My Journey to Find a Publisher Begins
That’s right! I’m looking for a publisher for an idea I have for a book, which I would love to turn into a series if all goes according to plan my dreams.
Although I’ve always stated that publishing an electronic book is the way to go (because of the fact that they are easy to create, easy to automate and very cost-effective), one of my life long goals is to see a book on the shelves of a major bookstore with my name on the front cover. With an idea in my head and my motivation levels high (as always), I think now is the time to start pursuing this goal.
I’m not going to tell you exactly what my idea is (I’m sorry!), but I can tell you it does involve the internet, social networking, and possibly you! Now I bet you’re really wondering what it is…but don’t worry, I will tell you eventually.
Right now, however, I will tell you about my trials and errors with this journey.
My First Task
After doing a bit of initial research, I found out that the first thing to do is find a publisher who is interested in working with me and my idea. All of this happens before I complete a manuscript because if I write the whole thing first and no publishers are interested, I will have wasted my time.
Now, I can’t just submit my idea to any publisher. Different publishers are interested in different topics, so I’m going to have to go to the bookstore into the section I hope my book will be placed someday, and check out the books there and find out who the publishers are. I already have a list of a few that I found via Amazon.com that I plan to submit a submission package to.
What’s in a Submission Package?
Let’s take one of the publishers I plan on submitting to, HCIBooks.com. Their submission package requires the following (directly from the HCI submission webpage):
Send us your bio or curriculum vitae. Include information on professional credentials, current occupation, previously published works, any public speaking or promotional experience you have, and any television or radio appearances you have made.
Supply detailed information on the marketability of your book, including:
- Target audience
- Market size, description and demographics
- How do you intend to promote the book?
- Book summary and purpose
- Book’s unique content and characteristic
- Competing titles and sales figures
- Specific information not provided by comparable titles
Please DO NOT submit bound or two-sided copies of your manuscript. Please send no more or less than the following:
B. Table of contents.
C. Introduction.
D. Two sample chapters.
In preparing the manuscript sample, please observe our format requirements (these also apply if you are asked to send a complete manuscript):
IV. SASE
Send a self-addressed, stamped (not metered) envelope of suitable size and with sufficient postage to return your proposal. Materials received without an appropriate SASE will not be returned.
That’s a lot of things, but I’m sure they only want serious inquiries and want to know as much about the person and his/her project as possible before even considering working with them. Definitely understandable.
No Matter What Happens…
I think this will be a great learning experience. It may be a lost cause, or it may be the greatest experience ever. I won’t know unless I give it a shot, and I believe I have the business experience and the motivation to make this happen for me.
More details coming soon…I gotta get my submission package in order. Wish me luck!
Posted on : July 14th, 2009
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15 Comments (Click Here to Leave a Comment Below)
Pat, way to go! I would also like to publish a book. Actually, I am even more interested in getting my son’s writing published. Thanks for blazing the trail and showing us how you’re doing it. The outline for the submission looks like a good business plan for any online business!
This is something I am wanting to do also. From my research it seems that you should try to get an agent before submitting directly to publishers. I’m interested to see how this turns out for you.
Is this standard for non-fiction, or for fiction as well? Usually with fiction you need to have the whole book written to be considered by an agent, who then find a publishers. Granted I know nothing about this so my word means nothing, but as someone who would love to get a fiction book published I have done a little research. Just curious.
Yes, with fiction (for an unpublished author) you need to have the whole book finished – although most publishers and agents will want to see a query first, then if they liked that, they’ll ask for sample chapters and an outline.
In other words, they do want a beginner to have finished writing the novel (if only to prove you can) but they don’t want to read it until pretty late in the selection process.
Good luck Pat. I hope everything work out for you. When it does, I will buy the book for sure.
Jeez — good luck.
I do have an idea for you though. Joel Comm has had more than one best-seller published, and publishers seek HIM out. I read a post from him some months back that he was getting into the publishing business himself and was considering properties. You might want to do a search related to book publishing on Joel Comm.com and see what you find.
You could also just email him and ask for his counsel — he’s a nice guy and I’m sure he’d help you as much as he could.
Good Luck.
What initiative on fulfilling your dream! I’m intrigued on what the book will be. Good luck!
Pat,
Just found your site and I am rooting for you all the way. Not sure how married you are to the idea of getting a real publisher but if you want to K.I.S.S. the thing you might want to look into POD (Print On Demand) services. Once you write your book you could have it printed in a matter of days, done all from the comfort of your own home. POD won’t necessarily get you on store shelves, but if you choose the right service, it can get you global online distribution through major retailers.
The beauty of print on demand is that there is no stifling bureaucracy to wade through. No inventory to order, or orders to fulfill. You upload a PDF to the corresponding company and they do all the work of assigning things like ISBNs, taking and fulfilling orders, etc. You set the price and they deposit money into your account minus a small commission for each book sold. Talk about passive income!
Here are some services to consider:
+ CreateSpace.com
+ LuLu.com
+ BookSurge.com
+ LightningSource.com
Create Space and Lulu provide free title setup. You essentially create an account and upload a PDF to the site. You order and accept your proof, and your title is available for sale. Doesn’t get any simpler than that.
The other two services require a little more investment from you. BookSurge (which is an Amazon company) provides additional services (like basic editing, cover creation, etc.). They charge a few hundred dollars for this.
Lightning source gives you global distribution but you have to BYOISBN (Bring Your Own ISBN) which costs a couple hundred dollars, as well as pay a nominal setup fee ($37.50 for the interior files and $37.50 for the cover). It’s not as turn-key but they are affiliated with Ingram.
In any event, if you have any question and want to chat, email me. I am more than happy to help. My life is running a parallel path to yours so it would be cool to share ideas.
Nice post. If you can dream it, you can live it!
Won’t be as profitable as an ebook, but the exposure and crediabliity building it will do for you will be tremendous!
Good Luck!
[...] My Journey to Find a Publisher Begins [...]
Hi Pat,
Just stumbled upon your site while doing some reading on passive income topic earning by blogger. I think it is related to ehow income.
You are doing great especially with the Leed stuff. Nice job. And it seems your get great feedback. So you must have done something excellent. So well done. And then I came across this post. So since I know about this one guy who I believe really know about book publishing maybe I should let you now too. I don’t know this guy personally but I have read his stuff since middle 2007. So maybe you could check him out.
authorandgetrich.com
Good luck. Hope you can help more people and be an inspiration to others while on your journey.
Thanks Red! I really appreciate you stopping by, and helping me out with that link. I really appreciate it! All the best to you!
Good luck with the publisher quest i’ve tried a few services and they’ve all been pretty bad
Pat, we got another one trying to use my name. ^^^
P.S. Pat, if my picture isn’t there, its not me.
This is great information on getting a book published. I hope to do this someday soon, but for now, it’s saved in evernote! Thanks for yet another great post!