How does the writer view his or her finished manuscript? Art? A masterpiece? The writer’s heart and soul?
Novice writers mustn’t kid themselves. When it comes time to find a book publisher or agent, the finished manuscript is a mere product to sell to picky buyers in a glutted market. That precious piece of writing is no more than a bag of apples on a market stall or a car on a used car lot.
How to Get a Book Published
If the writer faces this fact realistically now, a lot of anguish will be saved and there will be a better chance of getting published. To sell a Manuscript, apply the simple rules of buying and selling any product.
Produce Quality
In a tough marketplace where there is a glut of your product (and there always will be), only a fool will buy poor quality when the best is sitting there next to it. The publisher is not a fool. A manuscript has to be first rate – if there is any doubt that it isn’t, don’t bother sending it. The publisher won’t suddenly see through the murk to the gem gleaming below the surface.
Deliver What the Customer Wants
If the buyer (fiction publisher) is hungry for oranges, even the juiciest apple won’t tempt her. Many book publishers specify such things as: We want mysteries, but no ghost stories or gothic, please! The writer must not insult them by sending a ghost story because he or she knows it’s a great story and they’ll love it, regardless.
Think of that stereotypical car yard scenario where the young lady says: “I’m specifically after a V8 1999 Ford Mustang.” The car salesman says: “We don’t have one in stock, but what we do have that would suit you FAR better is a 1983 Volkswagen, one owner – little old lady who only ever drove it to church. Step over here and let me show you it.” Writers who try that on with a publisher or agent will get the reply such insolence deserves.
The Customer (Book Publisher) is Always Right
Maybe a writer is a literary genius and this particular publisher just doesn’t realize his potential, but, nevertheless, that publisher is the buyer of the proffered wares and, hence, he or she is always right. Thus, it makes very good sense to find out what each publisher specifically wants before making any approach and then do precisely what they ask. Most publishers have submission requirements posted on a page of their website.
To the writer, one font or spacing may be as good as another, but if Publisher A says she wants double spacing with 2” margins and Courier font, why antagonize her by doing the opposite? With files on a word processor, it takes only minutes to change margins, spacing, fonts, etc. to match each publisher’s demands. It’s likely that the writer will be asked to send no more than three chapters, anyway. And that’s another point …if the publisher requests the first 3 chapters, don’t add 5-7 because that’s the exciting bit. It could prompt the publisher to trash the lot unread.
Save the Customer Time and Money – That’s How to Find a Publisher
When it comes from an unknown, untried source, a brisk one-page query letter is far more likely to be read by a busy publisher than a 100,000 word manuscript. He or she will quickly learn much about the author’s writing style and whether the manuscript truly suits his/her needs from that one page. If the potential author knows how to write, and the book is a winner, in just a précis, that writer will be able to demonstrate his or her ability to grab attention and win a request to see the manuscript. If the writer can’t sell the book with one page, the publisher knows they can’t sell it on a book cover blurb, either.
Getting Published Means Knowing Your Product
A TV interviewer sticks a microphone under a writer’s nose and says: “We want a 30 second sound byte. What’s your new book about.” Is he lost for words? Does he argue that he needs more time than that to do justice to this vast epic? The writer’s letter to publishers has similar constraints: the writer needs to practice and refine her advertisement for the manuscript —and that’s precisely what the synopsis is. She must extract the essence that makes that book different and desirable. If it can’t be defined precisely, it will be difficult to market to a publisher, who is faced with marketing it to a wider audience. Learn to write a great synopsis.
By treating the manuscript like any item for sale, the writer will have a far better chance of bringing the work to the attention of agents or publishers. These professionals are not interested in art; they are interested in re-selling the raw material at a good profit. The writer must quickly convince the astute buyer that the product has potential in the marketplace.
