Every time I check my web traffic, I am amazed to discover how many people frequent this blog. I get around 25,000 hits every month. That’s not huge, I guess, in the scheme of things, but it pleases me. It means that at least some authors and freelance writers are “hearing” bits and pieces of information and, possibly, collecting resources that they need in order to succeed in the publishing field. That does my heart good.
I just wish that more hopeful authors would do a thorough job of research before they shift from writer to published author. I wish they would take off their writers’ hat much earlier in the process and start gearing up for the wild ride into the world of publishing.
It doesn’t take a college degree to become a published author, but maybe this should be a requirement. However, it does take knowledge in order to successfully navigate the publishing industry. I think that those of you who dove right into the world of publishing still wearing your writers’ hat will agree that wasn’t the wisest move you’ve ever made.
With your emotions and hopes running high (I mean, you’ve just finished writing the book of your dreams), you launch out on the Internet to locate yourself a publisher. Wow! Look at that!! You found a great sounding publisher on your first try. All you did was type in “publisher,” and several of them came up. Which one should you choose? First, let’s play it smart and check out their websites. Oh, this one charges only $999 to publish your book. Hey that’s a bargain—no fuss and no muss. They do it all for you.
You hesitate only briefly and then fill out the form on the website and submit your manuscript.
They accepted it? You’re thrilled. Your dream is about to come true. You will be published. And the folks at the publishing company seem so very nice. They even offer to get your book into bookstores and it won’t cost all that much more to purchase the returnable policy—what about $800?
Then comes the day when you receive your precious book in the mail. What’s this? There’s a spelling error on the cover. And it isn’t a very attractive cover at that—not at all what you expected. But it’s your book. You are published. You can go to any bookstore in the U.S. and you’ll see your book there on the shelf.
“What?” you say. You have to buy your own books? What was that $999 fee for? Well, at least you didn’t pay $3,000 like the author you talked to the other day did.
It’s a few months later and you’ve visited several local bookstores. Your book is not there. Your friends and family in other states are checking their bookstores, too. Nothing. The bookstore manager you talked to doesn’t know anything about your title. Uncle George, a retired attorney, reads your publishing contract and explains that the publisher doesn’t say the books will be in bookstores, only that they will be available to bookstores nationwide. He explains that this means if someone comes to the publisher asking for a book like yours, he will tell them about your book.
You attempt to place your book in local bookstores on your own. The independents will take them, but the discount is so deep and your initial cost of the book so steep that you can’t afford to sell books that way.
You sign up for a book festival—reserve a booth with a group of other authors. You have trouble getting copies of your books to take to the booth with you. And, again, you figure out that you’re making no money because you have to pay so much to purchase your books and then there’s the cost of booth space. And several people tell you that the price on your book is awfully high. You check around and discover that this is so. Why did the publisher decide to charge so much for the book? There’s no way you can make money on this book except for those books the publisher sells. You get “royalties” on those books. The problem is, almost a year has passed and he hasn’t sold any books, yet.
Now, you know something about the publishing industry. You know that you made one huge mistake in not learning more about it, about your options and about your responsibilities as a published author BEFORE you ventured into the highly competitive publishing business.
Those of you who are writing a book, thinking about writing a book or who have just finished a book, stop!!! Before you write another word and before you click Google in search of a publisher, read my book, The Right Way to Write, Publish and Sell Your Book. Read it from cover to cover. Join writers and publishers organizations with a learning mindset. Read this blog often. Become a sponge. Scrutinize every option and every opportunity. Make your publishing decisions based on knowledge, not emotions.
http://www.matilijapress.com/rightway.html
This book is also available at Amazon.com and Barnes and Noble Bookstores.