Traditional Publishing Process - Revision history

Kay T at 02:46, 30 January 2009

2009-01-30T02:46:46Z

Kay T: Traditional Publisher moved to Traditional Publishing Process: old title sounded like it was the name of a publisher.

2009-01-30T02:33:23Z

Traditional Publisher moved to Traditional Publishing Process: old title sounded like it was the name of a publisher.

Robini: New page: Traditional Publishers such as Harlequin or Avon buy manuscripts from Authors, print them in paper format, and distribute. Often they take on the expense of advertising (at...

2007-11-08T15:26:48Z

New page: Traditional Publishers such as Harlequin or Avon buy manuscripts from Authors, print them in paper format, and distribute. Often they take on the expense of advertising (at...

New page

Traditional Publishers such as [[Harlequin]] or [[Avon]] buy manuscripts from [[Authors]], print them in [[paper format]], and distribute. Often they take on the expense of advertising (at least in part), and their profit comes directly from book sales

==Traditional Publisher Process==
===Submission by author or agent===
Depending on the press, some publishers will buy manuscripts individually, commission authors to flesh out preplanned story arcs, or contract with an author to produce X number of books in succession/per year.

Writers often first submit a query letter or proposal. The majority of unsolicited submissions come from previously unpublished authors. When such manuscripts are unsolicited, they must go through the [[slush pile]], in which acquisitions editors sift through to identify manuscripts of sufficient quality or revenue potential to be referred to the editorial staff. Established authors are often represented by a [[literary agent]] to market their work to publishers and negotiate contracts.

===Acceptance and negotiation===
Once a work is accepted, commissioning editors negotiate the purchase of [[intellectual property]] rights and agree on [[royalties|royalty]] rates.

The authors of traditional printed materials sell exclusive territorial intellectual property rights that match the list of [[country|countries]] in which distribution is proposed (i.e. the rights match the legal systems under which copyright protections can be enforced). In the case of books, the publisher and writer must also agree on the intended formats of publication -— mass-market paperback, "trade" paperback and hardback are the most common options.

Having agreed on the scope of the publication and the formats, the parties in a book agreement must then agree on royalty rates, the percentage of the gross retail price that will be paid to the author and the advance payment. This is difficult because the publisher must estimate the potential sales in each market and balance projected revenue against production costs. Advances vary greatly between books, with established authors commanding large advances.

===Editorial stage===
Once the immediate commercial decisions are taken and the technical legal issues resolved, the author may be asked to improve the quality of the work through rewriting or smaller changes. An Editor will guide the Author through the process of changing the work. Publishers may maintain a house style, and staff will [[copy edit]] to ensure that the work matches the style and grammatical requirements of each market. Editing may also involve structural changes and requests for more information.

===Prepress===
When a final text is agreed upon, the next phase is [[design]]. This may include [[Visual arts|artwork]] being commissioned or confirmation of layout. In publishing, the word "art" also indicates photographs. This process prepares the work for [[printing]] through processes such as [[typesetting]], dust jacket composition, specification of paper quality, binding method and casing, and [[proofreading]].

==E-formatting==
Although several [[Electronic Publishers]] exist, Traditional publishers are also starting to see profit in electronic distribution.

@@ Line 1: / Line 1: @@
 Traditional Publishers such as [[Harlequin]] or [[Avon]] buy manuscripts from [[Authors]], print them in [[paper format]], and distribute. Often they take on the expense of advertising (at least in part), and their profit comes directly from book sales
@@ Line 5: / Line 6: @@
 Depending on the press, some publishers will buy manuscripts individually, commission authors to flesh out preplanned story arcs, or contract with an author to produce X number of books in succession/per year.
-Writers often first submit a query letter or proposal. The majority of unsolicited submissions come from previously unpublished authors. When such manuscripts are unsolicited, they must go through the [[slush pile]], in which acquisitions editors sift through to identify manuscripts of sufficient quality or revenue potential to be referred to the editorial staff. Established authors are often represented by a [[literary agent]] to market their work to publishers and negotiate contracts.
+Writers often first submit a query letter or proposal. The majority of unsolicited submissions come from previously unpublished authors. When such manuscripts are unsolicited, they must go through the [[slush pile]], in which acquisitions editors sift through to identify manuscripts of sufficient quality or revenue potential to be referred to the editorial staff. Established authors are often represented by a [[Literary Agent]] to market their work to publishers and negotiate contracts.
 ===Acceptance and negotiation===
-Once a work is accepted, commissioning editors negotiate the purchase of [[intellectual property]] rights and agree on [[royalties|royalty]] rates.
+Once a work is accepted, commissioning editors negotiate the purchase of [[intellectual property]] rights and agree on [[Royalty]] rates.
-The authors of traditional printed materials sell exclusive territorial intellectual property rights that match the list of [[country|countries]] in which distribution is proposed (i.e. the rights match the legal systems under which copyright protections can be enforced). In the case of books, the publisher and writer must also agree on the intended formats of publication -— mass-market paperback, "trade" paperback and hardback are the most common options.
+The authors of traditional printed materials sell exclusive territorial intellectual property rights that match the list of countries in which distribution is proposed (i.e. the rights match the legal systems under which copyright protections can be enforced). In the case of books, the publisher and writer must also agree on the intended formats of publication -— mass-market [[Paperback]], [[Trade Paperback|"trade" paperback]] and [[Hardcover|hardback]] are the most common options.
-Having agreed on the scope of the publication and the formats, the parties in a book agreement must then agree on royalty rates, the percentage of the gross retail price that will be paid to the author and the advance payment. This is difficult because the publisher must estimate the potential sales in each market and balance projected revenue against production costs. Advances vary greatly between books, with established authors commanding large advances.
+Having agreed on the scope of the publication and the formats, the parties in a book agreement must then agree on royalty rates, the percentage of the gross retail price that will be paid to the author and the advance payment. This is difficult because the publisher must estimate the potential sales in each market and balance projected revenue against production costs. [[Advance]]s vary greatly between books, with established authors commanding large advances.
 ===Editorial stage===
@@ Line 18: / Line 19: @@
 ===Prepress===
-When a final text is agreed upon, the next phase is [[design]]. This may include [[Visual arts|artwork]] being commissioned or confirmation of layout. In publishing, the word "art" also indicates photographs. This process prepares the work for [[printing]] through processes such as [[typesetting]], dust jacket composition, specification of paper quality, binding method and casing, and [[proofreading]].
+When a final text is agreed upon, the next phase is [[design]]. This may include [[Visual arts|artwork]] being commissioned or confirmation of layout. In publishing, the word "art" also indicates photographs. This process prepares the work for printing through processes such as [[typesetting]], dust jacket composition, specification of paper quality, binding method and casing, and [[proofreading]].
 ==E-formatting==
-Although several [[Electronic Publishers]] exist, Traditional publishers are also starting to see profit in electronic distribution.
+Although several [[Electronic Publishers]] publishing only in electronic format, traditional print publishers are also starting to see profit in electronic distribution.

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