THE BUSINESS OF BOOK PUBLISHING - ISSUE NUMBER ONE OF TEN

THE BUSINESS OF BOOK PUBLISHING
Issue #1 of 10
Publisher: Anita Diggs
Mail to: anitadiggs@aol.com
http://www.diggseditorialservices.com (Website)
http://themanuscripteditor.blogspot.com (Blog)

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In This Issue
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1. Does Your Novel Work?

2. Books Are Sold On Consignment

3. A Book That is Not Marketed? That’s Printing, Not Publishing

4. Publishing Your Own Book – Step One


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1. Does Your Novel Work?
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Once upon a time editors at the publishing houses would offer contracts to novelists even though the book didn’t quite “work.” After that, the editor would spend weeks or months helping the author whip the story into shape. That day is pretty much over. If the manuscript needs a great deal of work (massive cutting, the character’s motivation/action is not clear, etc.) it is returned to the agent. After everyone has rejected it, the agent has to move on. The writer starts thinking about self-publishing. This is the wrong move if you’re trying to build a career as a novelist. If your novel has serious problems (characterization, plot, pace, dialogue, grammar), why spend the money to put it out without repair?

Instead of jumping the gun, what you should do is hire a freelance developmental editor (not a copyeditor) who has major publishing house experience. With publishing houses laying off editors in an effort to stay afloat in this recession, finding one that you like should not be difficult. Ask the freelancer to evaluate your manuscript and create an “edit letter” for you. A sample edit letter is attached to this newsletter. Editors charge anywhere from $4.00-$18.00 per page for this service.

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2. Books Are Sold On Consignment
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During the Great Depression, publishers approached booksellers with a pitch that went something like this: We know that you are afraid to order books because people don’t have much money to buy anything. We understand that you are afraid of going out of business. So, we’re going to eliminate your risk. Order all the books you want and you can return those that don’t sell to us and get your money back.

That was more than half a century ago and the policy is still (incredibly) in place. This is why publishers hold part of a writer’s royalties for years. Those boxes of books that went out the door just might come back. The clause in a writer’s contract that permits this is called “Reserve Against Returns.”

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3. A Book That is Not Marketed? That’s Printing, Not Publishing
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It has never been a literary agent's job (nor do they have the time) to give writers a page-by-page analysis of what is working or not working in a manuscript or book proposal. So, they send out various forms of rejection letters. These letters (while necessary) do not give you any idea what the real reasons are for the rejection or how to fix it.

Book publishers operate in the same manner. When I was acquiring projects as a Random House Senior Editor, I received at least 60 packages per day. First, I sorted them. The unagented manuscripts went to my assistant for a first reading. I never saw most of them again because they were simply not publishable. I read enough of the agented submissions to decide whether I wanted to see more of the writer's work or not.

Because of the recession, agents and publishers are buying fewer projects. They are also uninterested in taking on projects that require a great deal of work......unless the writer is a celebrity.

Many folk are taking the self-publishing route. In other words, they sign up with iUniverse, AuthorHouse, Lulu, PublishAmerica, etc and get the book PRINTED. Notice that I said PRINTED and not PUBLISHED. These outfits print your book, give you your 10 free copies and send you on your way. They do not market your book. In fact, they do not even truly edit your book unless you pay an extra fee.


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4. PUBLISHING YOUR OWN BOOK – STEP ONE
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Okay, you have a completed manuscript that has been both edited and copyedited. It has been polished until it shines. For whatever reason, you have decided to skip the literary agent/major house submission process. However, you understand the difference between PRINTING and PUBLISHING and have decided to publish your own book. The first thing you need to do is get a lawyer to help you set up a legal entity (partnership, corporation, sole proprietorship, limited liability corp.,etc). Once that is done, open a checking account in the name of your new business.


Permission to Reprint:

You may reprint any items from this newsletter so long as you include the following paragraph:

Reprinted from “The Business of Book Publishing.” To subscribe, send your email address to anitadiggs@aol.com



ABOUT ANITA DIGGS
Anita Diggs has worked as a book editor for Random House, Time Warner Trade Publishing and Thunder’s Mouth Press. She has lectured across the country on the topics of novel writing, book proposal development and how to get a literary agent. She has written five books and helped more than fifty authors get their own into print. The New York Times, The Chicago Tribune, C-Span, The New York Daily News have interviewed her. Columbia Journalism Review placed Ms. Diggs on their “The Shapers” list for the year 2000. The Shapers is a list of prominent New Yorkers who shape the national media agenda.