The old publishing model is dying. To reuse an analogy I’m fond of, the asteroid has hit and the dinosaurs are, one by one, coughing their last. Small shrew-like creatures are blinking into the dust-red skies and mutating FTW.
Nobody knows which new model or models will succeed. Some shrews will evolve into primitive monkeys. Some will become mammoths. Some, cute little proto-horses. Some, rats. And maybe there’ll be a unicorn in there somewhere.
However it turns out, it’s evident that services previously provided in-house by traditional publishers are already being carved out into separate entities. For example, publishers now increasingly contract out copy-editing rather than keep copy-editors twiddling their blue pencils on payroll.
And in the brave new world of self-publishing, also known as indie publishing, writers are starting to recognise — after the initial DIY that’ll do phase — that high-quality books need third-party help: one or more of developmental editing, copy-editing, proofreading, cover design, charts and diagrams, and — for those who want print-on-demand dead-tree books — professional book design and layout.
Yes, authors can do these things themselves. No, most can’t do them very well, or well enough.
Enter 88press.
88press aims to provide editorial and publishing services for indie/self-published writers. For words: copy-editing and proofreading services (developmental editing isn’t currently on the list). For graphics: cover design (ebooks and printed books), and charts and diagrams. Plus book template design and layout for print-on-demand, for those using CreateSpace or other similar services. In other words: a bunch of services previously provided by a traditional publisher, available on a pick-and-mix basis at reasonable cost.
To be clear: 88press is not a publisher in the old-school sense. I’ll put my own books out under the 88press label, and maybe one or two others, but I don’t plan to open the door to any old manuscript. Neither do I expect 88press to deal with marketing or distribution to retailers. The goal of 88press isn’t to become one of the dinosaurs: the days of cultural gatekeepers are over. The focus is on helping indie writers release the best book possible.
Find out more at 88press.com. Operators are standing by…
Avaragado's blog 
What is the story behind the name, since the likely explanation of it being very auspicious in Chinese culture doesn’t seem to apply – http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Numbers_in_Chinese_culture#Eight
In a reversal of the usual pattern, the name was ultimately inspired by the logo. The logo was a doodle that escaped. It wasn’t originally intended to represent 88 at all. I could retcon some significance to it if I had to. The choice of ‘press’ as a suffix followed from the books theme.
Most importantly, it was a .com domain that was available and not 49 characters long.