The proof copy of my novel has been with the publishers for several weeks now but I've heard nothing from them. Someone told me that I ought to wait three months before contacting them. What are your opinions, as this seems a bit long?
I don't have any experience in publication but I've read quite a bit on the subject. In some cases it seems publishers can take up to 6 months before they get to a piece of work. However in this case, since you're already a published writer, I would give them a couple of months before making the phone call. I definitely think a few weeks is too short a time.
The thing is, Bluemouth, the novel was accepted 10 months ago, has been edited and the cover designed. It only wants the proof to be read to make sure the printers haven't introduced mistakes. - Anthony
then you can certainly give them a call and ask when you can expect the book to go to print... but know that this is not out of the ordinary... in fact, only 10 months from contract to print would be less than the more usual 12-18 months... congrats on getting this far!... who's the publisher?
Sorry for the late reply but I've been away for a few days. My publisher is Libros International. Anthony
ok, well that explains the delay in printing... they're brand new, barely a year old, and neither principal has a background in publishing, so delays wouldn't be unexpected... they seem to use pod rather than printing traditionally, since they require mss to have justified margins, suggesting to me that they send the print-ready copy to a pod firm... they don't normally offer any advance and their faq's say royalties are 'negotiable' which is not a good sign, imo... i hope you have a contract in place that fixes the percentage at the going rate... the last faq states that their contract-to-print time is only 5-9 months, which again is indicative of pod users, but as it's been longer than the max now, you should certainly call and ask why it's taking so long... fyi, like all pods, their books are way overpriced for a paperback, at 8.99 english pounds [$18.46 us dollars], so don't expect to make much, since sales will be minimal, as most bookbuyers won't pay that much for a pb... best of luck with it all... love and hugs, maia
Thanks for that, maia. It looks like I sent it to the wrong publisher. They were the first I offered it to, on recommendation from a friend. I was dead thrilled to get it accepted. They took it on board within a couple of weeks. I suppose I'll have to chalk it up to experience, but it p****s me off, that I might have had it accepted by a more mainstream firm. I suppose having a book published might make the sequel slightly more interesting to another publisher though, ONCE this one is in the market that is. Thanks for your help - Anthony
Mammamaia, You seem to have accumulated a lot of experience about what to expect from a publisher, and what things should raise a red flag. Would you consider posting some of the key things you look for? I think it would be a great addition to the stickied On Submitting thread in this forum.
...that's the first warning sign... an acceptance coming that quickly usually means they don't have very high standards and accept most of the works that come their way... the most reputable traditional houses will take time to assess the work, having more than one editor give it a good going over, then may present it to an acquisitions panel for a decision... all of which will generally take much more than two weeks... ...i wonder if you checked their site for books they've published and assessed cover price re what's printed... if you'd seen that they turn out paperbacks only, pricing them at close to what hard cover books go for these days [$18.43... all 6 of their books are priced at £8.54 ], would you have gone ahead and signed that contract?... and did you notice that they're all available at discounted prices, as low as £1.99?... all of which means that few will be sold at 'suggested retail price' which may be what your royalties will be based on... ...and there's another red flag, since this company does not even mention in their faq's what percentage they do pay or on what basis the royalties will be calculated... they only mention what the supposed going rate in the industry is, but even that is not good info, as it's simplistic to a fault and doesn't give any hint of what you'll make if you sign with them... ...royalties are a very complicated thing and are far from being as 'standard' as they make it seem, the rate depending on many other factors... the whole question of royalties should be negotiated, which is why one should never sign with a publisher w/o having an agent handle that end of things for you, or at least having a literary attorney go over the contract first and explain it all to you... ...good news is you've hopeully learned from the experience and will be more knowledgeable [and wary], going into your next negotiation with a publisher... ...wish it were that simple... being 'in the market' means nada, sorry to say... that could be true only if this one sells in the thousands of copies, which is highly unlikely, at that horribly inflated price for a pb... when's the last time you paid almost twenty bucks for a pb by an unknown author?... ...of particular worry is this, from their faq on marketing: ...the word in bold is the kicker... is that part of your contract?... are you bound by the contract to buy at least 25 copies?... what price do you have to pay for them?... how much of a 'tidy profit' do you think you can you make, if you have to then charge more than that to your buyers?... how many copies do you think you can you sell for twice the usual pb price, after family and friends have all ponied up for one?... ...sorry i can't be more hopeful for you on this, anthony, but these are just facts of life in the publishing world... the truth is out there... you just have to look for it more carefully, next time, before you sign a contract... ...i wish you all the best with your next book and hope you buck the odds and sell enough of this one to make that 'tidy profit' and then some... hugs, maia
cog... i'll be glad to take a look at what's there and work up something to add, if more is needed... m
Thank YOU, mammamaia! Having never sought a publisher, I can't tell you if anything is missing. But it looks like plenty of good, practical advice. Thank you again.
I think 3 months is a reasonable time to wait for something to be done about a novel. A few weeks is a little bit of a short time. 4 months, make a call or write a polite letter, a year, guess they've rejected it. That's what I learned from published writers' advice.
it varies from one to another, but 6 months is not unusual... rather than setting an arbitrary limit for all, it's best to check the guidelines of each, to see how long they say it may take...
