Monday, July 7, 2008

Finding The Right Publisher For Your Book

If you are a writer who wants to get your book printed and sold on the market, you may be aware by now that finding the right publisher who is fit to represent your work may not be as easy at it seems.

After all, getting a market guide and contacting an advertised publisher from there is not exactly the best way to find representation. In fact, people who may have had a lot of experience in this process will surely advise you on a much better way to find a publisher that will be right for you and your book. Here are three basic steps that you can follow to find the perfect publisher for your book.

Take A Look At Your Bookshelf

A very good place to start in looking for a publisher could be your very own bookshelf. If the genre of your work is fiction, then you probably have a good collection of this type of genre in your home. And so, take the time to look at those firms responsible for publishing your favorite books. After all, you most probably were inspired by these books, and there is a large chance your work may have a similar pattern from your favorite authors styles. And so, their publishers may find a similar liking to you.

You may also try to check books that have a similar or a related topic as the one discussed in your book. For example, if you are writing about the love for animals, there may already be established publishers who specialize in producing books on animals. In this way, you can hand your proposal to the right people who would give you the time of day instead of wasting your time on chasing after firms that will not even care to give your work a second glance.

Check Out What Is On The Market

After you have looked at your own book collection, the next step for you is to check on collections that are displayed in bookstores, libraries and all the other places that showcase books. Try to find the section where you think your book would most likely belong if it will be printed and sold.

The same principles would go as to looking at publishers responsible for books on your own bookshelf. You basically have to find books that tackle similar issues or have a common genre as what you are writing. You are more likely to find people who would be interested in representing your book this way.

Just make sure, that your work holds an edge over the works that have already been published. After all, you will have to convince people later on how your book is different from those that are already out on the market and why people should prefer to buy it this time.

Assess And Choose The Best Publishers

For the third and last step, you must now choose a few of the best publishers, among all those that you have found in looking through various books. In choosing your top choices, make sure that you evaluate the publishers first with regards to the books that they have already published.

First, check if the books that they have published have appealing covers, a good layout and generally have a pleasing aesthetic package. This may be a defining factor for people to actually buy your book. Try to see if the book covers are attractive enough to make you want to pick them up and read them. Also take the time to feel the quality of the paper and printing. You would certainly want to be proud of how your book would be packaged.

Another thing to check is whether the publishers have helped produce interesting books with deep and relevant topics. Try to find publishers that have produced books that have similar depth when it comes to content as your own book. And make sure that they have produced interesting works that sell to people. After all, you would not want your own work to be classified as one of those flops that have disappointed readers.

And, lastly, do not forget to check how these publishers have marketed their previous books and how they compensate writers. If a publishing firm has helped many books to gain a good selling record, then you are more likely to receive the same treatment when you get their representation. In the end, your ultimate goal on this will be to appeal to an audience that will read and purchase your work, and a good publishing firm will have to help you in this at the same time, compensate you well for your hard work on your art.

Finding the right publisher to represent you may just be as critical as writing a good book itself. That is of course, if you want your book to properly get the right marketing and reach an audience. At the same time, this is a very vital step for you to be able to launch your career as a writer and get the right spotlight for your art.

Just remember to be smart in choosing your representation, because these people will not only be reflecting your work, but more importantly, they will be standing on your behalf as a writer as well. And so, follow these simple steps and find the right publisher for you and your book.

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