I often get the question, \u201cIs my writing strong enough for a publisher to pick it up?\u201d or \u201cDo you think I have a chance with a publisher?\u201d <\/p>\n
Here\u2019s my typical response to questions like these:<\/p>\n
That\u2019s a hard call for anyone to make. I\u2019ve seen strong writers with excellent projects rejected over and over again and weak writers with mediocre stories picked up by publishers. There is nothing wrong with going for the gold\u2014with setting your sights high and approaching major publishers with your project. But I recommend that every hopeful author have a plan B and C and maybe even D. I even outline exactly how to do this in my book, The Right Way to Write, Publish and Sell Your Book<\/em><\/strong>. In fact, I\u2019ve never seen a guide quite like the one I provide in this book. <\/p>\n The thing is that publishing has become highly competitive. More people than ever before are writing books and more are getting published through a variety of means. In 2008 there were over 560,000 books published, less than half of them through traditional publishers. That\u2019s over 100,000 more than in 2007. And there are fewer people reading books. So once they are produced, distribution becomes a nightmare\u2014it is a huge, all-consuming process. And this is true whether you self-publish, go with a pay-to-publish company or land a traditional publisher. <\/p>\n There are some types of books that are doing better in the marketplace (and being more readily accepted by publishers) than others. Romance is solid and steady and young adult fantasy is hot. Nonfiction books that fill a niche will also sell\u2014the number of books depends on the size of the audience within that niche.<\/p>\n Good writing is important, but you still see books published by traditional publishers that are not well-written. I\u2019ve also seen some excellent books rejected by publishers. Sometimes, you have to prove your book before a publisher will express an interest. In other words, you produce it, promote it like crazy and, once you have reached a high level of sales in a fairly short time (5,000 in 6 or 8 months, for example) you might more easily find a publisher. There\u2019s still no guarantee.<\/p>\n Many of the authors whose projects are rejected by a few publishers give up too soon. Some very famous books were rejected over and over before being picked up by publishers. Most new authors do not realize the number of publishers out there. There are the big 6 publishing houses and then there are hundreds of medium to small publishers eager for a good project that is going to make them some money. (Check Writer\u2019s Market <\/em>for listings of publishers and go to bookstores, find books in your genre\/topic and see who published them.)<\/p>\n But you have to consider this, as well\u2014the quality of your writing isn\u2019t all that a publisher is going to be interested in. He wants to know that you have a platform (a following\u2014that people will want to read what you write) and that you will be active in promoting the book. I often recommend that fiction authors start submitting stories to appropriate magazines long before they are ready to approach a publisher. And I suggest that nonfiction authors publish articles on their topic in a variety of key publications. Then they can tell the publisher that their stories\/articles have appeared in all of these magazines that are being read by their audiences, thus their name is being associated with this genre\/topic. This is one way to establish a following.<\/p>\n Keep in mind that a traditional publisher is not necessarily the answer to every author\u2019s prayers. A publisher can get your book into bookstores much more easily than you can on your own. But with the number of books out there\u2014the competition\u2014books, today, do not have a very long shelf life. If your book isn\u2019t selling (if you aren\u2019t out there promoting it and bringing readers into the bookstores to buy it), it will be yanked off of the shelves within a matter of months and your bookstore advantage is over. <\/p>\n Learn much more about understanding and navigating the publishing industry more successfully by reading my book, The Right Way to Write, Publish and Sell Your Book<\/em><\/strong>. Tomorrow I\u2019m going to discuss book promotion and what it entails. I know that many first-time authors go into publishing eager to do what it takes to succeed, without really understanding what it actually takes.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":" I often get the question, \u201cIs my writing strong enough for a publisher to pick it up?\u201d or \u201cDo you think I have a chance with a publisher?\u201d Here\u2019s my typical response to questions like these: That\u2019s a hard call for anyone to make. I\u2019ve seen strong writers with excellent projects rejected over and over […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":5,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":[],"categories":[3],"tags":[],"aioseo_notices":[],"aioseo_head":"\n\t\t\n\t\n\t\n\t\n\t\n\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t
\n http:\/\/www.matilijapress.com\/rightway.html<\/a> <\/p>\n