How To Publish A Book

Writing is one of the most trusted modes of self-expression. Anne Frank, a little Jewish girl hiding in confinement from the malevolent Nazis pours her sorrows into her little diary which is now a world-wide bestseller. Does ‘The Diary of Anne Frank’ ring a bell? Almost everybody has a deep rooted and poignant story waiting to burst from their fingertips. Some seek solace in carving on paper the profound stories of their lives while others prefer to pen down the figments of their vivid imaginations. Sadly, if wishes were true, then beggars would be horses. Every second figure on the street would be a celebrity or an astronaut. And everybody’s secret diary would be perched on the centre shelf of the most popular bookstore in town! The hazards and toils of today coerce us to confront reality. Competition and rivalry are budding phenomena that may put a damper on a writer’s dreams. However, no dream shatters without a fight. If you have undying faith in your written masterpiece, endure the wild goose chase that will soon come your way. Dig into this section for valuable guidelines to get your book published!

Publishing A Book

Find An Agent
If you want to take the easiest route, you might want to lure an agent to help accomplish your mission. Agents have great contacts in publishing houses and are ever ready to provide assistance as long as they see potential and foresee high percentages in the long run. If your novella appeals to them, chances that you’ll see printed copies of your book immediately double or triple! Since they are well experienced in this trade, they can differentiate between good and bad. Good agents are very fussy as they have to maintain their reputation of recommending “strictly good books”!

Finding Appropriate Publishers
The very biggest of publishers dismiss the manuscripts that enter without an agent. However, if you are lucky they might take a quick peek at the non-fiction work! The medium sized or small publishers are often thrilled to view nascent manuscripts. Thus, you can indeed circumvent the harsh criticism propagated by agents. Keep records of all your interactions with each and every publishing house! You never know who might revert to you! Visit a good bookstore and raid the section most similar to your unpublished book. Take down the name of the publisher from the spine of these books. Make a list of these publishers and rush to any university library and look through both of the following reference books.  Begin with ‘Writers Market’, which lists all the publishers in the country and later try ‘Literary Market Place’ (LMP) for added information. At the end of this you should have collected the phone number and addresses of several publishers. Surely, if you’re so confident, one of them is bound to show interest in your writing abilities!

Dig For Further Details
Call each of the presses on your list and speak to the secretary so as to dig out the names of the appropriate acquisitions editors. Enquire if there are any specific protocols for submissions from unpublished authors. Follow the secretary’s instructions verbatim, irrespective of how strange they may be!

Send The Package
The package should typically include a cover letter describing the book and a letter of recommendation from an influential friend who stresses on the strengths of the book. This will definitely give you leverage and enable you to rise above the clutter. And most importantly, do not forget to add a good sample chapter or the entire manuscript.

Follow Up
The purpose behind a follow-up call is not to bombard the editor with thousands of messages and tempt him or her to toss your manuscript into the bin, but to simply remind him or her to have a good look at it! Find out if they've looked at the manuscript and if they did, get some valuable feedback. If you received bad feedback, scout for some good editorial assistance. Ensure that your manuscript is printed out or typed in double line spacing, with margins of about 1.25" on all sides, and with serially numbered pages. Make a few photocopies of the manuscript and keep them ready for dispatch. Make a few extra copies of the first three chapters or your favourite chapters.