Choosing a Publisher by Tamara Hart Heiner

Disclaimer: I get on this blog and post things like I'm some sort of authority on the subject. Well, you ought to know that I'm not! So feel free to comment, disagree, or tell me you think I'm a genius. There are so many different kinds of publishers out there, and much of it depends on what you want out of your publishing company. I thought of this the other day when reading a friend's blog and she mentioned how her agent is shopping her book around. I've often heard that getting an agent is even harder than getting published. But if you want to get published by one of the big dogs, you gotta have an agent. That's where I decided I didn't want to get published by a 'big dog.' Or at least, I didn't want to spend three years trying. Of course I wouldn't mind if one of them decided to publish me. But I decided to go with a small press, one that still took author submissions. This path ended up working out for me. There are other presses that are only for certain genres. Others are only certain formats. Some companies (like the former Mystic Moon Press) are primarily e-books. Others might only be POD (Print-on-Demand) or you might only be able to buy through Amazon.com and not bookstores (like Marcher Lord Press). Here's what I wanted: a company that I could directly submit to, that would offer me a contract, that would pay for all of the printing/distribution costs and offer me royalties, that would get my book online and into bookstores, and that would represent me well. I found it, in WiDo Publishing. So, while you are shopping for publishers, here are some questions to consider: 1) Do I require an advance? If so, how much? 2) Where do I want my book to be sold? Bookstores? Online? Independent bookstores, specialty shops? All? 3) What is my genre? 4) Who is my audience? 5) How much to I expect in royalties? 6) How many people do I want my book to be available to? 7) How much marketing am I prepared to do? 8) Do I want to work with an agent? 9) Do I consider this a 'starter' book to get me in the door, or do I expect this to be my bestseller? 10) Will I be happy with a small press or do I want a bigger name? These are some of the questions I could think of. You might have more. But keep these things in mind while you are publisher-hunting, and you will get what you want out of the deal.