How to find small publisher

Hi Nancy, I think the best place to find the smaller publishers is by looking on Predators and Editors or in the Bewares and Background Check section of AW's forums. That way you are able to get the scoop on how legit the publisher is, and then you can make your decision based off of that. Both areas list both legitimate publishers and the ones to watch out for, but P&E especially has a very comprehensive list.

Good luck with your search!

Pick up the latest Writer's Market--they list tons of small presses, and generally have what they're looking for and guidelines. Make a list of ones that seem likely, then look for their web pages for updated info. And yes, check them out at P&E or here before submitting. If your budget won't stretch to purchasing WM right now, almost every library will have a copy.

I would advise, though, that if you're serious about finding an agent, you might want to put the publisher submissions on hold. Every rejection you get represents one press your agent can't submit to--they prefer unshopped manuscripts for that reason.

Best of luck with your search!

nancy sv said:

Thanks Dreams! I've been over at Preditors and Editors, but that list is HUGE!! And I mean - ENORMOUS! I don't know how to even begin sorting it out. I guess I'll just start with the 500 publishers that start with A and slowly make my way through the alphabet!

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Good point on that. I wish they had a search function or some sort like they have on agentquery. And you should start with Z because everyone else will be starting with A

(kidding. sort of.)

Good luck with the search! If I come across any other more efficient way to narrow down your search, I'll let you know

Since one of the biggest challenges about publishing with smaller presses is being sure they have good distribution, I'd start with looking at the client lists of the most reputable and effective distributors.

I think the Independent Publishers Group is one of the best smaller-press distributors out there. Maybe their client list is a good place to start; look for publishers with similar titles/interests and check them out in other sources.

I echo the part about distributors.

if your publisher does NOT have a deal (and I'm not talking about Ingram's and B&T; they're just wholesalers and do nothing to promote or sell your book) with a reliable distributor you might as well just toss the book into the fire.

good luck!

nancy, you are quite correct. I'm in the same basic place you are, sending out queries to agents, looking for small publishers, etc. It's a daunting task, mainly because there is so much information out there (and that's not counting the scammers, that's just the legit people!).

I recommend you take a couple of days to browse through the Bewares & Background Checks thread here. It took me a few days just to get through the first five or six pages, but it's well worth it. Of course, you'll be cross-eyed and mumbling to yourself by the time you get done, but hey... if it gets your book published, it's worth it, right?

View on the "agent" route

Nancy

P&E is a great source, given they provide assessments and records of bad experiences.

Ref the agent route, when I get time, I intend to post a thread on my experiences with agents. For now (and this is JUST my opinion), my experiences were not positive in terms of potential success rate. I'm sure that other have had different experiences, but of the hundreds (yes, hundreds) of agents I sent to, I got zero interest. Of the two dozen small publishers I sent to, I got two offers, and several "Its great, but not our genre". I also changed my strategy after a year of rejections. I stopped wasting trees sending the 3 chapters/50 pages they requested, and focused on just forwarding a "great" query/synopsis by itself. Why? It was my view that if they liked the Q/S, then they would ask for more. Why kill trees when most never even get passed the Q/S.

The Q/S must shine. Get several people that you trust will bleed over it (they are hard to find). And don't get upset when they do. Ask yourself "Does this Q/S really tell what's unique/special about my story? Will the first fifteen seconds make them want to read further?" I've even written different versions and had people pick their favorite.

Course, that's just my view. Frankly, I find writing a good Q/S harder then writing the story, but you have to get though that critical first filter. It's worth the time.

Big Mike

Michael Davis
Davisstories.com - “Stories that touch the heart and mind"
TheWritersVineyard.com
[FONT=&quot]Tainted Hero[/FONT], “Sometimes good people do bad things for the right reasons.” Champagne books,Dec 07
[FONT=&quot]Forgotten Children[/FONT], “Greed is blind to human suffering.” Champagne books,July 08
[FONT=&quot]Blind Consent[/FONT], “Where the heart and mind collide.” 09
[FONT=&quot]The Treasure[/FONT], “A lonely heart can impair one’s judgment.” Forbidden Speculation paperback, Dec 07

The get-an-agent approach and the small publisher approach don't overlap, either. Since small houses pay so little in advances most agents won't submit to them anyway. So I'd go for the agent first because if you get a good one that opens up so many more possibilities. If it doesn't sell, you could go the small press route later.