About Us

Double Dragon Publishing is a Canadian company with 10+ years of dedication to the fledgling eBook industry and it's authors. Touted as ..."one of the best, perhaps THE best, of the electronic publishers" by Piers Anthony in his October 2004 newletter, Double Dragon Publishing has strived to maintain this designation by the iconic fantasy author.

Opening its doors in 2000 with only 12 authors Double Dragon eBooks (Double Dragon's flagship imprint) quickly gained the respect and dedication of hundreds of would-be authors around the world. Now with over 1000+ authors and as many titles, Double Dragon Publishing's world-wide network for eBook distribution, uncompromising quest for quality, quick understanding of eBook technology and "plain old fashion customer service" and respect for it's authors has allowed them to maintain Piers Anthony's judgment back in 2004.

Guided by Publisher and CEO Deron Douglas, Double Dragon Publishing has grown from a single imprint to eight:

Double Dragon eBooks - Primarily Science Fiction, Fantasy and Horror
Blood Moon Publishing - Horror and Suspense
Carnal Desires Publishing - Erotic Literature
Dragon Dance - Young Adult paperback "chapter books" targeting the "middle-school" age group
Dragon Tooth Fantasy - Fantasy
Dragon's Heart Romance - Romance and love
DDP Literary Press - non-fiction
Double Dragon Press - general "catch-all" paperback imprint
Double Dragon Media Group - develops feature films and other entertainment media formats from its expansive catalog of titles

Double Dragon Publishing also enjoys the benefits of the film industry, with a number of titles currently in production around the world, or optioned for major motion picture production.

Interview with a Publisher - Double Dragon

After a long break, I'm interviewing publishers again. Today I'm talking to Deron Douglas of Double Dragon Publishing. They published CONUNDRUM this year, they're publishing ENIGMA next year, and they've published lots of other great novels that I didn't write.

ML: What types of books does Double Dragon publish?

DD: Double Dragon Publishing (better known as www.double-dragon-ebooks.com) is a publisher of Science Fiction, Fantasy and Horror books. We also publish romance and adventure, however few people realize that our sister imprint, Carnal Desires Publishing (found at www.carnaldesirespublishing.com) publishes erotic literature. We've recently opened a new imprint called Blood Moon Publishing (available at www.bloodmoonpublishing.com) that specializes in horror and suspense fiction.

ML: Like everybody I interview, you publish all your titles in both paperbacks and ebooks. How long do your titles stay in print? What formats are your ebooks available in?

DD: Our contracts are for a 5-year term as determined by our retail contracts. However, once published very few authors actually leave after the term expires. We have over 1000+ authors and have lost maybe 10-15 in the past 10 years. Most are happy with us and very few publishing houses can match our distribution network (the best in the business) and our service.

Our eBook titles are available in all formats either from our website, or many major retail outlets such as Kobo, Sony, Kindle, BooksonBoard, Fictionwise, etc. We have more than 8000+ editions currently available.

ML: Do you accept submissions from authors, from agents, or from both?

DD: Most of our submissions are from authors, but we have reciprocal relationships with a number of agents that we work with on a regular basis.

ML: A big part of what I'm doing on my blog, as all my readers know, is stressing that authors do not pay publishers. That definitely includes my publisher, Double Dragon. With that out of the way, let me ask the "money questions." What can an author expect in the way of royalties?

DD: That's a hard questions to answer without going into specifics (which I'm not at liberty to discuss due to privacy issues), but it depends entirely on the title. Being published by Double Dragon Publishing doesn't mean you will become an instant success. It still involves a lot of work on your part as an author and our part, as a publisher.

ML: What editing process can an author expect from Double Dragon?

DD: Typically we will assign an editor to a title 2-3 months before the scheduled release date. We have a "First-in, First-out" policy. Lately we have been able to assign an editor 6-8 months before the release date. Everything gets edited!

The editing process however depends on the individual editor. Most have their own style of working with an author and contact with the author will vary. The author always knows the editor's email and is free to contact them with questions.

