What Publishers Want

A PUBLISHER IS an intermediary between author and readers. How is the basic publishing decision made? It's a battle between two entirely different points of view: Editorial and Marketing.

YOUR FIRST HURDLE with a publisher is the slush pile, all the MSS that come in to be considered for publication. The first reader, typically, is commissioned to reject most MSS (5 percent of MSS submitted are actually published). When something really different or outstanding comes in, the first reader recommends it to an acquisitions editor, who must be convinced it's worth fighting for. Fight with whom?

THE MARKETING DEPARTMENT never reads your words. Most of their time is spent poring over charts of how well their product is selling, how their company stacks up against their competitors, how they can move more product with less expense. They are marketeers, essentially working for the people who have bought books from them before, and their primary aim to supply them with similar books. They focus on the bottom line.

A LOT OF MONEY goes into publishing a book, as well as time and reputation. And most books do not recoup their cost. This is why the publishing process is, from the writer's point of view, so tough to crack.

SO WHAT DO PUBLISHERS WANT? They look for a sure bet (hah!). Next best is material that is ready to go that fits exactly into their market. They usually find this with writers they've already published, and they may be willing to take a chance with other authors whose books on the same subject have sold well recently. To keep in touch with their market, they find out what readers want by watching what they buy. They may even commission writers to fill that need.

WRITERS MARKET, LMP (Literary Market Place), and the International Directory of Little Magazines and Small Presses publish descriptions of what publishers are interested in. You may not find a perfect fit of your MS and a publisher asking for just that material.

WHAT CAN YOU DO to improve your odds? You probably did not write your MS with a specific publisher in mind, but it's time to look from the publishing point of view. They have a market. Can you help them expand that market with readers of your own? Can you show a track record of articles or columns or interviews to show that you have garnered some attention?

A FRESH IDEA may go nowhere, because no one is already looking for it. You may have to develop your own readership. On the other hand, if you have a fresh angle on a popular subject, you will certainly get a reading.

YOU ARE NEGOTIATING WITH THEM when you send in a MS. What is the essence of your "proposal," and how do they benefit from it? How will your book make them a better publisher?

WRITING WELL is just the first step (and you can't get far if you don't write well). But are you writing what their readers want to know about? How does it connect to their lives? Why is it pertinent now?

TO SUM UP, your purpose in writing your book is not the same as the publisher's purpose or the readers' purpose. Why did you write it? Be clear about your own intentions.

ONE LAST WORD: don't be discouraged if you get rejection letters back. If you believe in what you're doing, then your job is to get others to see it also. When you can do that, you have begun the dance between writer and reader.

THE BOOK DOCTOR

What Publishers Want