Book Publishing Company

Book Publishing Company: How to Send Out Your Work

Send your writing to a book publishing company by following these important guidelines. First, set your expectations. Understand that this is a busy field. These companies receive hundreds of submissions every day. Although you believe your work is special (and it is!), be patient.

One book publishing company does not equal another. Do your research. Figure out their target audience. Do they publish your genre? Today, many houses specialize. Don't send a children's manuscript to a company that targets adults.

When you refer to your work, call it a manuscript, not a book. Use the proper terminology or you'll look like a novice. A book is published, a manuscript is not. The word "publishing" means making a work public.

Send a query letter to the company you have selected to elicit interest. Make sure to check their submission guidelines. Does the publisher want you to send a query with a synopsis of the story or do they want sample chapters or the entire manuscript? Make sure to give them what they want and you'll have a better chance of being offered a contract.

Does the book publishing company accept simultaneous submissions? If so, you can send your manuscript to several houses at once. This allows you to save time and get your manuscript accepted sooner.

Once your manuscript is accepted by a book publishing company, the rights and royalty for your intellectual property will be negotiated. Make sure to hire a lawyer for this stage unless you can easily interpret legalize. Once you've signed the contract, it is binding.

You may opt to pay to have your work published by a company that provides this sort of service. There are non-subsidy (you do not pay up front for this), subsidy publishers and resellers. To insure you understand the difference between the services they offer, read our article on Types of Book Publishers.

Nothing is more exciting than seeing your manuscript in print. Take the first step today by contacting the right book publishing company for your work. (Simply start collecting the information you'll need to make an informed decision.)

Copyright � 2005 by Laura Ramirez. All rights reserved. Laura Ramirez is the self-published author of the award-winning bookKeepers of the Children: Native American Wisdom and Parenting and the ebook, Keepers of the Children: Companion Workbook/Journal.