How do I publish my Ebook with a real publisher?

6 replies
How do I publish my Ebook with a real publisher?

My Ebook is so awesome...that I want to get a real publisher to do this...however, I dont have a clue as to how to do this.

Do any of you guys know how to do this?
#ebook #publish #publisher #real
  • Profile picture of the author Ralf Skirr
    The best way to get a foot in the publishing industry is through an agent.

    He takes part of the profit, but at the same time he will get you better deals and know which publishers to contact. Publishers will listen to an agent's advice much more than to unsolicited manuscripts piling up a mile high on their desk.

    An agent is also the best person to evaluate your book and tell you if it's really that awesome compared to publishing standards.

    So your next step would be to google agents and read their web sites to get a better understanding of the process.

    Ralf
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  • Profile picture of the author webapex
    You can get some PR and authority benefits by offering a hard copy version on Amazon, fulfilling the rare order with one off print on demand service.
    Signature

    “An expert is a person who has made all the mistakes that can be made in a very narrow field” Niels Bohr

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    • Profile picture of the author edlewis
      Publish it yourself on Amazon....Barnes & Noble...and iBooks.

      Who needs a "real" publisher these days?
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      • Profile picture of the author Ralf Skirr
        Originally Posted by edlewis View Post

        Publish it yourself on Amazon....Barnes & Noble...and iBooks.

        Who needs a "real" publisher these days?
        Everyone who wants to enjoy the benefits of a real publishers marketing power.

        1. They can get your book on display in major bookstores. Try that with a self published one. :-)
        2. They have media contacts. Try to get on Oprah on your own. :-)
        3. They save you the trouble of all administrative stuff around publishing. How many months of learning and of trial and error do you recommend an aspiring author should invest?

        After all, he wants to be an author, not a publisher.

        If you want to get your self published book popular, and you're not even a pro (like we can assume the OP is not) than you will not get too far with your self publishing efforts.

        • Is it possible to land a hit wiht self publishing? Yes.
        • Is it likely for a non-pro. Absolutely not.

        For an author it's much smarter to team up with agents and publishers. It gives the author time to focus on writing and on additional income streams.

        The book alone does not do much for you.

        The warrior mindset of doing everything yourself simply because it's technically possible is not always the best road to success.

        Ralf
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  • Profile picture of the author ThrillerAuthor
    It is very hard these days for an unknown writer or someone who isn't a celebrity of some sort to get a book published with one of the larger publishers. If you still don't want to follow the posters' advice about self-publishing, your best chance would be to get an agent, as Ralf explained it in his post.

    Most publishers only accept unsolicited manuscript submissions through agents anyway, and thos who accept thme directly from the author, will just add them to their "slush pile", and you'll be very lucky if they ever get to see your manuscript.

    To get an agent just to be interested in your manuscript, you need a query letter and you need to do some market research (if it's a non-fiction book). Just google what such a query letter looks like and what kind of market research you need to put in there. There's a lot of info on google about this.

    Once you've got your query letter, you can research the literary agents - google them and find a few who look reputable and will work with your niche - they'll tell you on their websites which niches they work in - don't even bother sending them off-topic stuff. Your query letter has to be absolutely perfect in terms of content, layout, formatting, grammar and spelling - they want to see that you can actually write good and have taken the time to analyze your market and want to see proof that there's a demand for your type of manuscript in your niche.

    Look at each agent's web site to see what the submission process is - some accept only snail mail, others want a synopsis of the manuscript together with the query letter and others might want to see the first 3 chapters as well.

    Don't take a shotgun approach, address each agent specifically in his/her query letter and don't send off query letters to a bunch of agents using the same emal message. Also tell the agent if you's sent query letters to other agents as well - if you've done that, some might not even bother considering your letter, or place it in the back of the queue.

    On their websites, agents might specify how long it will take for them to reply to your letter. Don't bug them - they'll quickly delete your letter. If haven't heard from them after a month, it's ok to ask them for confirmation of your query letter. Don't flame them if they don't reply or do not accept your manuscript.

    If you are patient and persistent, and your manuscript is very good, you might just find yourself an agent! However, this process can take many months, if not years. And then the book isn't published yet. The agent must now find a publisher, but the good ones who've been in the business a long time have many publisher contacts. But having an agent is still no guarantee that any publisher will accept your book.

    Whatever you do, never ever pay someone to read your manuscript or to become your agent!! These people are scammers. Real agents only work for commission from your actual sales, and that is why they will only agree to take you on as a client if they truly believe they can sell your book to a publisher.

    Now after having read all of this, don't you think self publishing is much easier and quicker to get your book out in the market?
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  • Profile picture of the author txconx
    I suggest you read these two blog posts on publishing and self publishing:

    Ebooks and Publishing

    A Newbie's Guide to Publishing

    These are both well worth the LONG read if you're considering getting a book published.
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