Founded in late 2014, Reedsy is a U.K.-based self-publishing venture that launched with a professional skills marketplace as well as plans to offer an online editing and collaboration tool sometime in 2015. Although it's taken a bit longer to develop the editing technology, the company has launched the Reedsy Book Editor, a free online authoring tool that allows writers to format their books online.
Reedsy cofounder Ricardo Fayet said traffic is growing on the site—more than 7,000 authors have registered as users. Reedsy has also entered into partnerships with IngramSpark and Kobo Writing Life to offer their clients editing services via the Reedsy Book Editor.
Fayet said the Reedsy Book Editor allows writers to write, edit and format their manuscripts within the Reedsy platform and prepare the file for print or e-book production. “You can write and work, right on the site,” Fayet said.
He noted that the new Book Editor tool allows writers to add notes to the text, move chapters around, and drag and drop images into the manuscript, among other features. In addition, once a manuscript is completed on Reedsy, the writer can format the book with the push of a button and the service will process and typeset the book for publication within minutes. The writer can then download a print-ready PDF or an ePub or Mobi file for e-book distribution.
The Reedsy Book Editor is not a finished product and will eventually offer more features. Fayet said that features allowing multiple writers and editors to collaborate online in real-time, as well as version control and track changes are still in development.
Reedsy also planned to launch a publishing imprint—titles would be a curated from manuscripts uploaded to the site—but Fayet said the imprint is now on hold. He said the imprint needed to attract more funding, resources, and readers before it could be launched.
Fayet said in addition to Reedsy's 7,000 registered users, the site has generated about 300 file exports. In addition he said the professional skills marketplace—where authors can hire freelance editors, designers, or publicists to work on their books—has grown from about 200 professionals in early 2015 to about 400 freelancers now. Fayet also noted that the site is beginning to attract publishing firms, among them U.K. digital publisher Canelo, that are using the Reedsy skills marketplace to find freelance editorial services.
