kinslayeur
Scribe
So you finished your WIP and you want to send out to a publisher to see if you get rejected or (gasp).... accepted!
I did the exact same and let me tell you how it has gone. First, I want to say if you get rejection letters (I did), don't fret over them. Read them, accept them, if you can.... learn from them. Not every rejection letter is useful, some might make you shake your head and wonder what they are talking about (I had one that totally confused me). But, they will happen.
So for the fun part. IF and WHEN you get that email correspondence that says we are interested in your manuscript and would like to talk to you further..... DON'T think you've done it. Because you haven't. It's only interest. It's not guaranteed. They are interested in it, but they haven't made a decision. Use this time to help sell your book and yourself to the. Ask them questions about the process, how they operate, and then ask them if they have questions for you.
Do your research. I can't stress this one enough. Not just on who they are, but what they are, how they do things, reach out to other authors that have worked with them or are still under contract (don't do it without their permission... can be a bit of a sticky situation) to see what they think. Check them out on BBB. The more research you do, the better decision you can make.
Okay, so you've done the research, you have asked questions, now you wait for the possible contract. Bam! There is it. Contract in an email and now you get to wade through the fun stuff: Legal mumbo jumbo. Expect to be a bit confused (as I was) and make sure you research words you don't know and if you still need help, ask them to clearly define them. I did and was given proper context for some areas that when I did the research I found was wrong.
Secondly, if you can afford to have an attorney look it over, DO IT! They are not cheap, but if you are signing a contract, you are signing your work to someone. Money you spend will be worth it in the long run to make sure you don't get hosed. So many times in this industry do authors get excited and sign without fully understanding what the contract will and won't do for them. I almost got caught up in this. I spent the money (675) to send to an attorney. What you do, is your personal choice though.
From there, make sure you are ready for the whirlwind of things you will need to do for the publisher if you sign the contract. The contract will spell it out for you regarding deadline to get them your completed manuscript (usually 15 days) as well as what else you need to do. If the contract says send money, I wouldn't be signing that contract. Mine never mentioned money in that regard and I am aware of what I have to do (get social media setup as an author, get manuscript ready for them... those sorts of things) while they do the rest.
Then you wait for them to edit your manuscript and I want to say that you should seriously consider the changes they want made, however you must also remember IT IS YOUR BOOK. You must keep it to the core the same. Small changes are fine, but big changes that ultimately change the book are ones to be willing to defend against.
Don't expect the turnaround time frame from when you sign a contract to when the book is actually published to be a month or a few. It can take a year or maybe longer depending on how much work the publisher has to do to get your book ready to be published. So be understanding of this. If you want quick turnaround, self-publishing is a better choice for you.
Just a few things I've learned in working with and finding a publisher.
I did the exact same and let me tell you how it has gone. First, I want to say if you get rejection letters (I did), don't fret over them. Read them, accept them, if you can.... learn from them. Not every rejection letter is useful, some might make you shake your head and wonder what they are talking about (I had one that totally confused me). But, they will happen.
So for the fun part. IF and WHEN you get that email correspondence that says we are interested in your manuscript and would like to talk to you further..... DON'T think you've done it. Because you haven't. It's only interest. It's not guaranteed. They are interested in it, but they haven't made a decision. Use this time to help sell your book and yourself to the. Ask them questions about the process, how they operate, and then ask them if they have questions for you.
Do your research. I can't stress this one enough. Not just on who they are, but what they are, how they do things, reach out to other authors that have worked with them or are still under contract (don't do it without their permission... can be a bit of a sticky situation) to see what they think. Check them out on BBB. The more research you do, the better decision you can make.
Okay, so you've done the research, you have asked questions, now you wait for the possible contract. Bam! There is it. Contract in an email and now you get to wade through the fun stuff: Legal mumbo jumbo. Expect to be a bit confused (as I was) and make sure you research words you don't know and if you still need help, ask them to clearly define them. I did and was given proper context for some areas that when I did the research I found was wrong.
Secondly, if you can afford to have an attorney look it over, DO IT! They are not cheap, but if you are signing a contract, you are signing your work to someone. Money you spend will be worth it in the long run to make sure you don't get hosed. So many times in this industry do authors get excited and sign without fully understanding what the contract will and won't do for them. I almost got caught up in this. I spent the money (675) to send to an attorney. What you do, is your personal choice though.
From there, make sure you are ready for the whirlwind of things you will need to do for the publisher if you sign the contract. The contract will spell it out for you regarding deadline to get them your completed manuscript (usually 15 days) as well as what else you need to do. If the contract says send money, I wouldn't be signing that contract. Mine never mentioned money in that regard and I am aware of what I have to do (get social media setup as an author, get manuscript ready for them... those sorts of things) while they do the rest.
Then you wait for them to edit your manuscript and I want to say that you should seriously consider the changes they want made, however you must also remember IT IS YOUR BOOK. You must keep it to the core the same. Small changes are fine, but big changes that ultimately change the book are ones to be willing to defend against.
Don't expect the turnaround time frame from when you sign a contract to when the book is actually published to be a month or a few. It can take a year or maybe longer depending on how much work the publisher has to do to get your book ready to be published. So be understanding of this. If you want quick turnaround, self-publishing is a better choice for you.
Just a few things I've learned in working with and finding a publisher.