I've been involved in publishing startups for the a little over six years now and have participated in quite a few "publishers don't get startups" and "startups don't get publishing" discussions. After offering my opinion, I realized that I couldn't honestly say I knew what it was like to be a publisher. I've never worked for a publisher, and beyond being the producer of the webcomic "Amazing Super Zeroes," I've never directly participated in the publishing process.
With the help of numerous people, to whom I owe many bottles of wine, I took a journey to create a small publishing empire. Below is a high level overview of my adventure, the lessons I've learned, and some tips/tools I found.