PUBLISHING OPTIONS
What
is publishing?
Publishing
refers to the process involved in
taking the edited manuscript (MS) and readying it for printing in a professional
format acceptable to readers.
(1)
Conventional publishing: This involves submitting your MS to publishing
houses and waiting for them to decide if they will accept your work and publish
the MS (Assumption: you have done your homework and are submitting to the
publishers who deal with that genre, remember that not all publishers will
accept all genres). Usually, some publishing houses insist on dealing with new
writers through literary agencies and not directly. If you submit your MS
without a query letter or without first getting permission to submit your work,
your MS will be termed as unsolicited and will automatically be cast into a
‘slush’ pile (The End). Sometime,
although your MS may fall within the genres that the publishing house deals
with, there is still a 60 percent chance that it will not even be read, let
alone evaluated for acceptance. The reasons for rejection could range from the
fact that the MS may be of a poor standard, or that the market may not be ready
for more novels in that specific genre (e.g. adventure) or that the publishing
houses already have a full quota of writers and manuscripts etc. If you fall
within the small percentage of new writers who are accepted for publication, it
may take a further 1-2 years before your work is in print. The author need not
contribute toward the costs of printing, marketing and distribution of the book
but the rights to the book are held by the publisher and the author is paid a
percentage of the profit from the sale of a book (known as a royalty). The
problem is that once your books are on the shelves, they are not guaranteed to
sell unless you as an author contribute towards your own marketting.
(2)
Vanity publishing: A quick and easy way to get published but be wary. A
vanity publisher advertises for new MS’s which are usually accepted
irrespective of the quality and standard of writing. Your novel could be
available within months. The author pays all costs and receives profits from
sales. In this case, the author should ensure that the standard and the quality
of the MS has been screened by professional editors before printing. An option
to consider if you want once-off printing of a MS only for family and friends
– not wise for a serious writer. Always read the fine print and determine all
costs upfront to know what your rights to your work are.
(3)
Subsidy publishing: A portion of the costs (marketing, editing, storage) is
shared with the author. Subsidy publishers are meant to be discretionary in
their selection of manuscripts to be printed. The rights to the novel lies with
the publisher and the author receives payment in the form of royalties.
(3)
Print-on-demand or
self-publishing: All costs are carried by the author and the rights to the
book remain with the author. All profits from sales made by the author remain
with the author. Marketing, sales and distribution is the responsibility of the
author unless the services are requested from the publishing house and paid for
by the author. In this case, the author should ensure that the standard and the
quality of the MS has been screened by professional editors before printing.
Your novel could be available within months. Costs are less than through vanity
publishing since the author can tailor-make their required publishing packages.
Small quantities of books can be printed when the demand for copies arises. If
you have the ability to market and sell your own books, this route could work
fairly successfully since you keep all profits.
NOTE: Its sad but when authors self-publish, they are subjected to a fair amount of negativity and prejudice in the sense that other reviewers/ readers may see it as a botched attempt at trying to publish or that the standard of the book is inferior. Its also sad when self-published writers fuel this perception by not having their work properly edited before publishing.
Some well-known authors who self-published are: ~ William Blake ~ Stephen Crane ~ e.e. cummings ~ Benjamin Franklin ~ James Joyce ~ Rudyard Kipling ~ D.H. Lawrence ~ Anais Nin ~ Edgar Allan Poe ~ Ezra Pound ~ George Bernard Shaw ~ Gertrude Stein ~ Mark Twain ~ Henry David Thoreau ~ Walt Whitman ~ Virginia Woolf ~