Publishing Your Book with a Traditional Publishing House

Although it has been a reasonable trend as of late to get an online printer to print books from new authors on demand, some new authors still prefer the benefits associated with traditional national publishers. Those benefits include marketing your book to thousands of retail outlets. That being said, for most first-time authors, the struggles outweigh the benefits that accompany the few authors who have books that are selected for publication.

Did you know that out of 100 people, only 50 people will attempt to publish their book once they finish it? Out of those 50, about 25 will quit after their first rejection from a publisher. Of the remaining 25, only 12 will try more than twice. Four of those 12 will not properly follow the submission guidelines. That leaves only approximately 8 out of 100 people who have a chance at publishing their book with a traditional publishing house.

Why do so many people fail? It could be lack of persistence or drive. It could be an unwillingness to make the changes that a publisher thinks need to be made before they will publish it. Publishing is not an easy task. However, if you know some of the vital tips to writing and publishing your book, you can be one of the few that succeed.

1. When writing, start by choosing your audience. Decide what you want to write about and who you want to direct it to. After that draw up an outline to guide your book into the right direction that will lead you to success. Know all the key points from beginning to end that you want to hit before you write. Filling in all the details should come naturally.

2. Never Quit while writing or after. As you are writing your novel, you will run into some writers’ blocks. This is inevitable, but don’t give up. When you can’t think of anything, start a new page and just start writing anything that pops into your mind, it doesn’t have to be well written or even meaningful at first, but as you just let the words fall out of your thoughts, you will find that eventually, they will naturally form the sentences you were trying to write earlier. I’m serious – this might sound odd, but it works!

3. Edit your work. Have your writing professionally edited by a respected company like Articles and Submissions, so that your writing will be absolutely perfect before it is published. Even after initial revisions, some publishers might want to make additional changes. Listen to their constructive criticism. They might not publish your article if you don’t.

4. Submit Everywhere. After you have completed your novel, submit it, submit it, and submit it. There are several traditional publishing houses that you can submit to. We suggest making friends in the publishing business and building upon those friendships as often as possible.

5. Keep Your Rejections. Your first two rejection slips should be kept as prized possessions. They prove that you went above and beyond more than 92% or all authors who attempt to publish their own book.

6. Change it up if necessary. Have the “wisdom to change the things [you] can.” If you have not been accepted after four submissions, change your tactics. Make sure you are trying to publish with the right company, in the right market. Review your good story line and mission. Fix any possible errors and critiques that you receive along the way. Spend time perfecting it.

7. Never give up, just keep persevering through until you finally reach success. Walt Disney was rejected 300 times before he was accepted for his first business loan, and those first 300 banks are now regretting it dearly. So be one out of the few that succeeds and show those who rejected you that they were wrong. Publish your own book.

If all else fails, print your book one at a time or a hundred at a time by a respected printer in your area or online. Do the marketing yourself. If you work hard at marketing, and you have a good book, traditional publishing houses will be coming to you the next time around!