Question: Is it better to be published by a small independent (real) publisher with little to no physical distribution (POD/ebook) or remain unpublished, at least for the short term?To most publishers, this is essentially the same thing. Whereas self publishing often counts against a writer (as indicative of a tenuous grasp on reality), this kind of publishing just doesn’t count at all.What makes a difference to trade publishers is activity in the marketplace. How many books are you going to sell POD or as an ebook? Anything under 500 is essentially equivalent to zero.When it comes to an author/illustrator’s dummies, should they be full-sized? I’ve searched for an answer online and have found several conflicting answers. Some people claim they absolutely have to be full size while others insist they just need to be big enough to be readable. As someone preparing their first complete package to send into the…
346 readersI recently developed a connection with Amy Edelman of IndieReader.com. After studying the great things they are doing to connect Indie Authors with Indie Readers, I asked Amy to be a guest blogger. She has some thought-provoking things to say. - Todd...
574 readersI’m a big fan of Borders. It’s not that I don’t like Barnes & Noble (I do). It’s not that Borders has a better selection of books in my areas of interest (they don’t). Prices are the same between the two (well, OK. At the online versions of these two stores, BN has the better
433 readersI am a professional illustrator, and I've just started writing my first children's book, which I plan to illustrate as well. I've seen different advice on how and what to submit to publishers and agents as an author/illustrator. Some say you should submit a dummy book, and others say you should submit a
678 readershttp://www.bankstreet.edu/onlinecourses/tews681n.htmlChildren's Book Publishing 101TEWS 681NEver wonder how a children's book gets published? Bank Street College Children's Librarian Lisa Von Drasek will tell you in this exciting overview of children's book publishing. What does an editor do? Do I need an agent? Is there a market for my idea? How do I submit my manuscript? What
701 readersI read your recent entry about self-publishing (and the links therein) with some interest. I currently work as an editor at a vanity publishing company. As far as I can tell, it's a relatively honest and professional one, but it's still a vanity publishing company. Will having this on my resume hurt my chances of
879 readersJanet Reid has done a fine job of covering the Harlequin brouhaha, so I needn't go over it again here.And the SFWA has helpfully delineated the differences between vanity, subsidy, and self-publishing.Let me just get this out of the way: There's nothing wrong with self-publishing. Not intrinsically. And a very small and extremely lucky
215 readersby Todd RutherfordI reserve the right to try to talk you out of this, but here's how it works.Traditional publishing companies exist in various sizes and capabilities. Some of these publishing houses focus on specific types of books. Others work with authors of many different kinds of work. This often depends on the size of
243 readersLast week, Michael Hyatt, CEO of prominent Christian publishing house Thomas Nelson, made an announcement on his blog with this post: Should You Consider Self-Publishing? I encourage you to read the post in full. But to summarize, Thomas Nelson is starting up a self-publishing imprint called Westbow Press. Now even if you aren’t writing for the Christian
462 readersMy sister wrote and illustrated a short picture book for my mother as a Christmas present. Now my parents want me to bring the book to my editor and see what she thinks. I know exactly what she'd think: "No. Thank you, but no." Oh, the story and the drawings are cute and fun, but
179 readersby Todd RutherfordA book tour actually involves various book publicity events scheduled for an author. These events may include book signings, conferences, and interviews with media. They can be local, statewide, national, or international. All of this depends upon the travel budget available to the author. The purpose of a book tour is very diverse.
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