Thread: Can You publish the same book with a different title?

So I want to get my book sent elsewhere because I have made the biggest mistake in choosing a publisher. Can I change the title, some character names, and the names of some cities, and send it in to another publisher? Please help!

Yes! I have done exactly the same thing. You own the copyright. Firstly though, we got the publisher to send us in writing that he no longer held any rights. We did do a lot of work on it though, changed his editing to how we originally envisaged the book.

How did you get them to send you a written document saying you had the rights back? And does that mean you are out of the contract? What i'm thinking is that I'll some how get the rights back and then rewrite the first book again using the same basic idea. And i'll keep the second and third book to the trilogy from my current publisher. That a way I can keep everything the same in the second and third one.

Sell your book to an agent first. Don't try getting a publisher yourself. Agents know the game. They will tell if your book can be sold. They can also avoid 'scam' publisher for you.

Read your contract. It is unlikely that you have sold the rights but simply agreed to stay exclusively with that publisher. If in fact that is the case then changing details and titles does not necessarily change the contract. I would suggest consulting a literary attorney before doing something like that because the publisher may have grounds to sue you for doing something like that. But read your contract, if the publisher is in breach then you may be able to just terminate and avoid any of that.

Originally Posted by BoredMormon

Sell your book to an agent first. Don't try getting a publisher yourself. Agents know the game. They will tell if your book can be sold. They can also avoid 'scam' publisher for you.

Well said, that is the great choice you can make in your further attempts. I don't think changing name will work for you.