- Joined
- Mar 9, 2011
- Messages
- 1,373
- Reaction score
- 225
[FONT="]Getting an agent didn’t work out; life’s too short for the slush piles of the bigger publishers that do accept unagented submissions… So here you are, shopping around for e-publishers. You’ve read the relevant Absolute Write discussions, you know that money must always flow to the author, you can now detect vanity outfits and scammers, you feel you’re good to go.[/FONT][FONT="]
[/FONT]
[FONT="]E-publishers don’t pay advances (or only miniscule ones) and don’t get your books into physical stores, but the royalties sound generous, and there’s this e-book explosion going on, right?[/FONT]
[FONT="]But on the other hand you really don’t want to self-publish – all this editing and cover-making and marketing crap should be done by people whose profession is to handle it. The writer writes, the editor edits, the cover artist makes cover art, the marketer markets. A division of labor which validates the existence of the publisher in the first place.[/FONT][FONT="]
[/FONT]
[FONT="]OK. Some people would agree, others would disagree, but you’re set on this. So here are a few things to check out.[/FONT][FONT="]
[/FONT]
[FONT="]I. [/FONT][FONT="]Do they actually have successful books?[/FONT]
[FONT="]The first and most important one: does this publisher have kindle bestsellers in your genre? Check them out on Amazon. Look up the sales rank numbers of their relevant books. Here’s a highly subjective rule of thumb:[/FONT]
- [FONT="]The book is in the top 100 of paid kindle downloads, and has been there for a while. – Hats off![/FONT]
- [FONT="]It’s in the top 1000 – Very good, bravo![/FONT]
- [FONT="]It’s in the top 10 000 – Not bad, actually.[/FONT]
- [FONT="]It’s in the top 100 000 – Neither here nor there…[/FONT]
- [FONT="]It’s in the top 200 000 – This author has gained a life lesson and a migraine.[/FONT]
- [FONT="]Below 200 000 – The wrong book was picked up by the wrong people for the wrong reasons. [/FONT][FONT="]
[/FONT]
[FONT="]Remember, it’s your genre that counts. If all their bestsellers are in the alpha werewolf latex bondage niche, then your galactic empire saga is not up their alley, even if they do accept submissions in this field. There's a very real chance that they only want your book to build their credibility as “publishing powerhouse”, and are not actually going to focus on making it a hit. [/FONT][FONT="]
[/FONT]
[FONT="]Also, most likely, they’ll classify it by their existing standards, describing it to the world not, for example, as “transhumanist cyberpunk epic”, but as “futuristic GLBT shape-shifters”, or something. Readers searching for transhumanist cyberpunk epics will be ignorant of your book’s existence, while futuristic GLBT shape-shifter lovers will feel cheated and will pan your book, or even spank it with a tiny paddle while dressed in a furrie suit. Find the publisher who knows what your genre is about.[/FONT]
[FONT="]Caveat: if the epublisher in question does indeed have successful books out there, and in your genre at that, make sure these books are not only by the owner/editor of the house. Otherwise there's a real chance you're being taken on just to hang around as a ‘house author’ to build someone’s ego and credibility and not as a potential 'winner'.[/FONT]
[FONT="]
[/FONT]
[FONT="]II. I checked the kindle sales. [/FONT][FONT="]They do not have successful books. But I’m sure mine can be the first[/FONT]!
[FONT="]This may not be entirely delusional, miracles have been known to happen, but you really should check the following:[/FONT][FONT="]
[/FONT]
[FONT="]Publishing scope[/FONT][FONT="]: Do they publish 1- 2 books a month or even less? If yes, then maybe you can get lots of personal attention to make your book reach its potential in quality and marketability. Perhaps they really did just need a lucky break to find the one awesome book that will transform everything – your masterpiece.[/FONT]
[FONT="]But if they publish a million books in a million genres – then your books is definitely destined to languish in the murky depth of low-sellers together with the rest. This is most likely an outfit that doesn’t even pretend to try to get a book to sell 10 000 copies – they’re content with a 1000 books selling 10 copies each. Perhaps it makes some sort of financial sense to them – but certainly not to you.[/FONT][FONT="]
[/FONT]
[FONT="]Marketing:[/FONT][FONT="] Do they say that they expect the author “to do his bit” and that theirs is a “revolutionary new approach which empowers the writer”, or maybe that you have to present with your submission query a marketing plan, because that’s totally how the market works these days, even with the bigger publishers and stuff? Then there's a real chance these people will not market your book. That they will maybe go through the motions for a few minutes, but in essence, they'll expect you to work at it as if you are self-publishing, but with them taking a cut of the profits.[/FONT][FONT="] Not all who use that language are like that, but many are. When all overall impressions add up, you'll know which type they are.
