The wrong reader is attracted.
The package leads with something true, but not the thing that creates the right expectation.
Book Positioning Review · Book Production · Publishing Judgment
Most book fixes fail because they solve the wrong problem beautifully.
I help authors and small publishers find out what a finished book is actually promising readers before they spend more money on the next cover, layout, ebook edition, ad campaign, or launch push.
Built for completed manuscripts and published books that need clarity, confidence, and a practical path forward.
The expensive trap
Your book may not need another beautiful wrong solution.
A new cover, rewritten description, category change, ad campaign, launch plan, or formatting pass can all be executed well and still fail if the book’s reader-facing promise is confused.
The right reader hesitates.
The title, cover, subtitle, description, genre signal, or pitch does not make the book easy to recognize.
The author buys the next fix.
More money goes into production or promotion before anyone has diagnosed what is actually failing.
No-surprise pricing
Start with the audit. Add production only when it makes sense.
Many authors start with the $750 audit. If production is needed afterward, the common audit-plus-cover-plus-print-plus-ebook path is $2,050.
$750
Book Positioning Review
A fixed-price diagnostic for a completed manuscript or published book. The message of the inside of the book and the promise of the outside must match, or the reader feels confused, disappointed, or cheated.
- Manuscript or full book review
- Title, subtitle, cover direction, and description diagnosis
- Genre, category, keyword, and reader-expectation review
- Repair priorities before more money is spent
$500
Cover Design
A professional cover built around the book’s clarified promise — not just a pretty wrapper.
$450
Print Layout
Clean, professional interior design for print editions. The pages should support the message, not distract from it.
$350
Ebook Formatting
Reliable ebook production for major retailers, built with modern tools and decades of digital publishing experience.
$2,050
Common path: audit + cover + print + ebook
For completed manuscripts ready to move from uncertainty to a professional reader-facing book package.
- Consulting is available separately at $100/hour.
- Editing is available, but it changes the timeline.
- No ad management. No launch hype. No sales guarantees.
Proof of trust
Writers trust judgment earned the hard way.
The value is not just that I can design, format, or produce a book. The value is that I know what I am looking at.
“Steven has been my trusted guide for the past 15 years. His depth of knowledge, work ethic, and personal commitment to each author’s success make him genuinely unique in the industry.”
“Steven Booth is a man of great integrity and many talents. My contracts with Genius Books expired a long time ago, but I renewed them gratefully. That should tell you all you need to know.”
About Steven Booth
Books are not theory to me.
I have lived with the consequences.
I began page layout in 1989 with Aldus PageMaker III and have worked exclusively with books since 2010. I have designed hundreds of titles and covers, built ebook formatting software, and now use modern production tools.
I am also a publisher, though that is not the point of this site. The point is what that experience taught me: I have published and invested in more than 200 titles and worked with more than 100 authors. When I say I know what a book should say to the right reader, I learned that as the person responsible when the package, promise, and production did not line up.
I work best with completed manuscripts. If your book needs editing, I can help with that too, but editing usually delays the project by 4–8 weeks. When the manuscript is ready, my work can usually move in days, not months.
Send me the situation.
Tell me what you have, what you have already tried, and what you are afraid of spending money on next. I will let you know whether the Reader Recognition Audit is the right first step.
steven@geniusbookservices.com