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Guideposts Books / Ideal Publications

ChelseaWriter

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I don't see a thread on this yet, so I thought I'd start one about Guideposts Books. I knew that Guideposts was a magazine, but had no idea they might also publish books? I came across a novel today that I thought looked interesting, and noticed that the publisher name (via Amazon) was Guideposts Books.

Anyway, I can't find anything concrete about them online. I went to Preditors/Editors, searched AW, Googled them, etc. Here's their website, but there are no writer's guidelines. I might be way off base, but I'm almost wondering if GB is a self-publishing company? I don't really have anything that indicates it, other than it's not easy to find a way to submit work (via writer or via agent) to them.

Anyone have experience with or knowledge about GB, as a publishing company? Thanks in advance...
 

CAWriter

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Guideposts Books is not a self-publishing company or anything resembling it. It is a legitimate publisher; somewhat new to the market outside their Guideposts books (yearbooks of the best of their magazines, inspirational desk calendars, etc) and book-club distribution channels. I honestly don't know about submission guidelines other than you can connect with their representatives at conferences and get an invitation to submit that way (they do accept agented submissions, but seem to publish writers they've previously worked with or authors they seek out). They recently acquired Summerside Books as well.
 

ChelseaWriter

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Excellent - thank you so much for the response!! Exactly what I was hoping for. The quality of their books (from the covers, synopses) seems very high, and I like that their overall outlook/theme is an inspirational one.

The main reason I'd asked about the self-publishing aspect (I should've included this earlier) was that I'd found this in my research and couldn't find much else about the submission process (guidelines).
 
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AnneMarble

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Inspiring Voices

...
The main reason I'd asked about the self-publishing aspect (I should've included this earlier) was that I'd found this in my research and couldn't find much else about the submission process (guidelines).

Here is a FAQ for Inspiring Voices:
http://www.inspiringvoices.com/FAQ/General_Information.aspx

Guideposts sent out an e-mail to its general lists about Inspiring Voices. It looks like Inspiring Voices is a self-publishing (vanity press, really) ervice provided through Guideposts. And through Author Solutions. What a shock. :rolleyes:

Damn. Another legitimate company is starting up a vanity press, and through Author Solutions.

The prices for the packages are listed here:
http://www.inspiringvoices.com/Packages/Default.aspx
 

Deb Kinnard

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I believe Guideposts also recently acquired Summerside Press, an advance and royalty payer with a good reputation in romance. AFAIK, Summerside never went the self-pub service route and has no affiliation with Author Solutions or any business of that type.
 

CAWriter

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Sad to say the Summerside imprint of Guideposts books will be ceasing operation. Some contracted books will be released through 2014, but no new acquisitions.

There's a good summary/analysis of what it really means (not just the doom for publishing) on agent Steve Laube's blog.
 

Maryn

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FWIW, a little story about Guideposts, to which my mother-in-law subscribed for many years.

Through them, she apparently donated to some Christian charity. Fine. But for more than a decade after she entered a nursing home (where she died a couple years later), someone from Guideposts would call, ask for her by name, and suggest that maybe she forgot her recent pledge and to please rush $25 (or $50, I can't remember) to them, as a good Christian keeps her word.

Since she could not possibly have pledged anything, I found this completely unconscionable. For that reason alone, if I wrote material suitable for them, I would not submit it to them. I don't want to do business with publishers who attempt to convince the elderly they are morally obligated to keep to a pledge they did not actually make.

Maryn, just the facts, ma'am
 

CaoPaux

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FYI, Ideals Publications was acquired by Worthy Publishing Group in Oct '14. (press release)