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An Exclusive Partnership
An Exclusive Partnership
Publishing For Leaders.
Powered by Ilana Golan & Leap Academy. In partnership with Forefront Books · Distributed by Simon & Schuster.
An Exclusive Partnership
Powered by Ilana Golan & Leap Academy. In partnership with Forefront Books · Distributed by Simon & Schuster.
Leap Signature lets you retain all of your intellectual property. Work with a concierge team through Forefront Books, distribute nationwide through Simon & Schuster, and put Ilana Golan's podcast, media relationships, and network behind your launch.
Every author must choose how to publish. There are three primary paths — Leap Signature is built on the strongest of the three.
A house acquires the book and funds production. Small or no advance for most non-celebrity authors; the publisher controls rights and creative. Often 2+ years to publish, and the house keeps the majority of what the book earns.
You own and control everything — but you also do and fund everything. Quality, distribution, and list-eligibility are entirely on you. With AI making book-writing easy, self-publishing is flooded and extremely hard to rise above.
Traditional-grade production and distribution, including bookstores and airports. You keep ownership and the majority of the upside — plus Ilana Golan and the Leap Academy platform behind your launch.
Hybrid keeps the freedom of self-publishing and the firepower of a traditional house — with a platform on top.
Leap Signature is powered by Forefront Books — 15 New York Times bestsellers to date, plus USA Today list-makers, distributed by Simon & Schuster.
| Feature | Self-Pub | Traditional | Leap Signature |
|---|---|---|---|
| IP & creative control | Yes | No — publisher owns IP | Yes |
| Airport & retail distribution | No | Yes | Yes, via Simon & Schuster |
| Major bestseller list eligible | Rarely | Yes | Yes |
| Time to market | Fast | Slow — 18–24+ months | ~8 months |
| High-ticket consulting leverage | Low | High | High — premium credibility |
| Built-in podcast & media launch | No — you pitch yourself | Rarely — usually A-list only | Yes — Ilana's platform |
| Portfolio monetization strategy | No | No | Yes — advisory, speaking, more |
Only Leap Signature pairs a bestselling publishing machine with a founder's platform and community.
Leap Signature is a publishing imprint created by Ilana Golan and Forefront Books — built to turn the ideas of bold leaders into books that build authority, audience, and opportunity. Every author receives traditional-grade production and Simon & Schuster distribution, plus the amplification of Ilana's top-ranked podcast, national media relationships, investor and executive network, and the Leap Academy community.
You can market your book yourself — or you can have us with you. Six ways Ilana and Leap Academy turn a book into momentum.
A featured conversation on "Leap Academy with Ilana Golan," reaching her global audience alongside guests like Richard Branson and Gary Vaynerchuk.
Positioning and introductions across Ilana's national media, podcasts, and press footprint.
Strategies for monetization — leveraging the book for thought leadership, speaking, advisory, boards, and more.
Your book launched directly into the Leap Academy community and email list of driven, high-achieving professionals.
Keynote and stage pathways, plus speaker positioning that turns your book into a revenue-generating platform.
A foreword or endorsement from Ilana, and ongoing cross-promotion across her owned channels.
A dedicated production editor manages every stage on your behalf — assigned by genre specialty.
A dedicated production editor, industry compliance, ISBN, barcode, BISAC codes & LCCN.
Developmental, content, copy & line editing to the Chicago Manual of Style.
Multiple custom cover concepts plus full interior layout and typesetting.
Metadata, 100 galleys, and a managed first print run with S&S sell-in.
Conversion and publication to Amazon Kindle and Apple Books.
Studio recording, editing and delivery to Audible, Amazon & iTunes (optional).
Full retail distribution via Simon & Schuster, warehousing & foreign rights.
Transparent royalty reporting and ongoing account management.
100 prerelease galleys included for publicity and reviews, printed once typesetting and cover are final.
No minimum author quantity. S&S provides a retail "sell-in" forecast; Forefront fronts the initial print run.
The S&S sales team catalogs and pitches your book to Amazon, B&N, BAM, Walmart, Costco, Target and independents.
Optional foreign-rights representation; author copies warehoused at S&S at low per-unit cost.
Books always publish on a Tuesday. Here's the path from a signed contract to your first case of books.
Author bio & photo due
Full manuscript to developmental edit
Cover design process begins
Edited manuscript review; legal & index
Metadata, catalog copy & photos to typesetter
Book live on Amazon & S&S; sales begin
Files to printer; first numbers to S&S
Bound books arrive in warehouse
A Tuesday — plus your Leap platform launch
Let's turn your idea into a book, a platform, and a monetization portfolio. Tell us a bit about you and your book idea — Ilana's team will follow up within 48 hours to see if it's a fit.