Market First Publishing launches platform publishing model

Market First Publishing launched in Charleston, South Carolina, with a new “Platform Publishing” approach that builds a book’s audience before publication. The company says the model is meant to give authors readers on day one rather than asking them to chase attention after release.

Why it matters: - Market First Publishing is trying to change the most difficult part of book publishing: finding readers. - The company’s model aims to reduce the gap between finishing a manuscript and building an audience for it. - The approach could matter most for authors who want marketing support before publication, not only after a book is already on sale.

What happened: - Market First Publishing launched today in Charleston, South Carolina. - The company introduced a model it calls Platform Publishing. - The model is designed to build a book’s readership while the manuscript is still being written. - The company said it will deliver the audience-ready book on publication day. - Josh Schwartz founded Market First Publishing with Joseph Lawrence. - Bob Batchelor joined as Executive Editorial Consultant.

The details: - Market First Publishing says it invests resources in every title it signs. - The company says it builds an audience during production so publication day starts with readers already waiting. - Schwartz founded the book-marketing and leadership-branding agency Pubvendo in 2017. - Schwartz has worked across the manuscript-to-retail supply chain with Amazon, Apple, Barnes & Noble and Kobo. - Schwartz has also worked with Penguin Random House, HarperCollins, Hachette, Simon & Schuster and Macmillan. - Lawrence has led editorial at a book publisher and run his own imprint. - Lawrence has shepherded books from raw manuscript to finished work. - Lawrence is a published poet who writes in classically metered verse. - Lawrence completed a master’s degree in publishing at George Washington University. - Schwartz lectures on book marketing at George Washington University. - Batchelor is a cultural historian and biographer whose books include Stan Lee: A Life, The Bourbon King and Roadhouse Blues. - The new website is the company’s announcement, which introduces the Platform Publishing model and invites readers and prospective authors to follow the company as it grows.

Between the lines: - Market First Publishing is positioning itself against a common industry pattern where marketing starts after a book ships. - The company is also distinguishing itself from hybrid publishers that market books as a fee-based service. - Its pitch is that audience-building should be part of the publishing process from day one. - That framing suggests the company is selling both editorial support and early demand generation as one package.

What’s next: - Market First Publishing will use its website to explain the Platform Publishing model. - The company is inviting readers and prospective authors to follow its growth. - The real test will be whether the model can consistently produce books with built-in audiences at launch.

The bottom line: - Market First Publishing is betting that books sell better when readers are built before publication, not after.