Writing For A Living

by Toby Neighbors

  First, you have to decide if you want to deal with a literary agent or seek publication on your own. If you want to land a deal with the big publishing houses, an agent is required. Most acquisitions editors won’t even read a manuscript if it isn’t given to them by an agent. Some of the smaller publishers will consider unsolicited manuscripts, but if you want to be published I would highly recommend trying to land a good agent.

  There are hundreds of agents looking for good writers, but they aren’t all looking for every type of writer. Just like readers, agents have specific tastes and areas of expertise, so you’ll need to narrow the field down to the agents who represent the kind of book you’re writing. One of the best ways to do that is by again looking at the acknowledgements of books in the same genre as yours. Most authors thank their agents and once you know the name of the agent, they are usually easy to find online. There also magazines for writers, such as Writer’s Digest, that often have lists of agents currently accepting new work. You can also do a search for literary agents online, but not everyone who claims to be an agent is one. By seeking out the agents of writers you know and like, or by utilizing industry periodicals and checking out the agent’s list of books sold to publishers, you can avoid most of the crooks who are only looking to rob you of your money.

  Once you have a list of agents to look into, you’ll have to discern which ones are currently accepting new submissions. Most agents have a limit to how many clients they are willing to take on, and you can generally find out all you need to know about the agent from their website. The things you need to ascertain are whether they are open to submissions, what their submission guidelines are, what their response timeline generally is, and what other books they’ve sold. Even if the agent you are looking for isn’t accepting submissions, there may be another agent at the same agency that is. Just be sure that the agent you submit to accepts the type of book you have written.

  Submission guidelines are very important. The Internet has sped the process up a great deal since you don’t have to mail your submission to the agent, but it has also given each agency the opportunity to tell potential clients exactly what they want. In most cases an agent’s submission guidelines will ask for a query letter, which is a short letter introducing yourself and your book, as well as a short portion of your manuscript. The process is lengthy. You’ll submit your query. Two months later you hear back, either via a form letter of rejection or a request to read the entire manuscript (sometimes they even ask that you not submit the manuscript to anyone else while they read it). The reading time takes anywhere from one to six months, after which time they will either reject your submission or offer you a contract for representation.

  Let me again impress upon you the importance of doing your due diligence before signing anything with a literary agency or publishing company. Contracts are legally binding and can be almost impossible to get out of. You will want to make sure that the contract is clear and that you understand it all. It’s worth the money to have an attorney you trust walk you through the details of any contract before you sign it. And remember, the agent works for you, which means you have the right to inspect all correspondence between the agent and any publisher in which you are referred. This can be especially important when it comes to the complicated royalty statements that many publishers issue. If you get an agent, do your best to ensure they are honest and good at their jobs, but never take for granted that they work for you. If you need to see royalty statements don’t take no for an answer.

  Once you have an agent they will shop your book to editors. They should have a good network of editors at a wide variety of publishers. Just like agents, certain editors will be open to your type of book and others will not. Some publishing houses specialize in certain types of books, so your agent should be able to submit to the right people at the right time, and if your book is good enough you might just get an offer for publication.

  Editors will read many manuscripts each publishing cycle, and then pitch the ones they like to the decision makers when the principal members of the publishing company meet to select the next round of books. So essentially your book will have to be good enough for the agent to like it, the editor to like it, and the managers at the publishing house to think it will sell. If it passes all three of those hurdles, then you’ll be offered a contract. Once again, your agent should go to work on your behalf at that stage, negotiating the best advance and terms they can. Then it is your decision whether to sign with the company or not.

  If you do get a publishing deal you’ll be walked through their process of editing and publication. Each company is different but the process is basically the same. Content edits, then copy editing. You’ll be involved with your manuscript during those phases, usually with deadlines to get the revised pages back to the publishing company. Then artwork will be assigned to your book, along with promo copy, although you may not even see any of this until the book is in print. The companies then add the book to the publishing cycle catalog, which bookstores use to decide on purchases. The books are printed and distributed, then finally given a release date.

  During this time, you should be writing your next book and marketing yourself to potential readers. Many publishers are also using ebooks as a litmus test to see if your book can sell well enough to earn a print run. Times are changing and many publishers are in flux. Agents and authors, as well as the Author’s Guild, are calling for updates in business practices such as quarterly royalty payments and less draconian contracts. As an author you should keep pace with events in the publishing industry and search for opportunities to network with other authors, agents, and publishing insiders.

  Finally, what royalty should you expect for your book? You did the work of writing and you should be rewarded financially for each book you sell. Most publishers follow a set rate for royalties and since the amount of money an author receives for their work is a topic that is discussed quite frequently in the industry, I will share what are known as standard royalty rates. For print books, most authors receive between 5 and10 percent of the list price of their book. So, if the book sells for $20.00, the royalty paid to the author is generally $1.00-$2.00, depending on the royalty rate the agent was able to negotiate for the author. That royalty is applied toward the advance. For example, if your advance is $5,000.00 and your book sells for $20.00 and you signed a contract for a 10 percent royalty, you will need to sell 2,500 books to earn out your advance.

