Ah, publishing. Something that I've dreamed of for years and years... having your book in a store, greeting fans at conventions, doing interviews on YouTube, posting about your latest releases on social media platforms... all of it sounds just perfect. But how do you get there? Is there a genie that you have to summon, or a fairy godmother who makes all your wishes come true? Unfortunately not, though I am not opposed to the existence of such beings.
Publishing is not one simple thing---it is not simply yes or no, accept or reject, fame or no fame. It depends on the author, and where they want their book to go. I'm going to talk about the two main types of publishing, though I believe there are more... these are just the two that I've focused on over the years of trying to understand how the publishing world works.
1. Traditional Publishing
Most of your favourite books, I presume, follow the path of traditional publishing, since it is has been the customary way to get your book out in the world for many, many years. In one of my previous posts, I mentioned querying, and that is an essential component of traditional publishing. Traditional publishing, in most cases, requires a literary agent (who I suppose in some ways are like literary fairy godmothers). Basically, you have to query them---and in another post, we will get to steps on how to craft a good query letter---meaning that you have to convince them that your book is totally worth reading. Query letters are like a writer's version of a resume. You contact literary agents through various agencies, an example being New Leaf Literary, send them your query letter and sample chapters, and wait for them to respond (on email, usually). If they request your full manuscript, then you're on the right path. If they say, "Sorry, but your book just isn't right for me," then... well, you'll have to try again with someone else.
Finding the right literary agent depends on your book---usually, agents will request certain types of books, such as middle grade or high fantasy, in their bios (but we'll get more into that later). Let's assume, now, that your book has been accepted by an agent. Hurrah! Oh... wait. There's still so much more to do.
Your agent will work with you to try and polish your book as much as possible, so that they can get it ready for submission to the big guys---in other words, the grand publishers, such as Penguin Random House and HarperCollins. This is why you see "only accepting solicited manuscripts" on their websites when you click "Submissions"---they mean that they will only accept content that is represented by a literary agent.
So, if you get accepted by one of these publishers, that is a big reason to celebrate. Now, it's up to them to take your book into their own hands and edit it as much as possible, so that it can be released to the world all shiny and new, ready to attract large audiences and make lots of big bucks. Yay!
However, there are still roadblocks, as is the way with publishing---you might get rejected by any of these publishers, or even by literary agents. It happened to J.K. Rowling. It happened to Stephen King. It even happened to Dr. Seuss. But look where their books are now---their stories remind us to never, ever give up.
2. Self-Publishing
If you love control, self-publishing might be the best option for you. There are lots of self-publishing businesses out there---I believe even Amazon offers opportunities---where you basically pay people a price to print and sell lots of copies of your book. This way, you get say on cover design, font choices, editing, etc. and there are no publishing guys in big black suits arguing about whether or not they should kill off your protagonist. You have a say in everything, and it is your responsibility to promote your book as much as possible, since it might not necessarily be displayed at your local Chapters or Walmart. However, it still sounds like an exciting process, since you basically get to give yourself credit for everything.
Once upon a time, I was almost ready to self-publish my first novel. But then I realized that I would rather have my legacy be told by Bloomsbury or Tor, so they could worry about making my book look all sparkly and official. However, I haven't ruled out the idea of self-publishing completely---it might still be something I'll revisit in the future.
So, there you have it---the basics of the publishing world. There is still so much to learn, and I'm prepared to offer you tips regarding query letters, what literary agents are looking for, and even how to craft a good elevator pitch. Remember, the internet is a great resource if you're looking to find more detail regarding how to be successful in publishing.
If there is anything in particular that you would like me to talk about on this blog, feel free to leave a comment. Tomorrow, I'm planning to talk a little bit about the books that inspired me to become a writer---and what makes readers crave them so badly.
Thanks for reading!