Case Study
A Good Scrap I Fear — William Ireland
William Ireland came to us with a powerful, very specific story: a family-run Devon hotel,
decades of hospitality life, and a hard-edged campaign for fairness sparked by an email
revealed via a Freedom of Information request (“We shall be in for a good scrap, I fear.”).
The brief was clear: publish professionally in both print and Kindle, preserve the warmth
and humour of the memoir, handle the technical publishing workflow end-to-end, and
create a book website that could support direct sales, press enquiries, and the wider
campaign.
About the book and author
The book: A memoir rooted in life at The Cottage Hotel—celebrating the “invisible craft” of hospitality while calling for greater accountability in public life. It blends human stories with documentary evidence, and is positioned as both a personal tribute and a wider “case study” about fairness, community, and resilience.
The author: William Ireland grew up in the family hotel business and wrote the book partly
to complete work begun by his late mother, Janet—using her diaries and notes as a
foundation.
What we delivered
A full, start-to-finish publishing build—designed to feel traditional-publisher quality while keeping the author in control:
Editing + line-level improvement
(clarity, flow, consistency, readability)
Proofreading
(final polish prior to publication)
Interior formatting & typesetting
for print + Kindle (separate versions optimised per
format)
Bespoke cover design
(print wraparound + Kindle-ready front cover) with collaborative proof rounds)
Amazon KDP upload & setup for print-on-demand paperback + Kindle edition
Book Website
to support the launch, direct sales, and long-term visibility
Book printing services
to support physical stock requirements alongside POD (e.g.,
for direct-to-reader fulfilment and events)
Our process
(start to finish)
1) Discovery and roadmap (human-first, consultative)
We began with an initial consultation focused on goals, timeline, and what “professional” needed to mean for this specific project—then mapped the workflow end-to-end so there were no late-stage surprises. This reflects our wider approach: tailored advice, plain-English communication, and author-led decisions.
This matters with books like A Good Scrap I Fear because the “story” and the "infrastructure” (formats, files, listings, website, printing) need to work together from day
one.
2) Editorial work: protect the voice, raise the standard
With memoir, the line between “polished” and “over-edited” is thin. Editing focused on strengthening clarity and pacing while keeping William’s tone intact—so the humour, including the lived reality of hospitality, remained authentic.
Proofreading then provided the final professional quality-control pass before publication.
3) Formatting built for two reading experiences (print + Kindle)
We created properly formatted interiors for:
- Paperback (print-ready layout)
- Kindle (a separate version optimised for e-readers)
This avoided the common “one file fits all” problem that leads to messy Kindle conversions and poor reader experience.
4) Cover design: professional, platform-ready, and collaborative
Cover design followed a structured process: consultation → concept development → custom front cover → print-ready wraparound (spine/back) → Kindle-optimised digital cover → multiple proof rounds.
This ensured the cover worked everywhere it would be seen—especially as a small online thumbnail—while remaining fully print-spec compliant.
5) Amazon launch: KDP setup + upload (POD + Kindle)
We prepared and submitted the paperback and Kindle editions via Kindle Direct Publishing, so the book could be listed and sold in major online shops (including Amazon and Waterstones).
Crucially, the KDP setup is designed so the author retains control—DPC supports the process while the author owns the account and royalties flow directly to them.
This “author stays in control” principle is core to Dave’s philosophy—shaped by his own experience of how hidden clauses and unclear publishing arrangements can reduce an author’s control.
6)Website build: direct sales + press + longevity
Publishing is only half the job—discoverability and credibility matter long after launch. DPC’s website work is built around creating a professional online presence that supports sales and brand-building.
For A Good Scrap I Fear, the website supports:
- Direct sales, with signed copies available via the author’s site
- Clear book positioning (memoir + accountability narrative)
- Press and contact pathways aligned to the campaign elements
7) Print strategy: POD + printed stock
We combined:
- Amazon POD (to keep availability consistent without warehousing), and
- printing support for physical stock needs where appropriate (bookshop-quality production, tailored specs, and delivery).
Result:
A fully professional release delivered across:
- Paperback via Amazon print-on-demand
- Kindle edition
- A dedicated book website supporting direct signed sales and communications
All delivered through a collaborative process designed to be personal and
consultative—“human-first, not platform-first”—with the author in control at every stage.
Let’s Create Something Beautiful
We’d love to design a cover that does your story justice.
We’ll include pricing and timelines with no obligation
to proceed.
