advice needed about publishing market? published authors answer - Writers Forum

tbs21 · 04-13-2006, 05:27 PM

I need some advice about the publishing market. any published authors out there please tell me something. any suggestions about who to publish with? any replies will be greatly appreciated

mammamaia · 04-13-2006, 06:38 PM

you're asking for a whole googlepot of stuff... first of all, what is it you want to get published?... short stories?... articles?... books?... fiction or non-?... poems?...

are you sure your work is ready to be published?... have you checked to see which magazines/book publishers take the kind of stuff you write?

Mike C · 04-14-2006, 09:57 AM

Don't be so lazy. You know what you write - research your market, like everyone else does.

tbs21 · 04-15-2006, 09:44 PM

i'm sorry about the way that sounded--let me clarify: i'm writing a contemporary fiction book and i wanted to know if there are any publishers you recommend? i've done the research, i just need some first-hand advice.

mammamaia · 04-15-2006, 10:04 PM

you don't get to pick your publisher... they have to pick you, out of too many submissions to count... so, it's useless to ask which ones we'd 'recommend'... not to mention, lazy, as was noted earlier...

any publisher who will pay you to put your book in print is a good one... you have to do the scut work on your own, checking the lists of publishers in writer's market to see which ones take unagented new writers' submissions in the genre your book best fits...

you can use the wm website for only $3/month, if you don't want to buy the book or go to the library... if you say you've 'done the research' you should have checked there already, as well as looked at what's on the shelves at your nearest border's or b&n, to see who published books like yours...

bamagirl1984 · 04-16-2006, 10:50 PM

Go to Books-A-Million and buy Writer's Market. The employees there will know what it is. (It lists publishers and their contact information, by category.) If you don't want to buy it, read it in your local library. If you really want to get your book published, though, I would suggest getting an agent. I've looked into this a lot, and the vast majority of publishers aren't going to take your book unless it comes through an agent. If you're interested in that, (which I would really recommend), get the 2006 Guide to Literary Agents. Employees at any bookstore should be able to pinpoint it for you.

Good luck!

bamagirl1984 · 04-16-2006, 10:54 PM

Also, no one can help you find a publisher. You need to classify your work beyond contemporary fiction, according to the categories mentioned in Writer's Market--Chick lit, literary, YA, etc. Then scroll through the book and find publishers who work with books like yours. If you send, say, a romance novel to a publisher that only does mystery and chick lit, they'll throw it away. You have to do everything by their guidelines if you want a shot, and you have to know exactly what kind of book you have, and what publishers might want it, and what books those publishers have published lately, to get a good feel for the market.

tbs21 · 04-19-2006, 03:10 PM

thanks bamagirl. i'll look into that!

Mike C · 04-19-2006, 04:28 PM

Find books by authors who write similar work to yours.

Google them and find out who their agents are.

Query those agents.

MichelleWritesStuff · 04-30-2006, 09:22 PM

I agree with Writer's Market. Most publishers also have websites -- when you decide the one you want to try first, go to the site, and see what you can find out about their particular preferences.

It's good not just to know general submission etiquette, but also what your target publishers/editors want. You can't overestimate the effect of a professional submission in a slushpile full of manuscripts of people who didn't do the research.
Michelle

Danag · 05-02-2006, 03:09 PM

I probably don't need to say this, but yes, Writer's Market is your best bet. Good luck to ya! =)