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 Posted: Fri Mar 26, 2010 11:03 am
I spend ridiculous amounts of time talking to speakers about indie publishing, and might as well inflict it on the rest of you. Table of Contents, courtesy of elementalWithin Post 1: Small run publishing Self-Publishing Epublishing Post 2: Why You Need An Editor What Does An Editor Do? Post 3: Graphic Designers And Where To Find Them Post 4: The Fallacy of First Rights Post 5: Agents Post 6: Printing Post 7: Markets Post 8: Underlining Post 9: Blogging Small Run: Small publishing houses, who generally market locally and expect the author to participate. Not generally a good vehicle if you're uncomfortable with public speaking, you'll also not get the same distribution as with a major publisher. But you're much more likely to get accepted, especially if you go to local books launches, where you can usually talk to the CEO. And you're very involved in the publishing process. The book launches that accompany small press are also a ton of fun. It doesn't actually limit you all that much, because if you do well on a local scale there's the possibility of a large distributor or publisher picking you up; big publishing houses like things that sell, and have a proven history of selling. Self-PublishingVanity press is still vanity press, and not anything I'm interested in. Self-publishing is more work. You need to contract an editor, a graphic designer, and, unless you're fairly confident about your web and marketing skills, someone to do your PR. Then, when your manuscript is perfect, you need to take it to a printer. You pay them to print the books; as small a batch as you want, though there are price cuts for volume (some are nice, though, and let you print just a few at a time and tally up the total, so if you print 250 in lots of fifty over a few months, they'll give you the discount on your next small lot). Then you get to hit up bookstores to carry them, nag your friends, and throw events. If you have an active arts scene, it can be fun. Still, a lot more work than a lot of people like, and it's money out of pocket. EpublishingThere are publishing companies that now have e-book imprints, and straight-up e-book publishers, but I haven't contacted them much (hopefully changing if I get one or two things published through e-book publishers, but not yet). But the great thing is that you can do it yourself. Still need a graphic designer for a cover image, and still need an editor (ALWAYS hire an editor), but Smashwords does all the messy stuff of churning out multiple formats, including ones that can be sold through Amazon. Then you set up yourself as a publisher on Amazon as well as on Smashwords and just link the heck out of those accounts until people buy. You'll get about 30% of the profits from e-publishing. So, even though they tend to sell much cheaper than pulp books, you make about the same per book. I will probably add more to this eventually. Please post questions or suggestions for areas you want more information about.
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Posted: Mon Mar 29, 2010 2:33 pm
Why You Need An Editor
A common idea is that you don't really need an editor if you're publishing traditionally; the house will have one. While it's true that a publishing house usually retains editors, more and more publishers are saying flat-out that they will not accept unsolicited manuscripts that have not been professionally edited. That does not mean betaed by someone awesome, or critiqued by a close friend. That means you pay someone with some form of accreditation to edit it. You may be able to find a number of houses who still accept unedited unsolicited manuscripts, but editing is recommended.
And, of course, if you're self-publishing, an editor is not optional.
What Does An Editor Do?
Some editors will do all of this, but editing is generally broken into fields.
Content editors do something similar to a beta; they look at the structure of your story as a whole, and help you arrange it the way that makes the most sense.
Copy editors fix the mechanics of your story. Did you know that there are standards (called stylebooks) for whether or not you use periods in acronyms (like CERN, the FBI, and NGOs)? They vary by type of acronym, stylebook, and context. And that's only one part of copy editing. There's also grammar and punctuation and hyphenation (a surprisingly complex subject). Copy editors are the difference between readable and awful; partly because spell-checkers mark a lot of things right that just aren't, in context.
Editors also aren't as expensive as you might think. Yes, they're an investment. But you've already invested lots of time and energy into your story. For an idea, one editor I know edited a 120-ish page memoir for $300, and another I know edits for $25 an hour (usually to the tune of 8-10 hours for a book of less than 400 pages). And they're not hard to find. There are lots of professional editors' associations all over; the Google is your friend in terms of finding a local one who specializes in your genre.
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Posted: Tue Mar 30, 2010 10:51 am
Graphic Designers And Where To Find Them
Every book needs a cover. Some need other graphics, too, like Kirsten Britain, who has little leaves to mark every scene break. If you're self-publishing, you need a graphic artist.
If you are e-publishing, you can get away with it minimally, or do a lot of it yourself. There's a site I'll take about later than will process your manuscript into the form it needs to be in, so all you absolutely need is the cover (technically optional, but it looks much, much better).
If you are print publishing, you need a graphic designer to format your manuscript properly, help you pick a font and set the proper margins, and design a cover that will fit the terrifyingly specific specs printing houses will give you. A graphic designer is an essential conduit to a book in hand.
Finding one isn't very hard; most printoriums will have a list on hand of ones looking for work. A quick google search will also turn up a ton, though not all will be in your area, which might prove awkward; there are some things that are just easier at a face-to-face meeting, like gesturing vaguely to get across what you want your cover to convey.
Of course, if all you need is the cover, you can contract any artist you like; there are even graphic artists here on Gaia who would probably jump at the chance.
But if you need more, find one with experience whose aesthetic you think matches your story. Experienced graphic designers will be able to do formatting in minutes that will likely take you frustrated hours to do on your own.
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Posted: Wed Mar 31, 2010 9:52 am
The Fallacy of First Rights
Warning: Graphic sexual metaphors ahead
The common idea is that publishers won't publish you if you've been published before.
This is similar to the idea that people don't want to sleep with non-virgins.
