Atmosphere PressReviews of atmospherepress.com

I have used Atmosphere twice. The first was for a promotion of a book I self-published. Did not sell a single copy, but I got some good reviews and some interviews. Not worth the effort or cost and the head of marketing is a little bit condescending, and, per another review, they just give you a sheet of paper on how to do it yourself. That was not worth the money. I did do the whole publishing package with them and thought they did a good job. It took a lot longer than doing it myself, but I loved the cover and the interior is great. Big plus. Once a quarter, they send a sales update and if you make over $100 they send a check. The hard part is you just never know how your book is doing and if any outside promotions are effective. Yes, rankings move, but they do that anyways. So major downside on that. I added on the publicity package with hopes it would be better/different with a new release, it was not. My own marketing efforts netted much greater results (and those sites share data). Interviews and reviews can be purchased through all the sites they use anyways. I am on the fence if I'd use them again. They are expensive, communication minimal, sales updates frustrating, and marketing not worth it. But, editing, cover, layout was great.

There's two things to note here. One is the quality of the work Atmosphere's people do. I would call it matchless. I've published two books with them, and both editors were absolutely fantastic at getting what I was trying to do (which was strange, and not easily grasped) and helping me to do it better. Ronaldo the cover designer deserves all the awards in the business; especially the second cover he designed for me (for Insecticide: check it out yourself if you think I'm making this up) was the greatest cover design I have EVER seen. Their publicity people got me five reviews (all glowing--a pleasant surprise for me) and two interviews, and got me set up on Goodreads. (The home-town bookstore book launch fell through, but not for lack of Atmosphere's trying.) The other thing is the money. If you're a struggling author trying to write on a shoestring, and trying to support yourself with your writing, Atmosphere may not be the place for you. My situation is different: I'm not wealthy but comfortable enough to afford the subvention, and even to pay for the book-boost publicity. And my big need is to get past the editors at tiny presses wading through hundreds of manuscripts in search of that little domestic drama or adventure story that might sell enough to make it worth a small press's while. My stuff is weird. To me it's the only really enjoyable way to write, but I'm told my writing is an acquired taste--and the way the book publishing biz works, maybe always has worked, is that nobody has time to acquire tastes for independently published books. It's instant gratification or nothing. So it is enough for me to get published and get read by maybe a few hundred people--and the ecstatic reviews Atmosphere got me have been instant gratification FOR ME!

I loved working with Atmosphere Press on my debut novel The Sun-Greeters. The editorial process was top notch and they provide excellent consumer service and consultations at every step of the process. I would recommend for anyone serious about making their dreams of publishing a reality!

My publishing experience with Atmosphere happened in two phases. I released my paperback and ebook of ONE MORE SEAT AT THE ROUND TABLE in April 2023 and my audio book in April 2024. Both times my novel received superior editing and production. The staff at Atmosphere—everyone I dealt with—is first rate. My novel is beautiful in all formats and received excellent reviews. Sales are good and I am deeply grateful to the entire team.

I cannot understand some of the negative reviews I have seen. I did research about a year ago and decided to go with Atmosphere Press. I have never regretted it. The many people I have worked with there have all been professional and very capable. Jonathan, the Developmental Editor, was thorough and clearly had gotten to know my book and characters almost as well as I did. He asked great questions and I agreed with all his suggestions. He made my good book into a great one! All the others I have worked with were similarly great! The only slight disappointment was my web site. I would have liked a little more original art, but they never told me I would get that nor did I pay for it. It isn't cheap, but comparing with what I would spend getting the help I needed, it was very reasonable. I highly recommend them!!!

Working with Atmosphere Press has invigorated the enthusiasm and reward writing and publishing succinctly deposits in my personal confidence and fortitude. Each and every interaction has been a delightful, instructive event. Two years beyond my Vietnam memoir's release, their attentive staff and recurring one-on-one follow-ups truly define the integrity the team exudes. I did not understand the vanity press genre a few years ago and I'm grateful I chose Atmosphere, a legitimate hybrid professional publisher. I absolutely love connecting with world-wide talent and my future projects will have a talented, professional Atmosphere crew to help reveal my talent. In a world of anyone-can-publish mentality, it is important to work with ethics, integrity, and dedicated professionalism. I struggled thirty years trying to get my foot in the Pro Publish world. Famous is not my goal; readership is. Ever onward.

Selling books is a hard business. Atmosphere Press doesn't make it easier. Their paid-for marketing services is not great; furthermore their book boost team will make you do all the heavy lifting. Their website design is atrocious and costly. You will likely be in the red if you publish with Atmosphere, though the exception would be if you are a much more talented sales person than writer.

At the time I wrote my negative rewiew about Atmosphere Press I genuinely thought I'd been scammed out of money. It seems the person I was dealing with at Atmosphere was out of the US at the time and had no email access. Matters have greatly improved now and significant progress has been made on my Book boost publicity and promotion package. I now have some exposure in the US which is more than I could ever have hoped for before I bought this package.