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Helping to Change the World Word by Word

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Home » Self-Publishing » Page 2

Self-Publishing

How Long Does It Take to Get Published?

By Steve Laubeon June 3, 2019
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How long does it take to get published?

I came to the publishing business from the retail bookstore side of the equation. In the beginning, the biggest adjustment was understanding how long the process for traditional publishing takes. In retail there is instantaneous gratification (customer walks in, buys something, and walks out). With indie publishing there can be nearly instantaneous gratification (one click and you are published!). But traditional book publishing is a process business. I created much of this post over eight years ago and the details stand unchanged. This is still the  norm.

There is no question the timeline varies from person to person and project to project. In the world of major publishers, the diversity can be quite extreme.

I know of one major publisher that can move from making an offer on a book proposal through the contract process to sending the advance paycheck within 30 days. But that is the exception.

In one case we accepted an offer for a client’s book. Two full months later the paperwork for the contract was created by the publisher. There were errors in the contract that needed to be discussed, negotiated, and revised … add another six weeks. Yet another month went by before an advance payment was received. From acceptance of a deal to paycheck was 4 1/2 months.

What is average time for the traditional publishing process?

In my experience:

1) From idea to book proposal to your literary agent: 1-3 months
2) From agent to editor and book contract offer: 2-5 months
3) From contract offer to first paycheck: 2-3 months
4) From contract to delivery of manuscript to editor: 3-9 months (sometimes longer)
(From delivery of manuscript to editor actually working on it: 2-5 months)
5) From editor to publication: 9-12 months

Total time from idea to print: approximately 2 years.

Your mileage may vary.

What has been your experience? Please do not mention specific publishers, agents, or editors by name. The industry changes every month,  and what may have been a challenge may no longer be the case.

What is the longest time our agency waited after submitting a proposal to receive an offer from a publisher (#2 on the above list)? We once received an offer from a publisher 22 months after we had submitted the proposal for consideration. When I called the author, she said, “What book was that?” She had already written two other contracted and published books in the interim! As I said above, your mileage may vary.

The shortest time? A client worked on her fiction proposal for quite a while. She customized her idea and pitch to target exactly where that publisher was currently publishing new releases. The proposal landed on the editor’s desk on Thursday. We had an offer on Monday. I repeat, your mileage may vary.

Why does it take so long?

The main challenge for most authors following the traditional publishing model is that one-year time period from delivering the finished manuscript to when it is actually published. This “delay” can easily be classified under marketing. A publisher cannot and should not start their machinery (cover design, marketing plans, etc.) until they know there will actually be a book. And they won’t know there is a manuscript until it shows up in-house.

I remember some disasters in the “old days” when the turn-around time from delivery to publication was much shorter than a year–and the author failed to deliver on time. In one case, a publisher was actually fined $5,000 by a major bookstore chain for failing to deliver a book that the chain had put in their catalog and for which they had run special marketing. The stores lost significant sales because there weren’t any books.

There was another case where the publisher jumped the gun and spent money on a cover and branding design only to have the book never be written and the contract canceled. Thus publishers won’t start on those expenses until they know they have a manuscript.

In some media circles, there is a demand for “Advance Reader Copies” (aka the ARC) six to eight months in advance of publication (either print or ebook copies). That way the media outlet can read the book, write the review, and have it published at a time that is about a month before the release of the book (i.e. Library Journal, Publisher’s Weekly, etc.). To achieve that means the book has to be turned in and all editing, cover design, and typesetting has to be a long way toward completion before the ARC can be created.

[I’ve left the comments from the earlier post alone. Feel free to add new thoughts below.]

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Category: Book Business, Book Business, Book Proposals, Contracts, Get Published, Marketing, Publishing A-Z, Self-Publishing, The Publishing Life, The Writing LifeTag: Agents, Book Business, Contracts, Editors, Proposals, waiting

Recent Questions I’ve Been Asked

By Bob Hostetleron May 1, 2019
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Since becoming a literary agent, I’ve been fairly impressed with myself. It became obvious, almost immediately, that (judging from people’s respect for and faith in me) my IQ climbed 20-30 points and my expertise tripled once I began accepting clients. So, as you might imagine, I field quite a few questions. And some I know the answers to. Here are a few examples of recent questions I’ve been …

Read moreRecent Questions I’ve Been Asked
Category: Book Proposals, Career, Marketing, Self-Publishing, The Writing Life

