If your primary need is getting an advance that allows you to pay your rent for the next year, you may be better off trying to sell your book to a big publisher. If you’ve got other sources of income, then you might be better off getting your money on the back end or as profit sharing. Akashic and other small publishers do this. You sacrifice that upfront money for possibly a little more money to be rewarded on the back end. They have to hustle. But that being said, not all small publishers hustle. Akashic is the best at what they do, they’re the best small publisher in the country, and I’ve worked with others who don’t pay you and don’t do shit for you. A small publisher doesn’t necessarily mean an invested or smart publisher, it just means they’re small because they’re not big. But Akashic is small to a purpose.
Sacks, Mike. And Here's the Kicker: Conversations with 21 Top Humor Writers--The New Unexpurgated Version! (p. 494). Kindle Edition.