[/FONT]
[FONT="]But I can market my book better than they can[/FONT][FONT="]. It will be a success in spite of them. Well, in that case, just self-publish already.[/FONT][FONT="]
[/FONT]
[FONT="]Covers:[/FONT][FONT="] Do their book covers in your genre suck? If yes – yours will suck too. Do you buy books with cheap crap covers? (Unless you’re already a fan of the author? If a large group of people is already enjoying your work and prepared to pay for the privilege – just self-publish already)[/FONT]
[FONT="]
[/FONT]
[FONT="]Pricing[/FONT][FONT="]: Do they overprize their books? Do they sell novels by McNobody and his dystopian undead teen serials/galactic marines repulsing insectoid invasions for $19.99 a copy? If yes – then they are morons. If they are not morons, then, very likely, while they don’t actually ask for money upfront, they expect to get back their miniscule investment on your book from the ten friends and relatives of yours that will buy your book, and that’s all she wrote.[/FONT][FONT="]
[/FONT]
[FONT="]Editing:[/FONT][FONT="] Check two things – a) Do their book excerpts show a lack of basic proofreading, and b) do they state some ludicrous ‘house rules’ for authors? If yes, then imagine the worst scenario: a book with proofreading misses on every page, with arbitrary house rules castrating the prose into the bargain. Why would you wish that upon your book, into which you’ve invested so much time and effort?[/FONT]
[FONT="]
[/FONT]
[FONT="]Organization size:[/FONT][FONT="] Is the publisher a one person in his/her bedroom gig? If yes – what happens when this person falls ill, or their relatives fall ill, or they simply grow disillusioned with this business and suddenly focus on a career in interpretative dance or adult webcam shows featuring small paddles and furrie suits? You’re left without a paddle up fecal brook, is what happens.
[/FONT]
[FONT="]You’ve already signed the rights to your book away for years, and will have to spend hundreds or thousands of dollars to buy back the rights if you want them now. Or even just to track them down if they stop answering emails for one reason or other.[/FONT][FONT="]
[/FONT]
[FONT="]Fine one-person outfits do exist out there, but do your research – have they been around for long enough to show they know what they’re doing and are not prone to accidents?[/FONT][FONT="]
[/FONT]
[FONT="]Overall longevity:[/FONT][FONT="] You not only have to look for signs that an outfit is not a scam. An outfit that’s full of well-meaning amateurs who will go under in a year or two is as bad. Sometimes sunk publishers do the honorable thing and instantly and publically release all books and authors from any obligation, and even pay out the remainder of the accumulated royalties. But sometimes they don’t. Boy, it sucks when they don’t. Pick someone who will be around. [/FONT][FONT="]
[/FONT]
[FONT="]Contract duration:[/FONT][FONT="] A contract longer than 5 years, especially with people who do not have a line of consistently bestselling books in your genre, is merely an indication that those running the outfit are suffering from delusions of grandeur. Which means they are reality-challenged. The opposite of effective and efficient. They won’t be able to help you in your quest for success and recognition even if they wanted to.[/FONT]
[FONT="]1. [/FONT][FONT="]Make sure they already sell successfully stuff like yours.[/FONT]
[FONT="]If not[/FONT]
[FONT="]2. [/FONT][FONT="]Make sure they can at least edit-not-butcher stuff like yours.[/FONT]
[FONT="]3. [/FONT][FONT="]Can provide good cover art for stuff like yours.[/FONT]
[FONT="]4. [/FONT][FONT="]Can price correctly stuff like yours.[/FONT]
[FONT="]5. [/FONT][FONT="]Seem at least in theory capable of giving your stuff the attention it needs in order to get noticed and purchased.[/FONT]
[FONT="]6. [/FONT][FONT="]Are not just one strung out dude/overweight dudette (or strung out dudette/overweight dude), who may or may not suddenly disappear overnight.[/FONT]
[FONT="]7. [/FONT][FONT="]Are not a bigger amateur outfit that will suddenly disappear overnight. [/FONT]
[FONT="]8. [/FONT][FONT="]Aren’t taking rights they don’t deserve to take, and don’t take the rights they do deserve to take for a ridiculously long amount of time.