Lessons Learned As a Literary Agent

By Dan Balowon October 23, 2018
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Dan is leaving the agency at the end of this month to focus his attention on the work of Gilead Publishing, the company he started in 2016. Here are some parting thoughts. _____ I’ve been a literary agent for about 2,000 of the 13,000 total days spent working with and for book publishers over the last thirty-five years. It’s been a great experience, for sure; but as I look back at the thousands of …

Read moreLessons Learned As a Literary Agent
Category: Agents, Book Business, Branding, Career, Conferences, Craft, Creativity, Encouragement, Inspiration, Marketing, Personal, Pitch, Platform, Self-Publishing, Social Media, The Publishing Life, The Writing Life, Writing Craft

Of Making Many Books There Is No End

By Steve Laubeon October 15, 2018
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This past week Bowker, the company that issues ISBN numbers for published books, released their annual statistics. They broke out the numbers for self-published books and revealed a stunning statistic. (If you want the history and explanation of the ISBN, read my scintillating post on the topic here. Each country issues their own ISBNs; Bowker is the one for the U.S.) The total number of ISBNs …

Read moreOf Making Many Books There Is No End
Category: Book Proposals, Marketing, Platform, Self-Publishing, The Publishing Life, The Writing Life

How to Know if Self-Publishing is for You

By Dan Balowon August 14, 2018
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Technology and Amazon.com have opened up the world of book publishing, making it far more “democratic” than ever before and allowing anyone with word processing software and connection to the internet, to become a published author. The traditional publishing industry is a $25 billion or more industry in the United States, generating about 300,000 new titles every year in all categories and …

Read moreHow to Know if Self-Publishing is for You
Category: Agents, Get Published, Marketing, Self-PublishingTag: Get Published, Self-Publishing

I Couldn’t Think of a Good Title for This Post

By Bob Hostetleron March 21, 2018
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Some writers love to come up with titles for their stories, articles, or books. Some hate it. Some are good at it, some are awful. But we all have to do it, like it or not. A title can make or break a pitch, even though editors will often change our titles. So here are my twelve top tips (try saying that ten times fast!) for titling your tomes: Know your market. If you’re writing for the Christian …

Read moreI Couldn’t Think of a Good Title for This Post
Category: Book Business, Book Proposals, Creativity, Get Published, Marketing, Pitch, Pitching, Self-PublishingTag: book proposals, Creativity, Titles

7 Good Reasons to Self-Publish

By Bob Hostetleron February 21, 2018
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I have mentioned before on this site (here and, most recently, here) that aspiring writers often shoot their publishing futures in the foot, so to speak, by self-publishing a book (or books). I won’t repeat myself again (see what I did there?). Instead, I will talk briefly about the good reasons to self-publish. There are many bad reasons to do so, of course (because no agents or editors seem to …

Read more7 Good Reasons to Self-Publish
Category: Indie, Self-Publishing, The Publishing Life, The Writing LifeTag: Indie, Self-Publishing, The Publishing Life

Three Things I’ve Learned as an Agent

By Bob Hostetleron January 10, 2018
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Just over six months ago, I became a literary agent with the Steve Laube Agency. Hoo boy. It has been some ride.  Lots o’ fun, lots o’ work, and lots o’ learning. So I thought I’d take a few minutes (it’s all I have before the boss calls and starts yelling at me again) to reflect on what I’ve learned in that short period of time. It’s not an easy task, considering I already knew pretty much …

Read moreThree Things I’ve Learned as an Agent
Category: Agency, Agents, Book Business, Indie, Self-Publishing, The Publishing Life, The Writing LifeTag: Agency, Agents

Test Marketing Books

By Dan Balowon May 23, 2017
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In the traditional book-publishing world, insiders often refer to the initial release of a book from a new author as a marketing test…more R&D than launching and promoting a known product. The self-publishing process can function in a similar role of market testing for a first time author. You won’t know for certain how it will be received, but it is worth the effort to try. Most authors …

Read moreTest Marketing Books
Category: Book Business, Indie, Marketing, Self-Publishing, The Publishing LifeTag: Indie, Marketing, Self-Publishing, The Publishing Life

At What Point Would an Agent be Interested in an Indie Author?

By Steve Laubeon April 10, 2017
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I am an indie author. I’ve written several novels, some of which have sold well and all of which have *at least* 4.7 stars. Is there a point at which an agent would want to talk to someone like me? When/why might I consider getting an agent? Thanks to Heather for the question! A number of factors play a role in answering this question. (Are you getting tired of my “it depends” answer to all your …

Read moreAt What Point Would an Agent be Interested in an Indie Author?
Category: Agents, Book Proposals, Indie, Pitching, Self-Publishing, The Publishing Life, The Writing LifeTag: Agents, Indie
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