People don't care, as long as you're hot and good in bed. Similarly, publishers don't care as long as you're marketable and readable.
A lot of the time, they actually prefer if you know what you're doing. Take the short story market; a lot of literary magazines are more likely to publish you if you have other publishing credits. Other people have had enough faith in you to publish; they know you are ********. They also assume that you might have a readership, which every lit mag wants.
Readership is key, here. Let's look at the stories of two terrible authors, Stephanie Meyer and Christopher Paolini. Meyer was not published until Twilight got picked up. She herself was marketed as part of a whole fairy-tale thing around it. Her being a mom made a marketing spin (oh, it's a romance, but it's wholesome because she's a mom). That marketing led to readership. Paolini had self-published before he got picked up by Knopf. He'd also put a lot of effort into garnering himself a readership by touring. Knopf didn't care that they didn't get his first publishing rights (virginity), because he already had a good marketing angle for being so young, and a readership (hot slut).
Publishers are more likely to pick up an author that has a readership than an unpublished one. Veering away from sexual metaphors to music, Third Eye Blind is an alt-rock band who were formerly indie, and had a monstrously huge, obsessive fan base. When they decided to sign to a label, there was an actual bidding war among record labels.
But first rights still matter. You want your publication to mean something, not be a drunken encounter under the bleachers at a football game. So don't post your novel somewhere like Gaia or Fictionpress. Respect yourself and your work enough to put it up somewhere like Smashwords or Amazon, or make your own website to host it (really not hard; pm me). There are even some people experimenting with storytelling and posting places like Twitter.
And get over the virgin complex. Being good and having readers is much, much more important than it being your first time.
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Posted: Sat Apr 03, 2010 2:24 am
This is awesome biggrin thanks for the information!
I hadn't realised editors could be so cheap but do so much!
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Posted: Sat Apr 03, 2010 2:41 am
^.^
Editors really are amazing. Especially because you can find highly specialized ones who will be as psyched about your project as you are, which brings something nice to it.
Any suggestions for other mini-rants?
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Posted: Sat Apr 03, 2010 2:45 am
do you or do you not need an agent? biggrin
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Posted: Sat Apr 03, 2010 2:59 am
Agents
If you have a novel that you wish to be published by a big traditional publisher (Random House, Knopf, etc.), you need an agent. If you have a short story you want to market to the New Yorker, you probably should have an agent.
The role of an agent is to network and market for you. They ensure an editor will read your work, as opposed to an overworked assistant or intern at the slush pile.
If you are going to self-publish or publish with a smaller publishing house, you don't need an agent. Why would you, when, with a smaller house, you can engineer a meeting with an editor at some local writing function and talk up your book yourself? There's also the fact that small publishers deal with much smaller volumes of submissions. Like Yale versus a state school; Yale has something like a 7% acceptance rate, smaller state schools have much higher, like 40%. Even if you send it to the slush pile at a small house, it is more likely to be read and seriously considered. But the ability, with a small house, to get an editor to actually agree, to your face, to read it, is the biggest advantage.
And the short story market is different altogether: agents are hardly necessary. With resources like Duotropes, you can find the perfect market and submit it quickly.
Agents are an excellent, excellent resource if you're not able to do a lot of this yourself. They can help you find an editor and find the best market. They make it easier and less confusing be doing a lot of things you can do yourself. They also have the industry contacts to make the right connections. So, if you have a novel and time to research only one aspect of publishing, your best move is to find an agent.
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Posted: Sat Apr 03, 2010 3:05 am
Wow! That was very helpful! Thank you! Thank you so much! I was really thinking of what Editors and Publishing might be like!
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Posted: Sat Apr 03, 2010 3:06 am
phantomkitsune AgentsSo, if you have a novel and time to research only one aspect of publishing, your best move is to find an agent.
I suppose this would clinch it for most people biggrin particularly the first books! Thank you <3
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Posted: Sat Apr 03, 2010 3:20 am
Keichaos: Glad it was helpful. ^.^ And editors really are your best friend.
Elemental: De nada. <3
It tends to be bewildering to me that people don't want to research everything and do it all themselves. Profit margins! But then, I'm a little obsessive about creative freedom, and really love marketing (and money).
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Posted: Sat Apr 03, 2010 3:33 am
phantomkitsune Elemental: De nada. <3 It tends to be bewildering to me that people don't want to research everything and do it all themselves. Profit margins! But then, I'm a little obsessive about creative freedom, and really love marketing (and money). I know! I keep going on about this one book but it gave so much information, like percentages taken out of it and such like. It went through discounts different companies expected when selling through them, what to expect when dealing with amazon, royalties, various costing to produce and market a book and so on... really good guide. Certainly makes it very clear that for a new, small publishing house, it's unlikely you'll make very much with your first book. If it's done right, you should at least break even.
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Posted: Sat Apr 03, 2010 2:45 pm
That's why I think epublishing and POD are such miracles. They cut costs dramatically, so you can focus more on marketing and distribution.
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Posted: Sat Apr 03, 2010 3:24 pm
phantomkitsune That's why I think epublishing and POD are such miracles. They cut costs dramatically, so you can focus more on marketing and distribution.
the down side is most people want the book within a few days of ordering, not having to wait weeks for it to arrive. I even begrudge ordering from America as I know it can take around 14 days to get here :S
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Posted: Sat Apr 03, 2010 3:58 pm
There are some developments being made with that, particularly with Espresso ( wiki). They're not all that widely available yet, but they mean that you can get a book distributed as an ebook and also available in paper, in stores, if someone does so much as request it. There are two in London, I think.
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