A Question for Fellow Writers About Book Publishing

innerspaceboy · 08-16-2022, 03:39 PM

Excellent info, TH! Thanks so much!

Yes - this is a non-fiction work I'd considered publishing through a major license publisher with national print and electronic distribution. And to answer her question about similar works, it was this publisher's commitment to publishing socially-progressive content which piqued my interest, as my writing mirrors that effort. And I did make sure to address my target demographic as well as marketing potential summarizing reader interest in my proposal.

Based on most of the feedback I've received in response to my questions in multiple communities, it appears that I would have to surrender far more creative control than I am comfortable with for an editor to make the book sufficiently marketable for print to be a fiscally viable option.

While my readership may be limited by self-publishing, at least I've retained my original vision for the work and can distribute globally at no cost through the current media channels I've employed. At my peak blogging the original content I had an annual readership of nearly 20,000 views, which is measurably satisfying in its own right.

I think I'll retire the print aspect of the project. Thanks again for all your help. Cheers!

**Scarlett O'Hara** · 08-20-2022, 05:08 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Exo

ISB, I love you, but...who here has published a book? Lol.

I'm currently writing a book and have another half written. When my current novel is finished I also will need this advice. However I may just go through a publisher as I have connections to both published authors and publishing company's, including Penguin.

**Scarlett O'Hara** · 08-20-2022, 05:12 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by innerspaceboy

Thank you so much, TH. It's so kind of you to gather that input for me.

From what I've found researching it these past few nights, the fact that the content was originally published as a blog and later self-published as a PDF both count against me in the eyes of a publisher. Generally they want "first-publication" rights.

And the person you quoted is probably right that I would have to relinquish most of my creative control to an editor.

Thanks once again, everyone.

Do you need an editor? I might be able to help.

innerspaceboy · 08-20-2022, 05:19 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Scarlett O'Hara

Do you need an editor? I might be able to help.

That's very kind of you, Scarlett; Thank you!

I expect that the publisher that I had in mind would likely prefer to use their internal editors.

There are just so many reasons I've found to not have a print edition through a proper publisher that for now I'm going to retire the project and just stick with my independent electronic distribution.

It's a shame that there won't be a print edition accessible to a national audience but as I said I had annual global readership of nearly 20,000 and received an overwhelmingly positive response to my PDF edition so I'm going to frame the experience positively and see what other projects I might find to occupy myself in the years to come.

Thanks again!

**Scarlett O'Hara** · 08-20-2022, 06:01 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by innerspaceboy

That's very kind of you, Scarlett; Thank you!

I expect that the publisher that I had in mind would likely prefer to use their internal editors.

There are just so many reasons I've found to not have a print edition through a proper publisher that for now I'm going to retire the project and just stick with my independent electronic distribution.

It's a shame that there won't be a print edition accessible to a national audience but as I said I had annual global readership of nearly 20,000 and received an overwhelmingly positive response to my PDF edition so I'm going to frame the experience positively and see what other projects I might find to occupy myself in the years to come.

Thanks again!

You're absolutely welcome! I would advise to not give up on the project, put aside sure, but not forever. Where can I access your projects?

innerspaceboy · 08-20-2022, 06:12 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Scarlett O'Hara

You're absolutely welcome! I would advise to not give up on the project, put aside sure, but not forever. Where can I access your projects?

So kind of you to inquire!

The text is primarily an ethnomusicological survey spanning 20th century analog classicism to contemporary digital modernity. Lots of content about rare vinyl, ambient and experimental music, and a bit about digital library management for large collections.

I think I mentioned earlier in this thread that the articles are presented chronologically in the book, so my most refined content comprises the latter chapters. At least this way the reader can join me on my journey of discovery.

You'll find a very brief summary of my publishing adventure shared to my member journal here with a link to the book.

I should note that one reader told me his copy downloaded in black and white, but after I worked with Google's support team I was assured that the fully-illustrated text is in fact in full color. They surmised that the large size of the file might have made the reader's ebook device remove color for the sake of memory-handling. Download on a desktop for best results, then transfer it as needed.

Thanks again!

Trollheart · 08-20-2022, 08:52 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Scarlett O'Hara

I'm currently writing a book and have another half written. When my current novel is finished I also will need this advice. However I may just go through a publisher as I have connections to both published authors and publishing company's, including Penguin.

You have... connections?

Wanna read some of my stuff?

**Scarlett O'Hara** · 08-27-2022, 05:12 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Trollheart

You have... connections?

Wanna read some of my stuff?

Yes absolutely! I have been getting to know local authors as well. Let me know when you want me to read it.

Trollheart · 08-27-2022, 07:23 PM

Cool. I can send it when you want it. I have about forty pretty good short stories, mostly of the science fiction/fantasy/horror genre, though I do have one about an old woman waiting for death in the Blitz, which I think came out really well. I wouldn't want to swamp you so let me know how many you want me to send. Some are very short (100 words or less) and some are very long (maybe up to 50,000 or thereabouts).

Thanks a mill! Also let me know if you want me to send via PM or email them to you (in the latter case I would need your email address duh) and what the best format is for you (most if not all are in OpenOffice format). I did collect them in an e-book but nobody seems to be able to open it for some reason (is God trying to tell me something? Oh no wait: he doesn't exist)...

**Scarlett O'Hara** · 08-31-2022, 03:46 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Trollheart

Cool. I can send it when you want it. I have about forty pretty good short stories, mostly of the science fiction/fantasy/horror genre, though I do have one about an old woman waiting for death in the Blitz, which I think came out really well. I wouldn't want to swamp you so let me know how many you want me to send. Some are very short (100 words or less) and some are very long (maybe up to 50,000 or thereabouts).

Thanks a mill! Also let me know if you want me to send via PM or email them to you (in the latter case I would need your email address duh) and what the best format is for you (most if not all are in OpenOffice format). I did collect them in an e-book but nobody seems to be able to open it for some reason (is God trying to tell me something? Oh no wait: he doesn't exist)...

Do you have my email? I'll send it through PM anyway? Send me 10 at a time to look through. Are you happy if I critique them?

08-27-2022, 07:23 PM	#19 (permalink)
Trollheart Born to be mild Join Date: Oct 2008 Location: 404 Not Found Posts: 26,970	Cool. I can send it when you want it. I have about forty pretty good short stories, mostly of the science fiction/fantasy/horror genre, though I do have one about an old woman waiting for death in the Blitz, which I think came out really well. I wouldn't want to swamp you so let me know how many you want me to send. Some are very short (100 words or less) and some are very long (maybe up to 50,000 or thereabouts). Thanks a mill! Also let me know if you want me to send via PM or email them to you (in the latter case I would need your email address duh) and what the best format is for you (most if not all are in OpenOffice format). I did collect them in an e-book but nobody seems to be able to open it for some reason (is God trying to tell me something? Oh no wait: he doesn't exist)... __________________ Trollheart: Signature-free since April 2018