Sheesh! Why's everyone looking at me?
PossiblyPerfect said:
I am currently being offered a contract on a book with PA and I appreciate the posts on AW in regards to "beware of PA"...
Okay, good. "Beware of PA" is the beginning.
I am not a great researcher but have tried to find an alternate publisher because of what I read here...however, I have no money to spend
Stop right there! Do
not spend money to get published. I don't pay to get published, Big Steve King doesn't pay to get published, why the hey should
you pay to get published?
and what is attractive about PA is the no cost to the author bait and hook...
No cost to the author?
Other than the cost of copyright, the names and addresses of a hundred family and friends (Note: Larry cries poor-mouth about how only 18 out of those hundred buy the books direct from the orderform he sends them. Cry me a friggin' river, Larry. You and I both know that an 18% return for a direct-mail solicitation is beyond the wildest dreams of most advertisers.) and the books that you'll buy yourself. Let's not forget the cost of publicity.
What will 500 copies of your own book cost? With the very best author's discount you're looking at something over $5,000. How's that for "no cost to the author"?
You want to know something about publishing? Once you're out of the vanity/subsidy swamp, the publishers pay you. And not just one friggin' measly dollar, either.
I have tried to find suggestions of a different publisher before I sign the contract but haven't been able to!
Go into a bookstore. Find books similar to yours. Open 'em to the copyright page. You'll find the publisher's name and address right there.
So, what other publishers offer what PA offers but go one step further?
Every real publisher on land or sea or in the air. See above about finding publishers' names in the books themselves. Writer's Market is also a decent source, as is Jeff Herman's book, as is the Literary Marketplace. If you can't afford 'em or your library doesn't have 'em, go do bookstore research while standing in the aisle. Once you have the names, write to therm for their guidelines (include an SASE). Once you have the guidelines, follow those guidelines to the letter. "No unsolicited" means "send a query letter first." "No unagented" means get an agent first. "No simultaneous" means they want an exclusive look.
You probably spent months-to-years writing your book. Now's the time to spend weeks-to-months learning the business side.
This sort of information is handled more fully elsewhere on this board and in may other sources.
Three things for you to read right now:
What options do broke writers have?
Real publication with a real publisher. Stephen King was living in poverty in Maine when he sold
Carrie. J. K. Rowling was on the dole in Edinburgh when she sold
Harry Potter. I was active duty military when I sold my first (and military pay is
not high, chums).
I really appreciate the warnings but I don't know what options I have and where to go! Hope you understand and can help!
Patty
I don't know what kind of book you've written. (Whatever kind it is, you'll probably find a board here at AW that discusses your sort of book.)
With the exceptions of a) poetry, b) specialized non-fiction, and c) niche fiction, self-publication should be your last choice, not your first. Vanity publication shouldn't even be under consideration.
Bottom line...
Here's the straight out truth: If you've written a book that a lot of peoiple want to read, you can get published by a legitimate press. If you haven't, no self-publishing or vanity-publishing scheme in the world will help you.