Getting Your Book To Market Quickly
Before the cart comes the market!
Dallas, TX – When you sign a publishing contract with a major publisher, you pretty much give them complete control of what happens with your book. This includes when (and if) your book is printed and shipped to retail stores. Do you notice the words “and if” in the previous sentence. There is always an “and if” when dealing major publishers. Yes, the vast majority of books from such publishers make to the store shelves. But there are a number things that can keep a book from being released at all.
It’s not unusual for a major publisher to have staffing changes over the course of year. There are a number of things that happen behind the scenes that the authors they work with are not aware of. Sales, of course, are the number priority for any book publisher and that means that they are always looking for new ways to increase revenue. This can lead to changes in approach and philosophy which lead to changes in staff. And in some cases, such changes mean that a book will be dropped from production as the publisher has decided to “go in a different direction.” If this happens, the author doesn’t have much recourse as the contract they signed allows the publisher to opt out in certain situations.
Here is one example. Most traditional publishers have an acquisition department where decisions are made as to whether to take on a new title or not. There is often a staff member (point person) who is sold on a particular book and recommends it with a great amount of enthusiasm. Should that person leave due to staffing changes, the production of the books they championed could be stalled and in some cases, dropped altogether.
As a self-published author, you have control over when (and if) your book makes it to the marketplace. In fact, it’s quite common for self-published authors to begin marketing their book before it is available knowing that there will be no chance of their book not becoming available. This is a huge advantage over traditional publishing methods.
Typically, it takes a major publisher one to two years to get a book on store shelves. If your book is particularly timely (it contains material that is quickly outdated), you may be dropped before final editing and production begin. Books about marketing, technology, science, medicine and entertainment all fall into the timely category. If the content of your book covers one of these areas, you’ll be better off taking the self-publishing route and getting your book out there as soon as possible.
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Phillip Crum is the Chief Idea Officer of Sir Speedy Walnut Hill located at 2414 Arbuckle Court Dallas, TX 75229, and is committed to the idea of helping small business owners do a better job of finding their next customer or client. Phillip can be reached at 214-213-7445, or via email.
Copyright © 2006-2010 Phillip Crum
