The Four Types of Publishing Part One by Jo Wilkins

What does it mean to get “Published”? Dictionary.com defines it as follows:

Publish: to issue (printed or otherwise reproduced textual or graphic material, computer software, etc.) for sale or distribution to the public.

During my seminars and when I receive queries from writers, I am inundated with questions on how much traditional publishing should cost. The misconception that ‘all publishing has a fee due to the publisher’ is ludicrous. Over the next few months, I would like to break some of the misconceptions on the types of publishing available for the prepared author.

I will present information on the four (4) types of Publishing. These types are defined as:

1.      Traditional Publishing

2.      Subsidized Publishing

3.      Self-Publishing

4.      Vanity Presses

There are a few steps every author needs to prepare before submitting their work for whichever type of publishing you choose. It is imperative to follow these steps before any publisher is allowed to review the manuscript:

1.      Put the manuscript through a grammar and spell check

                       Every word processing program has some version of spell and 

                       grammar check. These simple errors will prevent a publisher from

                       reading more than the first page of your submission.

2.      Make sure your story hits the proper audience

                       Your main character's age should be in the middle of the target

                       audience.

                       Young Adult books should have a main character between late teens                        and 25 years old.

3.      Have a professional editor edit the manuscript.

                       Do some research on who is appropriate for the type of story you are

                       writing. Always get references and have them do sample pages. This is

                       the most important step. Unedited manuscripts printed into books are

                       becoming the ruination of the publishing world.

4.      Carefully read the submissions guidelines for the publisher you choose

                       This is the first test by the publisher and determines whether they put

                       you under contract. If you can’t follow simple directions, they may

                       think you will be difficult to work with and pass over your wonderful

                       manuscript.

A commercial or traditional publisher is one who distributes books under its own imprint. It puts the manuscripts from authors under contract and handles the cost of producing those manuscripts: Cover and interior design, formatting, printing, marketing in conjunction with the author, distribution, etc. The author is not expected to pay any of these costs. The cost of marketing generally falls to the author. The copyright on these books is leased by the publisher and remains in the publisher's possession until the contract expires. The author receives a percentage of sales in the form of royalties outlined in the contract. Using a commercial/traditional publisher has the following advantages:

* Advances and royalties.

                 Some imprints have the resources to give advances, but not usually for 

                 first-time authors.

*  No cost to author.

                 This is very important to remember - Commercial/traditional publishers will 

                 never charge you any type of fee.

*  Prestige.

                 Reputation of the imprint is important, so do your research. Some small

                 houses may not be well known, but may have a great reputation with their

                 authors and their peers.

*  National Marketing.

                 For reviews and distribution.

*  Everything for producing your book is done by the imprint.

                 Remember, you should not be charged for any of this.

Realizing that it takes from $3,000 to $5,000 to properly bring a book to the reading public, there are some things you should be aware of that may keep you from using the commercial/traditional route.

*  It can be very difficult to get published─100,000+ manuscripts are submitted each year.

                  Publishers, in most cases, are part of an old-boy network and it is very

                  difficult to enter their network without connections.

*  You are still responsible for a large part of the marketing for your book.

                  Some imprints have you write another book on how or what you are willing

                  to do to help market your book.

*  Very small number of manuscripts selected each year.

                  Get to know agents and publishers at conferences and workshops so you can
                  help your submission stay out of the slush pile.

*  Publisher has a greater degree of control over your work.

                  You will not have any say in cover art, blurbs for the book cover, etc., unless

                  the publisher agrees to let you have some say in the book production.

*  Limited amount of money earned for each book sold.

                  Most contracts give royalties of 10% to 12% (depending on the resources of the                   imprint)

In 2010, the Sunday Times of London sent 20 British publishers and agents previously published prize-winning books as manuscripts. These manuscripts were represented as new authors seeking publishers. Two examples were the opening chapters of, In a Free State, by V.S. Naipaul, who won the Nobel Prize for Literature, and Holiday, by Stanley Middleton. The object of this effort was to see if the agents or publishing houses could distinguish true talent.

Both of these were Booker prize winners from the 1970s and were lauded as British novel writing at its best. None of the publishers or agents recognized the manuscripts. Some rejected both Booker prize-winning novels. Of the 21 replies received, all but one were rejections.

Responding to the Naipaul manuscript, in which only the author's name and the names of the characters had been changed, a submissions department reader for PDF, a major London literary agency, wrote: "Having considered your material, we do not feel, we are sorry to say, not sufficiently enthusiastic or confident about it."

The Blake Friedmann agency also sent apologies: "In order to take on a new author, several of us here would need to be extremely enthusiastic about both the content and writing style. I'm sorry to say we don't feel that strongly about your work."

A few publishers and agents, when they realized they had been stung, blamed the sheer volume of manuscripts they received and lack of time to read every page. "With other forms of entertainment today there are very few people around who would understand what a good paragraph is," added Naipaul.

Nicholas Clee, former editor of The Boookseller magazine, said publishers are no longer eager to take risks on untried authors because they face fierce competition as supermarkets force down prices. "Publishers tend to go for newcomers who have something sensational to offer, or authors with established names. They're putting big promotional efforts behind just a few titles," he said.

My advice as an author and a publisher, knowing how hard it is to get past the first hurdles of submissions and now seeing some of the badly done submissions we receive here at Ink & Quill and NewLink,, is never send out your first draft. Make sure that you have it reviewed by someone who knows what the industry is looking for. Make it spot on perfect in grammar, spelling and content. In other words, learn the craft you plan to pursue before you submit it to the industry.