TAPTS is our publishing management system that manages and controls all of the major processes in the publishing of books.

Development & Production
The development process covers the pre-production activities where comprehensive details of each book are managed. Books from simple, single author documents through to complex books with multiple contributors for each chapter, with editors both for the whole book and for each section, may all be set up.

Development schedules are specified and monitored for both the whole book and, where appropriate, each chapter.

The pursuit of contracts and manuscripts is recorded along with a full history of all of the communications made with each author.

Alternate production and pricing scenarios are set up for comparison and selection.

The production process is monitored using both a production schedule together with links to all external parties involved in the production process.

Marketing & Sales
Marketing campaigns are set up for either one or a group of books.

Sales are recorded from a combination of data entered manually and imports via spreadsheets from printers.

Performance analysis
Sales can be analysed from the viewpoint of both individual books and periods of time.

The Front End analysis combines the year to date sales with projections of expected sales for the remainder of the year. This provides effective management reporting of the expectations for the current year.

Royalties
The processing of royalties allows for advance payments, special sales and stepped commission rates and is applied either simply to the whole book with percentage divisions for each author or individually for each chapter where E-sales of different chapters generate commission only for the contributors of those chapters.

Screenshots (click to view)

1. Front End Analysis of expected business performance from titles published this year
2. List of titles from the Front End Analysis
3. Details of title selected from list
4. Lists of chapters for the selected title
5. Details of single chapter selected from list: of chapters
6. Communications made with author / contributor in respect of the manuscript for selected chapter
7. Details of single communication selected from list of communications

What others say:

"Since installing the database we have been able to keep much better control of schedules and costs because the far greater degree of transparency that the system has introduced and the reporting and querying functionality ensures that all stakeholders are able to be more informed regarding their projects."

David Atkins
Production Manager
Thomas Telford Ltd