• The threshold. "Once the 750 pre-order goal is hit, we start publishing." If a project misses its goal, "Readers are immediately refunded."
• Who pays. "There is no service charge or fee to crowdfund." Authors "cannot pre-order their own book," and pre-order money goes to production: "Royalties start accumulating after 750 pre-orders are sold."
• The author's share. "We give authors 35% of net receivables." Its own example: a print copy sold through a wholesale retailer at $10.00 brings net receipts of $5.50, of which the author's take is $1.92.
• Rights. "Authors maintain the copyright." The terms grant Inkshares "the exclusive, irrevocable, and transferable right to print, publish, and sell your work worldwide, in both electronic and print format," which becomes non-exclusive "After a period of ten years from the date of initial publication." Inkshares also "reserves the right to serve as the exclusive manager for the licensing of your copyright" for film, television and other derivative works, paying the author 70% of licensing fees.
• Production. Inkshares says it prints "at minimum 1,000 copies through an offset print run," distributes through Ingram Publisher Services, and that it "typically takes us 9-12 months from when you submit your final manuscript to us having your book available in bookstores nationwide."

That is a publishing contract, not a service, and it is unusual in charging the author nothing. Weigh the ten-year exclusive term and the derivative-rights clause as you would in any contract (see who owns what: rights, ISBNs and contract terms). Most titles featured on its home page are fiction; ask for recent nonfiction titles and their publication dates before you start a campaign.

Publishizer, from its own terms

Publishizer is not a publisher. Its FAQ calls it "a book crowdfunding platform and literary agency that matches authors with publishers," but its terms of service say "Publishizer is not a book agent or publisher, does not receive publication rights from Authors, does not receive royalties on preorders or sales." You run a 30-day pre-order campaign on a proposal, and Publishizer pitches publishers based on how many copies sell (Publishizer FAQ):

• Milestones. Between 50 and 250 copies, "you can expect service publishers to express interest"; between 250 and 500, "hybrid publisher and small presses." At 500 copies at $20 each, it queries "traditional publishing imprints"; at 1,000, "Big Five publishing houses."
• Fees. "Publishizer charges a 30% fee on total funds processed through the platform + Stripe fees of 2-4%."
• Delivery. "The author is responsible for fulfilling pre-orders and bonuses," though a publisher may do it for you.

Worked example. A campaign that hits 500 copies at $20 raises $10,000. A 30% fee is $3,000, and 2% to 4% in Stripe fees is $200 to $400, leaving $6,600 to $6,800. You still owe 500 books.

Writer Beware reviewed the company in 2019 (updated 2022). Of roughly 195 books published through it since 2016, it found fewer than ten from larger houses, more than 130 from self-publishing, hybrid or service providers, and at least 16 from pay-to-play publishers. It concluded that "As a crowdfunding platform, Publishizer may be worth considering," and that its publisher lists mix reputable presses with fee-charging ones (Writer Beware). Check every interested publisher against the vanity press warning signs.

Kickstarter: crowdfunding without a publisher

Jane Friedman's view is that crowdfunding on Kickstarter "falls under self-publishing; the author is choosing to fund publication in a particular way, effectively generating pre-orders to mitigate the financial risk" (Friedman). It is a large market: Kickstarter says its publishing category "raised more than $45M in 2025" (Kickstarter, 2025 year in review).

• All or nothing. "No one will be charged for a pledge towards a project unless it reaches its funding goal" (Kickstarter basics).
• Fees. If the project funds, Kickstarter takes "5% of total funds raised," and US payment processing is "3% + $0.30 per pledge." If funding is not successful, "there are no fees" (Kickstarter fees).
• Responsibility. "The creator is solely responsible for fulfilling their project." A creator who cannot finish is expected, among other things, to "offer to return any remaining funds to backers who have not received their reward" (terms of use).

Worked example. The same $10,000 from 500 backers at $20 costs $500 in Kickstarter's fee and $450 in processing ($300 plus 500 times $0.30), leaving $9,050. Out of that you pay for editing, design, printing and shipping, and you keep the rights and every later sale. To compare platforms for the book itself, see KDP vs IngramSpark vs Draft2Digital.

How to vet a crowdfunded publisher

A publisher that runs your campaign and takes your rights should pass the same tests as a hybrid. The Independent Book Publishers Association's 11 criteria include vetting submissions, a negotiable contract, distribution, "respectable sales" and "a higher-than-standard royalty" (Publishers Weekly on the IBPA criteria); what a hybrid publisher is turns each into a question. Then ask what Unbound's authors wish they had asked:

1. Where is pledge money held until the book ships, and what happens to it if the company fails or drops the project?
2. What does the author receive from campaign money, and when do royalties start?
3. Who delivers backers' copies, and who pays for printing and postage?
4. What rights are taken, for how long, and do they revert if the company stops publishing or goes under?
5. What did recent books sell, and can you speak to authors from the last two years?
6. What do outsiders say? Search the company's name on Writer Beware and in trade news before you sign.

When it fits, and when it does not

A crowdfunded publisher can fit an author with a real network who wants a publisher's editing, imprint and distribution without paying for them, and who is comfortable granting long exclusive rights. Running your own campaign fits a nonfiction author with an audience who wants to keep the rights and the margin and can manage production. Many business authors already sell to clients and audiences directly; a pre-sale through your own list or Kickstarter keeps that relationship yours.

It does not fit if you cannot sell a few hundred copies to people you reach, because the campaign is the gate on every model above. It also does not fit if you would be paying a pitch service to reach companies that would take your proposal directly. If your network is large and your idea broad, an agent and a traditional deal pay you instead; see how traditional publishing works.