[/FONT]
[FONT="]Yes, this means you will spend days and days researching. Your book deserves no less from you.
[/FONT]
[/FONT]
[FONT="]E-publishers don’t pay advances (or only miniscule ones) and don’t get your books into physical stores, but the royalties sound generous, and there’s this e-book explosion going on, right?[/FONT]
[FONT="]But on the other hand you really don’t want to self-publish – all this editing and cover-making and marketing crap should be done by people whose profession is to handle it. The writer writes, the editor edits, the cover artist makes cover art, the marketer markets. A division of labor which validates the existence of the publisher in the first place.[/FONT][FONT="]
[/FONT]
[FONT="]OK. Some people would agree, others would disagree, but you’re set on this. So here are a few things to check out.[/FONT][FONT="]
[/FONT]
[FONT="]I. [/FONT][FONT="]Do they actually have successful books?[/FONT]
[FONT="]The first and most important one: does this publisher have kindle bestsellers in your genre? Check them out on Amazon. Look up the sales rank numbers of their relevant books. Here’s a highly subjective rule of thumb:[/FONT]
- [FONT="]The book is in the top 100 of paid kindle downloads, and has been there for a while. – Hats off![/FONT]
- [FONT="]It’s in the top 1000 – Very good, bravo![/FONT]
- [FONT="]It’s in the top 10 000 – Not bad, actually.[/FONT]
- [FONT="]It’s in the top 100 000 – Neither here nor there…[/FONT]
- [FONT="]It’s in the top 200 000 – This author has gained a life lesson and a migraine.[/FONT]
- [FONT="]Below 200 000 – The wrong book was picked up by the wrong people for the wrong reasons. [/FONT][FONT="]
[/FONT]
[FONT="]Remember, it’s your genre that counts. If all their bestsellers are in the alpha werewolf latex bondage niche, then your galactic empire saga is not up their alley, even if they do accept submissions in this field. There's a very real chance that they only want your book to build their credibility as “publishing powerhouse”, and are not actually going to focus on making it a hit. [/FONT][FONT="]
[/FONT]
[FONT="]Also, most likely, they’ll classify it by their existing standards, describing it to the world not, for example, as “transhumanist cyberpunk epic”, but as “futuristic GLBT shape-shifters”, or something. Readers searching for transhumanist cyberpunk epics will be ignorant of your book’s existence, while futuristic GLBT shape-shifter lovers will feel cheated and will pan your book, or even spank it with a tiny paddle while dressed in a furrie suit. Find the publisher who knows what your genre is about.[/FONT]
[FONT="]Caveat: if the epublisher in question does indeed have successful books out there, and in your genre at that, make sure these books are not only by the owner/editor of the house. Otherwise there's a real chance you're being taken on just to hang around as a ‘house author’ to build someone’s ego and credibility and not as a potential 'winner'.[/FONT]
[FONT="]
[/FONT]
[FONT="]II. I checked the kindle sales. [/FONT][FONT="]They do not have successful books. But I’m sure mine can be the first[/FONT]!
[FONT="]This may not be entirely delusional, miracles have been known to happen, but you really should check the following:[/FONT][FONT="]
[/FONT]
[FONT="]Publishing scope[/FONT][FONT="]: Do they publish 1- 2 books a month or even less? If yes, then maybe you can get lots of personal attention to make your book reach its potential in quality and marketability. Perhaps they really did just need a lucky break to find the one awesome book that will transform everything – your masterpiece.[/FONT]
[FONT="]But if they publish a million books in a million genres – then your books is definitely destined to languish in the murky depth of low-sellers together with the rest. This is most likely an outfit that doesn’t even pretend to try to get a book to sell 10 000 copies – they’re content with a 1000 books selling 10 copies each. Perhaps it makes some sort of financial sense to them – but certainly not to you.[/FONT][FONT="]
[/FONT]
[FONT="]Marketing:[/FONT][FONT="] Do they say that they expect the author “to do his bit” and that theirs is a “revolutionary new approach which empowers the writer”, or maybe that you have to present with your submission query a marketing plan, because that’s totally how the market works these days, even with the bigger publishers and stuff? Then there's a real chance these people will not market your book. That they will maybe go through the motions for a few minutes, but in essence, they'll expect you to work at it as if you are self-publishing, but with them taking a cut of the profits.[/FONT][FONT="] Not all who use that language are like that, but many are. When all overall impressions add up, you'll know which type they are.
