How to choose a publisher

chaoticscott

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It seems as though there are a million different publishers out there. How do you decide which one(s) to send your manuscript to? Personally, I have written a couple of picture books, now I need to figure out where to send them. I am in need of any help you all can give me. Thanks!
 

DanielaTorre

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This should give you an idea: http://www.querytracker.net/publishers.php. Just make sure to specify what genre you're searching for. Also, check those publishers to see if they accept unsolicited manuscripts. If they don't, you need to seek out an agent first. The website I provided also has a search feature for agents.

Remember, check to see if those publishers accept unsolicited manuscripts!!!
 

Sage

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On top of checking for whether they take unsolicited mss, you'll want to double-check with the publisher's website to make sure that they do indeed take the genre/age category in question. Occasionally, QT is wrong, so it's always worth double-checking. And, of course, do research into anyone you're submitting to, including in Bewares, Recs, and Background Checks on AW.
 

CrastersBabies

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Yeah, definitely research whether or not an agent (and/or publisher) are taking what you're selling. You'd be astounded by how many people go right into the REJECT pile by not following simple guidelines. And these guidelines will vary by publisher and agent.
 

Debbie V

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Harold Underdown and SCBWI both have resources on this as well. You can Google them. You'll need to join SCBWI, but it's worth it.
 

smh1024

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I have not published or sent any manuscripts out yet. However, I have done a substantial amount of research on potential publishing houses and this is what I did:

I read through the 2014 Children's Writer's & Illustrator's Market (http://www.amazon.com/dp/159963726X/?tag=absowrit-20). I looked for publishers that seemed like they might be interested in the type of story I have. If a publisher seemed like even a remote possibility, I wrote them down on my list. Of all the publishers listed in that book, I walked away with 23 possibilities. Then, I further researched those 23 possible publishers via Google. I checked their websites, make sure they were accepting unsolicited/unagented (is that a word?) manuscripts, figured out what they wanted in a submission, etc. That whittled my list of 23 down to 8.

I am not quite ready to submit yet. But, my next step is to consider the submission requirements of the various publishers on my list of 8 and develop a game plan. I also need to consider my goals...Should I take a chance with a big name publisher who wants an exclusive submission and will probably hold my process hostage for months and months or do I cast a larger net and submit to a few smaller,independent publishers at one time with the hope of moving things along faster? I don't know.

Anyways, I hope you find this helpful.