I don’t abandon writer after book is out, says Ajay Setia, founder of top digital publisher

Oct 17, 2020

New Delhi: It took me six long months to finally single out the publisher for my second book; Invincible Publishers. True to its name as well as commitments, I was really impressed by the unique publishing and marketing strategy that they employ.

Imagine a software driven publishing company and that too with a fully digital supply chain! With this as their USP, I knew then where to publish my premiere book. Though, having piqued my curiosity, I wanted to know about the person behind this venture; and I came across Ajay Setia, a down to earth man, who had planned to revolutionise the publishing industry with his software skills almost three years back. He had been a software engineer back then, and today, he runs the largest publishing company in India, having built 5 Businesses in India under “The Invincible Group”.

Here, Ajay discusses the influence of literary endeavours in the new India, his trade lessons for being in the top, marketing strategies and his venture towards zenithal dimensions:

Question: How do you approach leadership? How effective is your prescribed path? What is your style of working that can elicit the best from your subordinates?

Ans. For me leadership equates with the ability to identify a talent and bring out the best in someone. I do not believe in the ‘My way or the Highway’ syndrome that organizational heads are often burdened with. I and my team connect on to logically. I give them absolute freedom to think, devise and work and they lend me the amazing support of their own respective think-tanks. This has helped our organization grow at a faster pace with all of us contributing to the growth equally and significantly.

Question: Have you embarked on types of Innovation/Application of Innovation/diversification of your Products/ service? If yes, explain with brief details of its impact?

Ans: The impact of diversification and innovation began as an experiment to improve the unorganized sector i.e. publishing. I would like to think of myself as an entrepreneur with a disposition of humanity. I understand the anxiety writers and authors alike go through while getting published. So I sit with them for hours and choke out a plan for their multi- dimensional publishing needs. I don’t abandon them once the book is out. This attribute has brought 90% of my authors back to me for a second time. In 3 years I have come to appoint where I have expanded into motion pictures, with the thought of marrying multi layered stories with the provocation of visual short cinema.

I have recently launched an eLearning App which is my brain child and it will help thousands to learn everything on one platform. I call myself an innovator as my journey began with publishing to Entrepreneurship. Now I feel I am a humanitarian evolving to zenithal dimensions.

Question: What is the mode of publishing you opt? Is Invincible a Self Publishing Platform or a Traditional Publishing one?

Ans: We are a jack of all trades; or better, a master of them all. Therefore, being a software driven publishing platform, we provide publishing support in 3 Modes- You can self-publish your book in both eBook and Paperback formats through our online platform. You can also opt for Marketing support through our Partnered Publishing Mode. And on the third end, we have a whole separate team which publishes books traditionally. This is specific to influencers and educators.

Question: What is the opportunity size and target group of your business?

Ans. We at ‘Invincible’ are content aggregator. I use the term aggregator because I believe the focal point of our set-up is consolidation of quality content. Apart from the fiction – non-fiction books, motivational and self-help books, magazines, coffee table books, academic and competitive exams preparation books and e-books from nearly all genres we are also venturing into e-learning. Our subsidiary ‘Invincible Motion Pictures’ is also a content based division which works on converting feasible books into movies. Such an inclusive consolidation of content adds a most diverse dimension for us where we become one of the very few available one-shop-stop for clients and consumers.

Question: What is the Uniqueness/ Innovation of the product/ service and market value proposition?

Ans. ‘Invincible’ has brought to fore quite a unique feature. One of our subsidiary has a working module that introduces a never-before book-to-movie rendition of a feasible literary project. This involves selecting a specific work of an author and creating a short movie out of its interpretation. The high point of this domain is that it serves as a direct corridor to connect two of the most creative walks of literary inspiration – books and cinema. This turf is a fairly unexplored one, clearly with any bulk of untapped potential.

We also organize literary events to provide the right exposure on a right platform to our authors. The book signing events at major bookstores, book fair participation in various cities and the recently conceptualized annual Gurgaon Literature Festival are the major draws from this list. Further in an endeavor to serve our readers in the most fruitful way we are providing translations (all languages) to some of our already published works. This expands the reach for us as well as the reader/author alike. Our attempt is also directed at closing the gap existing between the unorganized/unprofessional publishing, marketing & distribution vis-à-vis our proper channelized services, especially in the Tier II and Tier III cities.

Question: How do you maintain the balance between your personal life and working life?

Ans. I’d say that when one loves the work one is doing, a balance already exists there. No extra effort is needed to look for a balance where working itself is a pleasure – the personal goals and achievements are so harmonized with the professional ones. That’s how it is with me.

—INDIA NEWS STREAM