  That may seem straightforward, but most contracts have warehouse or discount store clauses that can slash your royalty percentage to as low as 1 or 2 percent of the sale price. Stores like Costco, Wal-Mart, or even Amazon will get a discount on the wholesale price of the book, which will drastically reduce your royalty. Again, as you consider the pros and cons of traditional publishing you have to think about what you value most about writing. If you are focused on making money from your books, the royalty rates will be a major factor. If you are more concerned about seeing your books in bookstores, you may want to opt for lower royalties and the higher distribution of a traditional publishing contract.

  Many publishers are starting new contracts with ebooks only, then if the book sells enough ebooks it goes into print. Standard royalties for ebooks are 25 percent of net profit. So for instance if you sell a book on Amazon for $9.99, it will fall into Amazon’s 70 percent commission, which breaks down like this: From that $9.99 book, Amazon gets $2.99, leaving the publisher with a net profit of $7.00, of which you will receive 25 percent, or $1.75. What’s important to note is that if the publisher raises the price above $9.99 it will convert to Amazon’s 35 percent commission, meaning you will earn even less.

  And don’t forget that if you have an agent, they will receive a percentage of your royalties too. In the end, it is a lot to consider. If you get stuck with a non-compete clause you won’t be able to self publish even if your book doesn’t do well (at least not under the same pen name and in the same genre). And some contracts even have a right o
f first refusal clause which essentially allows publishers a long period of time to make an offer on whatever you write next before you can do anything else with that book, even if you don’t have any desire to publish with the same company. These are just a few of the realities in the world of traditional publishing that a writer should be aware of. Now let’s take a look at self publishing in the digital age.

  Chapter 7

  Independent Publishing

  Not very long ago the idea of self publishing was met with ridicule and condescension. Only people who didn’t have the chops to make it in the publishing world lowered themselves to what most people considered vanity publishing. Then Amazon came along with Kindle and not only offered people an affordable, convenient way to read books, but they presented a new opportunity for authors to publish what they wanted, when they wanted, and in the way they wanted.

  Self publishing was never an ideal choice before ebooks came along. In days gone by the self publisher had to not only hire an editor, typesetter, and cover designer, but also had to pay for the printing of books. Then, once the books finally arrived from the printer, they were stuck with the arduous task of getting the books into places that might sell them. It was an expensive, high-risk endeavor that required a lot of work.

  When ebooks first started gaining in popularity the whole concept of self publishing changed. Gone were the days of spending thousands of dollars and filling your garage up with books to sell. Instead, a writer could write a book, have it edited, formatted, and wrapped in a professional cover for a very small investment. Then, with a few clicks of the mouse, the author could upload the book to online retailers who were willing to give the author the lion’s share of the royalties. It was a complete game changer.

  The first people to really take advantage of independent publishing were traditionally published authors. Many already had books written that they had failed to sell to publishers, and they were only too happy to release the books in digital form. Once the money started rolling in, these new independent publishers did whatever it took to get the rights to their books that were no longer in print. Suddenly the rules of publishing changed, and although the traditional publishing industry still scoffed at the idea of anyone self publishing, the authors who were making real money began to turn heads.

  My own passion for self publishing hinged on retaining control of my books. Sure, I would love to walk into a Barnes & Noble or Books-A-Million and see my paper books on the shelves, but I didn’t want to give away control of my books to do it. Not to mention nearly all the profits from my work, which would be gobbled up by the publishing company. In days gone by, a writer needed the publisher because there was no other way to get one’s books into bookstores. Now people walk around with access to the world’s biggest bookstore (and several others) right on their smartphones. The stores are open 24 hours a day, 365 days a year, and anyone can sell books there.

  Some people have very strong opinions about the superiority of self publishing over traditional publishing, or vice versa. That isn’t what this book is about. My purpose for writing this book is to help people who are trying to become authors. I want you to find success. I believe there is a place for both traditional and independent publishing, with each serving a very specific purpose for writers. Which path you take really depends on how you define success. We’ve looked at the pros and cons of traditional publishing, now let’s do the same with self publishing.

  First of all, self publishing is easy. I don’t have to wait for a busy agent to make time to pitch my book to busy editors. Instead I can do the work on my own timetable and then upload the book for publication. The process, which I’ll outline later in this chapter, is simple and fast. In fact, Amazon isn’t the only company that allows authors to self publish. Apple allows authors to independently publish to iBooks, Barnes & Noble has a system set up for the Nook store, and the same goes for Kobo, GooglePlay, and the list goes on and on. Then there are sites like smashwords.com that distribute an author’s books to several of the online retailers at once. Getting books in the hands of readers has never been easier.

