I have talked about books and publishing industry before but since I am not an author I can’t give you first hand views on how the publishing industry works. Luckily others can. Charles Stross is an author who I really like and he is doing a series of posts on his blog about Common Misconceptions About Publishing (CMAP). He has made 4 posts so far and each gives a fascinating view of the industry from an author’s perspective.
Check them out here:
- CMAP #1
- CMAP #2: How Books Are Made
- CMAP #3: What Authors sell to Publishers.
- CMAP #4: Territories, Translations, and Foreign Rights
Out of all the posts listed above I like #2 and #3 the best. #2 explains how a book gets from a concept in an author’s mind to a finished product in the market. I think its a great read for anyone interested in publishing and how it works. #3 explains what authors sell to publishers and what a standard contract consists of, again quite interesting how the entire thing breaks down and how the remuneration works.
I don’t write fiction, but if I did I would find these posts quite informative on how the entire process works and knowing that gives a person advantage when they try to sell their manuscript to a publisher. So if you write or are planning to, do check out the posts above.
– Suramya