I should also mention that A LOT of authors come to us with pre-published titles that they have removed from their old publisher (either because they are dissatisfied or their rights have reverted) and they wish to place them with Double Dragon Publishing. In this case the title has been edited, so this step can be skipped. These titles are generally "fast-tracked" and can be released within months if not weeks. (We have a 1-year waiting period right now.) These titles come to us from a variety of publishers including Baen, Tor and Spectrum.

ML: Cool. What's your procedure for producing cover art for your authors?

DD: Cover art is handled by yours truly (www.derondouglas.ca). I try to work with the author to discuss themes, possible scenes or ideas. I'm not the type of artist that can produce a picture on demand to exacting specifications, but instead one that needs to let his imagination "brew" until a vivid image manifests itself.

ML: Speaking as an author, I know it can be tempting to think, "I got it published. My work is done here." Unfortunately, the world doesn't work that way. Just because a book is published does not mean it will automatically have readers. What does Double Dragon do in regard to getting its authors' manuscripts to book reviewers?

DD: As mentioned above, being published doesn't mean you will sell. And I must add that "reviews" as you mentioned are "old-school" and don't necessary reach the people who purchase eBooks. Over the past 10 years I have found that the only people who read reviews from "review sites" are authors. Reviews will help sales when they appear at the point of sale, i.e. the Amazon title page. Mind you a bad review can also kill sales VERY badly.

Double Dragon doesn't seek out reviews, although if approached we are happy to provide a PDF copy. The author is welcome to do this and we provide a PDF file for this purpose. But we find our time is better spent with "targeted email", Google Advertising and social networking. This is something we do on a regular basis and have a yearly budget set aside.

We also have an Advertising Yahoo group for our authors where promotional ideas and events can be discussed. We find that blogs, etc. are more effective than reviews.

ML: That's been my experience with reviews too, so thanks for making me feel better about it. I've often said that "writing is a calling but publishing is a business." That's my way of reminding my fellow creators that our dreams are lovely but they aren't enough. But you're a publisher, and I believe your vision for Double Dragon isn't simply "let's all get rich." In fact, I know that's not your vision, because I'm also one of your readers. So what is your vision?

DD: Getting rich has never been a goal. I personally feel that if you concentrate on getting rich you will fall short of what is really important. In the end making money is a by-product of doing something well, that "something" is what your goal should be. Besides, if getting rich is your only goal it can best be done in more successful and easier ways. Unfortunately I am a creative person as well, and I do this for some of those reasons. But I also have a good business sense and an understanding of technology as it relates to media. My "vision" as you call it is the establishment of a publishing house that can offer its authors as many venues for their work as possible.

ML: How did you prepare for this career?

DD: I didn't really "prepare" for it on a conscious level, or even plan to be a publisher. I started in the business about 30 years ago as an illustrator. I worked in various positions such as a production coordinator for a medium size publisher as well as lead programmer during the infancy of eBooks in the mid 90s. I just sort of fell into this "role" one day in 2000. It just made sense all of sudden.

ML: What do you love about it?

DD: Pretty well everything. I especially like the creative outlet that cover art gives me, and I enjoy the relationships I form with the authors. Unlike other publishing houses, I communicate with all my authors personally and I know what titles they have published and in some cases how they are doing on a personal level. We are friends.

ML: What are its challenges?

DD: The industry is tricky, trying to predict the direction the market will take and how technology will develop, then determining the best position for Double Dragon Publishing for optimum performance is challenging. It's been especially difficult since the US economy's down turn since all online prices are in US dollars. But we are still here and growing even when the competition has closed their doors.

ML: What makes Double Dragon special? What makes it different from other publishers?

DD: All of the above? I don't know, only my authors can tell you.

ML: I like that answer. I know you guys are special but I can't say why either. Thanks for the interview!

Mailing Address:

Double Dragon Publishing
P.O. Box 54016
1-5762 Highway 7 East
Markham Ontario L3P 7Y4
Canada

Fax:(Upon Request)

Due to the amount of spam we receive each day,
we no longer have an active link. Please use the following:

CONTACT EMAIL:

sales (at) double-dragon-ebooks.com