  Self publishing is also liberating in that it allows authors to publish the stories they want to publish. Traditional publishers are focused on paper books first. Paper books cost money to make—and the longer the book, the more each copy costs to manufacture, meaning that the publishing company makes less money. So it should come as no surprise that most publishers want books to fit into a certain length. Editors have the difficult task of slashing books down to fit the template, and authors have no choice but to comply. With independent publishing, authors can write what they want to write. The author decides what scenes should be in the book, not an editor who has a completely different agenda. The author can publish as many books in a particular series as they want. They can experiment with price, run specials on their books, even give them away if they want to.

  Self publishing also changed the incredibly slow process of getting a book to market. Traditional publishers need time to prepare for a book launch, and then they need to ensure that they earn the maximum profit from each book. Independent publishers can publish whenever and however they like, whereas most traditional publishers will only print one book per author per year. This is a big deal to my readers who are constantly hounding me to get the next book out; I typically write four or five books a year. It benefits me to release as many books a year as I can because each book not only makes me money, but enhances the odds of my work being found by potential readers. It’s almost like I am casting an ever-widening net, and the more books I have available the greater my income is likely to be.

  And speaking of income, probably the most talked-about issue in the traditional versus indie debate is that of royalties. Most traditionally published books cost $8.00-$10.00 in ebook format (although that price seems to be rising higher and higher). In comparison, my books cost between $3.00 and $4.00. Yet the traditionally published author whose book is selling for $9.99 only makes $1.75, and if they have an agent that royalty falls to $1.51, while my book that sells for $2.99 earns me $2.09. And the great thing is that my customers can buy three of my books for every one of the traditionally published novels on the market. What that means is that I can afford to write more because I’m making more money from my books, and money is important to me, to my family, and to my goals.

  Surely there must be cons to self publishing, the naysayers always claim, but the cons are very few. First, with self publishing there is a financial investment up front. If you want to be successful as an independent author, you have to do three things: You have to write great books, which is completely up to you; you have to publish well-edited books because readers are turned off by typos, grammar issues, and mistakes in the book; and finally you have to have a professional-looking cover. Proponents of traditional publishing rightly claim that their publishers provide these services for them. But the truth is you can hire a professional editor and a professional graphic designer for much less than you would give up in royalties. Still the burden to make sure you have a great story, a polished manuscript, and a professional cover, rests squarely on the shoulders of the author publishing independently.

  Also, indie books don’t just show up in the big chain book stores. As the popularity of independent publishing has risen, so have companies that work well with indie authors. CreateSpace is a print-on-demand publisher which allows me to get my books in print. It also allows me to sell paper copies of my books on Amazon, but the larger chain stores refuse to carry them. If seeing your book in print and holding it in your hand is important to you, self publishing can fulfill that desire. If seeing your book in Barnes & Noble is something you value, it would be better to stick with traditional publishing.

  To be honest, those are the only cons in self publishing, and for most indie publishers they don’t even consider these issues to be cons. In my case I love seeing my physical books, and would honestly love to see them in the large bookstores, but I make a l
iving selling ebooks. I truly believe that the ebook is the future of publishing. It is more convenient, and certainly more cost effective. I don’t think paper books will ever go away, but I do believe they will eventually become a novelty, like record albums, film cameras, and video stores. And being in control of my content is exactly what I want. I want to publish my own books. I want to create the layout for the print books, design the covers, and set the prices. I want to be in charge of the editing and ensure that my books are as perfect as I can make them. Not every author wants to do the extra work, but I am more than willing. I see my career as a business and do my best to treat my books the way any responsible company would.

  The Process of Self Publishing

  We’ve talked about most of the steps involved in self publishing already, but here I’ll put them in order. Keep in mind that everyone is different and you may want to make changes to this list in order to suit your own preferences.

  First, you have to write the book. I know that seems a little a silly, and maybe you’ve already written several books, but unlike with traditional publishing where deals can be struck over the idea of a book, with self publishing you have to put in the work of writing. And please don’t neglect the reality that writing is difficult work. It may not be physically difficult, and writing may come easily to you, but it is a time-consuming, mentally exhausting task. So give yourself plenty of time to get the book written.

  Once you have that first draft done, you’ll need to do revisions. Read back through the manuscript. Some people find that reading their book out loud helps them recognize the problems in their writing. Make your changes, clean the manuscript up as best you can, then hand it off to your editor. You should take your time hiring an editor. It only takes a little work for a few days to cull through the professionals who will be anxious to help you make the book as good as you can get it. If you choose to do a content or developmental edit, which is a great idea for new writers, then you should also hire someone to do a copy edit.