Martin Sisters Website:
(One of the biggest misconceptions about the world of book publishing is that authors get to write while publishers sell their books. While MSP will work very hard to market your book, the true success of any book comes from the author’s willingness to put themselves and their work into the marketplace. This can include media contacts you may already have, a fan base you have already collected, book events you plan to attend, signings at bookstores, etc.)
The marketing plan is very important!
Yes, the marketing plan is very important, which is why any author should ask Martin Sisters Publishing exactly what they plan to do to sell it. Will they have distribution in place so that books are stocked in stores? Do they have review contacts they can send ARCs to (in fact, will they even do ARCs or free review copies)?
Marketing does not just fall to the author. The publisher should be as invested in the success of the book.
There is absolutely nothing on the website to support that claim. I would want to know who they have worked for in getting that 50 years experience.
Martin Sisters Website:
The sisters want their readers to feel as much a part of the Martin Sisters family as the original family members who created the publishing company.
I'm mentioning this because it's a personal turn-off. As an author, if you're looking to make money from your book then you want a publisher who is dedicated to operating as a business that will make money from it (and money that will in turn flow to you). As an author I'm not interested in joining a family. I want someone who will sell my books (and not just to me, my friends and my family). While I obviously want to have a good relationship with a publisher, I'm not looking for surrogate sisters or whatever and that kind of cosy relationship can get in the way of an author's professional interests.
Martin Sisters Website:
We are two real sisters who are self-made women that started from meager beginnings.
After years of hard work and sacrifice we have arrived at a place where we are fulfilledhttp://www.martinsisterspublishing.com/wp-content/uploads/2010/10/maple-leaves-for-logo.jpg emotionally and professionally and realize it is time to do what we love. Our company is personal to us and can be seen in every element from our logo to our many publishing imprints. There is a story behind everything.
The two maples leaves on our logo represent each of us. Fall is our favorite season and the maple tree is indigenous to the beautiful mountains we see every day. We are both entering the fall of our lives, a place we hope to stay for a very long time.
The turning of the maple leaf amidst the kaleidoscope of the mighty oaks and gentle cedars bring vibrant colors for nature’s canvas. We now are ready to bring our unique splash of color to the publishing industry .
Welcome. We hope you visit us often.
Melissa and Denise
This is their "About Us" page and it tells you absolutely nothing about the founders, their experience or what they're going to bring to an author's book that the author can't do for themselves. There are also grammatical mistakes, which make me question their self-proclaimed editing skills.
Martin Sisters Website:
Martin Sisters Publishing is accepting queries for all genres of fiction (including science fiction and fantasy); and non-fiction (including self-help), these submissions may include Christian fiction and inspirational.
For a start-up it's better to focus on one genre or category of non-fiction so that you can target the marketing and promotional efforts and build up a reputation to enable you to go into other genres. The fact that they're pretty much open to everything, suggests to me that they're going to lack that focus.
Martin Sisters Website:
The Sisters are not accepting submissions for poetry, torrid or any books containing extreme violence.
I mention this because while it's good that they're not accepting poetry (for which there is no market), they are actively soliciting the following:
Martin Sisters Website:
Haven’t we all fancied ourselves poets at one point or another only to go back to that “priceless” journal of ours to find it was some really horrible prose? I know my sister Dee wrote some really bad poetry when she was in the fifth or sixth grade — something about puppies in the snow. Cute but not Walt Whitman material. And, I too have to confess I did my part as well to embarrass myself and the poetry gods by penning a bad lyric or ten! For girls this affliction usually starts in elementary school with that first crush and continues through high school, while boys begin prosing at puberty and finish almost before they start. Here’s hoping you kept some of that really bad poetry. We at MSP would like to include it in our next book so dig it out of that old box in the top of your mother’s closet or recreate it from those almost-forgotten memories gathering cobwebs in your head as I write this post. Send submissions to
[email protected] Please put the words Bad Poetry in the subject line. There is no word limit in this category.
If good poety is a hard sell then how on earth is a publisher going to sell a book comprising bad poetry? From these guidelines, I don't see anyone wanting it other than the author or their friends and family and that's not a good customer base for an author.
Ditto this comment for another collection they want to put together of bad country and western songs:
Martin Sisters Website:
Yes, it’s a lot like the book of really bad poetry but the difference is that you repeatedly sang your heart out (when, if you’re like me you couldn’t carry a tune in a bucket). You most likely tortured your family, friends and neighbors as you held them captive while you belted out that tune that was going to earn you a cool million someday. Then, you finished with that dreaded question, “What did you think?” Well, if you’re still longing to get that bad boy published we’re definitely interested. We may not be able to produce a studio recording with Brad Paisley at the mic and we can’t take it to the top 40 but we can certainly publish it in our book. Send submissions to
[email protected] Please put the words Bad Country Music Songs in the subject line. There is no word limit in this category.
All in all, while I don't doubt the company's intentions, there's nothing here that makes me think they're currently placed to give authors a good deal.
MM
