FoamyRules:
Now, as a person who never published with anyone, I was wondering what are the red flags to be aware of while researching publishers.
This all depends on whether you're talking about publishing a novel or publishing short stories.
If you want to get a novel published then what you want is:
1. an advance - money should always flow towards the author and an advance represents the publisher's faith in the book and in its own ability to sell the book;
2. distribution - can you find the publisher's books in your local bookstore? (By "in" I mean, "on the shelves" and not "available to order from"). Publishers that take print rights need to have some kind of in-store distribution in place in order to maximise sales.
FoamyRules:
what exactly is a vanity press?
There are a lot of definitions out there, but basically it's any publisher that wants money from you in order to publish your book - whether that money is classed as a "self-publishing" fee, a "marketing fee", an "editorial services" fee etc etc etc. Vanity publishers may claim that they are selective and only take books on strict criteria but ultimately, they want your money.
Vanity publishers are also generally characterised by their inability/unwillingness to sell your book to the general public. They count on you effectively selling it to your friends and family (for which they will still get the bulk of any sale price and only pay you a small percentage). I've seen some vanity publishers try to counter this by offering authors 60%+ in royalty rates but if you're the only person trying to sell it, the chances are you won't shift enough copies to make back the money you spent to be published in the first place.
Publish America pays a token advance of $1 but it's the equivalent of giving you a peppercorn and they count on making money from you by selling you dubious marketing and promotion services.
FoamyRules:
what would be the best options for someone looking to publish their stories?
If you want to get a novel published, then your best bet is to try and find an agent. Preditors & Editors and Agent Query are the best place to start and you should do your research on the agent's criteria and submission requirements. You can also check out agents here on this Forum for information on response times, whether particular agents are looking for particular books etc.
If you're looking to publish short stories, then check out
www.duotrope.com, which lists short story markets. Start at the publications paying professional rates and work your way down.
Most of all though, you should be prepared to do a lot of research and the best thing you can do is educate yourself on the publishing industry and how it operates. AW is a good site for that (and it's worth checking out this forum in particular) but you should also check out the Writer Beware Blog because it highlights scams and things that you should consider.
If I can give you a reading recommendation, then I'd recommend checking out a copy of MERCHANTS OF CULTURE by John B Thompson. It's an overview of the publishing industry in the US and the UK, explaining the main players and how the industry has come to be in its current form. Thompson is a sociologist so the opening chapter is all about research techniques, but once you get past that, it's an interesting read that gives you enough information and know-how to counter some of the bullshit that new publishers/scam artists/vanity publishers put out there.
MM