[/FONT]
[FONT="]But I can market my book better than they can[/FONT][FONT="]. It will be a success in spite of them. Well, in that case, just self-publish already.[/FONT][FONT="]
[/FONT]
[FONT="]Covers:[/FONT][FONT="] Do their book covers in your genre suck? If yes – yours will suck too. Do you buy books with cheap crap covers? (Unless you’re already a fan of the author? If a large group of people is already enjoying your work and prepared to pay for the privilege – just self-publish already)[/FONT]
[FONT="]
[/FONT]
[FONT="]Pricing[/FONT][FONT="]: Do they overprize their books? Do they sell novels by McNobody and his dystopian undead teen serials/galactic marines repulsing insectoid invasions for $19.99 a copy? If yes – then they are morons. If they are not morons, then, very likely, while they don’t actually ask for money upfront, they expect to get back their miniscule investment on your book from the ten friends and relatives of yours that will buy your book, and that’s all she wrote.[/FONT][FONT="]
[/FONT]
[FONT="]Editing:[/FONT][FONT="] Check two things – a) Do their book excerpts show a lack of basic proofreading, and b) do they state some ludicrous ‘house rules’ for authors? If yes, then imagine the worst scenario: a book with proofreading misses on every page, with arbitrary house rules castrating the prose into the bargain. Why would you wish that upon your book, into which you’ve invested so much time and effort?[/FONT]
[FONT="]
[/FONT]
[FONT="]Organization size:[/FONT][FONT="] Is the publisher a one person in his/her bedroom gig? If yes – what happens when this person falls ill, or their relatives fall ill, or they simply grow disillusioned with this business and suddenly focus on a career in interpretative dance or adult webcam shows featuring small paddles and furrie suits? You’re left without a paddle up fecal brook, is what happens.
[/FONT]
[FONT="]You’ve already signed the rights to your book away for years, and will have to spend hundreds or thousands of dollars to buy back the rights if you want them now. Or even just to track them down if they stop answering emails for one reason or other.[/FONT][FONT="]
[/FONT]
[FONT="]Fine one-person outfits do exist out there, but do your research – have they been around for long enough to show they know what they’re doing and are not prone to accidents?[/FONT][FONT="]
[/FONT]
[FONT="]Overall longevity:[/FONT][FONT="] You not only have to look for signs that an outfit is not a scam. An outfit that’s full of well-meaning amateurs who will go under in a year or two is as bad. Sometimes sunk publishers do the honorable thing and instantly and publically release all books and authors from any obligation, and even pay out the remainder of the accumulated royalties. But sometimes they don’t. Boy, it sucks when they don’t. Pick someone who will be around. [/FONT][FONT="]
[/FONT]
[FONT="]Contract duration:[/FONT][FONT="] A contract longer than 5 years, especially with people who do not have a line of consistently bestselling books in your genre, is merely an indication that those running the outfit are suffering from delusions of grandeur. Which means they are reality-challenged. The opposite of effective and efficient. They won’t be able to help you in your quest for success and recognition even if they wanted to.[/FONT]
[FONT="]Summary:[/FONT]
[FONT="]If not[/FONT]
[FONT="]2. [/FONT][FONT="]Make sure they can at least edit-not-butcher stuff like yours.[/FONT]
[FONT="]3. [/FONT][FONT="]Can provide good cover art for stuff like yours.[/FONT]
[FONT="]4. [/FONT][FONT="]Can price correctly stuff like yours.[/FONT]
[FONT="]5. [/FONT][FONT="]Seem at least in theory capable of giving your stuff the attention it needs in order to get noticed and purchased.[/FONT]
[FONT="]6. [/FONT][FONT="]Are not just one strung out dude/overweight dudette (or strung out dudette/overweight dude), who may or may not suddenly disappear overnight.[/FONT]
[FONT="]7. [/FONT][FONT="]Are not a bigger amateur outfit that will suddenly disappear overnight. [/FONT]
[FONT="]8. [/FONT][FONT="]Aren’t taking rights they don’t deserve to take, and don’t take the rights they do deserve to take for a ridiculously long amount of time.
[/FONT]
[FONT="]Yes, this means you will spend days and days researching. Your book deserves no less from you.
[/FONT]
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