Everyone’s a writer. It’s true. The number of people who have thought about writing for a living is astronomical. And ironically, many of them fail, not because of lack of talent, but because they don’t know how to go about getting a book published. There is a procedure that you have to follow to have any chance at all. Book publishing is a competitive field. Publishers get hundreds of manuscripts crossing their desks each week. Getting YOURS seen takes some doing.
The first thing you need to know about Publishing Your Own Book is that nobody, and I do mean NOBODY is going to accept unsolicited material. There are many reasons for this. One of the main ones today is because of all the lawsuits flying around from writers claiming that their work has been stolen. It’s just not worth it for the publishers to go through all the hassles. So any reputable publisher is going to require you to ask first for permission. This way they have it on record in case there are any claims of theft.
But another reason you can’t send unsolicited material is simply because of the fact that publishers get so many manuscripts on a regular basis. They just don’t have the time to go through them all. So, unsolicited submissions don’t even get looked at because of the time constraints. So, if you’re going to send something, ask permission FIRST. Otherwise, quite honestly, you are going to be wasting your time.
The next thing you need to know is that all submissions must be done in a professional manner. The space of this article doesn’t allow me to go into detail as to what this means. It is an involved process. You can’t just slap something together and toss it in an envelope. The more professional the presentation, the better your chance of getting it looked at.
Below youll find a link to a great resource that will go over all of these things in great detail. What most people don’t realize is that book submission, for the purpose of getting published, is involved and has to be done just so because of all the competition. So please don’t go into this until you know exactly what’s involved. It just may mean the difference between getting published and not.
Recent Posts
Wednesday, September 2, 2009
Some Tips You Must Know On Publishing Your Own Book
The thrill of Publishing Your Own Book is one that is not easily duplicated anywhere else. If you’re a writer (which I assume you are if you’re reading this) then you know what I’m talking about. Finishing that great novel is just the beginning of a thrilling journey. However, if you’re going to try to get your book published, there are a few things you need to know first. This article is going to fill you in.
For starters, you need to understand how publishers work. If you go in blindly, you set yourself up for disaster. One thing you need to know is that you can’t just send a publisher your work. If you send them unsolicited material, they won’t look at it for many reasons, not the least of which is the liability involved. And if there is a publisher who WILL accept unsolicited material, most likely they are not very reputable. The top dogs won’t look at your stuff unless you ask first.
Another thing you need to know is that each publisher specializes in certain kinds of books. Many new writers will simply submit their manuscripts to every publisher they can get a listing for. This is a waste of time. A publisher that only publishes books on gardening isn’t going to look at your mystery novel. So make sure you get a hold of a writers marker guide and see what publishers accept what manuscripts.
Then of course there is the way you go about submitting your work. So many beginning writers will simply take their manuscript and toss it in an envelope. This is so asking for trouble. At the very least, you want to include a cover letter with the manuscript telling something about yourself and about what the publisher is about to read. This is your chance to make a sales pitch and you want to make it a good one. If you don’t get the publisher excited about reading your work, he’s not going to read it.
There is a lot more involved with Publishing Your Own Book… too much to get into in the space of a short article. However, in my signature, you’ll find a review of a great resource that will teach you everything you need to know about getting your book published. I think you’ll find it invaluable reading.
At least give yourself the best chance of getting your masterpiece out to the general public.
For starters, you need to understand how publishers work. If you go in blindly, you set yourself up for disaster. One thing you need to know is that you can’t just send a publisher your work. If you send them unsolicited material, they won’t look at it for many reasons, not the least of which is the liability involved. And if there is a publisher who WILL accept unsolicited material, most likely they are not very reputable. The top dogs won’t look at your stuff unless you ask first.
Another thing you need to know is that each publisher specializes in certain kinds of books. Many new writers will simply submit their manuscripts to every publisher they can get a listing for. This is a waste of time. A publisher that only publishes books on gardening isn’t going to look at your mystery novel. So make sure you get a hold of a writers marker guide and see what publishers accept what manuscripts.
Then of course there is the way you go about submitting your work. So many beginning writers will simply take their manuscript and toss it in an envelope. This is so asking for trouble. At the very least, you want to include a cover letter with the manuscript telling something about yourself and about what the publisher is about to read. This is your chance to make a sales pitch and you want to make it a good one. If you don’t get the publisher excited about reading your work, he’s not going to read it.
There is a lot more involved with Publishing Your Own Book… too much to get into in the space of a short article. However, in my signature, you’ll find a review of a great resource that will teach you everything you need to know about getting your book published. I think you’ll find it invaluable reading.
At least give yourself the best chance of getting your masterpiece out to the general public.
Critical Book Publishing Tips
Okay, let’s get serious here. You’re a writer. You just wrote this great book and you are interested in Publishing Your Own Book. The last thing you want to do is go through the process in a way that is going to waste your time and the publisher’s time. This article is going to share 3 critical book publishing tips that every writer needs to know. Hopefully, after you’re done reading this, you’ll give yourself the best chance to get YOUR book published.
First of all, and you’re not going to like hearing this, book publishers do not care about quality. They don’t care how much you love your topic and how hard you slaved over it. They want something that is going to sell and put food on their table…period. So make sure that you do your research BEFORE you start writing to see if there is any demand for the subject you’re writing about. If there isn’t, you’re going to have an uphill battle getting your book published. That’s the cold hard truth about this business.
When you approach a publisher, don’t bother him with why you’re book is so great and what a fantastic writer you are. Your job is to show the publisher WHY your book is going to sell. In order to do this, you’re going to have to present him with facts, such as sales of comparable books and demand statistics. The more proof you can show him that your book is going to be a hot seller, the better your chance of getting it published. So tip number 2 is simple…focus on the profit potential, not the content of the book.
Finally, and this is where most people really get disillusioned, you have to realize that the money that you’re going to earn from this book is going to be negligible in comparison to what the publisher is going to get. If you’re lucky enough to have a really big seller, which is rare unless you’re a celebrity, you’ll be lucky to make $20,000 after all the smoke clears while your publisher is making about four times that much off of your work. So tip number 3 is one you probably didn’t see coming…don’t get your hopes up too high. You are NOT going to become a millionaire off of one published book.
Below, if this is something you still want to do, you’ll find a link to a great resource that will teach you everything you need to know about book publishing. I strongly suggest you read it.
First of all, and you’re not going to like hearing this, book publishers do not care about quality. They don’t care how much you love your topic and how hard you slaved over it. They want something that is going to sell and put food on their table…period. So make sure that you do your research BEFORE you start writing to see if there is any demand for the subject you’re writing about. If there isn’t, you’re going to have an uphill battle getting your book published. That’s the cold hard truth about this business.
When you approach a publisher, don’t bother him with why you’re book is so great and what a fantastic writer you are. Your job is to show the publisher WHY your book is going to sell. In order to do this, you’re going to have to present him with facts, such as sales of comparable books and demand statistics. The more proof you can show him that your book is going to be a hot seller, the better your chance of getting it published. So tip number 2 is simple…focus on the profit potential, not the content of the book.
Finally, and this is where most people really get disillusioned, you have to realize that the money that you’re going to earn from this book is going to be negligible in comparison to what the publisher is going to get. If you’re lucky enough to have a really big seller, which is rare unless you’re a celebrity, you’ll be lucky to make $20,000 after all the smoke clears while your publisher is making about four times that much off of your work. So tip number 3 is one you probably didn’t see coming…don’t get your hopes up too high. You are NOT going to become a millionaire off of one published book.
Below, if this is something you still want to do, you’ll find a link to a great resource that will teach you everything you need to know about book publishing. I strongly suggest you read it.