We are fortunate in the United Kingdom to have some of the most excellent Publishers of Fiction and Non Fiction Books in the World. We also have some of the most prolific and most successful writers in the World. So, everything in the Garden must be rosy Or is it ?
You may be a budding author at this moment. You have done a lot of research for your book. You have spent many months if not years constructing the storyline, researching the facts, creating characters, seeking constructive criticism.
You have visited many bookshops such as W H.Smith, Waterstones, ASDA and many more
You Google Amazon and other onlne retailers.
You have noticed that -
- They sell thousands of titles about every topic and subject
- The shelves are lined with Autobiographies of so called Celebrities. Books for Adults and Children
- Fiction, Non Fiction, Historical Books, Educational Books and so on.
- Then you notice that in most stores there are lots of Promotions - Buy one get one free - Buy one and get one half price - 50% off the original price - 30% off the original price - £1 for a limited time only.
- Amazon advertise many special offers - and so do Tesco and the other Supermarkets.
You start to realise that most of the books on the shelves of retailers do not sell well if at all.
There must be so much wastage with many books being either loss leaders or just lost causes !
How can this be ?
If you have written a book, an original book and you try to get it published, you will come up against The Fort Knox of the Publishing Industry.
Here are some of the barriers you will face - so be warned.
- We do not accept unsolicited Manuscripts.
- We only accept Proposals from Literary Agents.
- The Literary Agents will say that they do not accept unsolicited Manuscripts
- Some Companies will ask you to send a Proposal and one Chapter of your book but will warn you We are so busy that we may not be able to reply to you. They are part of the NOREPLY Society that we live In Britain Today.
Be prepared to feel like you are battering your head against a brick wall !
However, you may ask yourself, how did these people pass for publication so many books that fail to sell and make such heavy losses at retail level and little or no royalties for the Author ?
Is it because in so many instances they have passed over the winning books as a result of their tough, arrogant, stereotyped attitude to new Authors ? Maybe it is their very impolite and non understanding attitude towards new talent.
The answer cannot be that they are too busy - because they need new creative talent.
The Booker Prize is a very good incentive to succeed but it is restricted to newly published books. How can the non Published Author get a look in ?
Herein lies the danger The new Author will be offered lots and lots of help from companies who specialise in Print Your Own Book - at a cost.
This may be very tempting. You will become an instant Vanity Published Author.
The Book Trade do not like this.
Remember also that any new book needs Marketing and Marketing costs money and in most cases lots of money for Point of Sale Material in store, Leaflets and Flyers, Press Advertising and PR
( Public Relations Campaigns ).
Beware of taking this route.
So, what can you do to succeed in the Book Trade as an Author ? I am afraid in the words of Winston Churchill are so relevant today - I can only offer you Blood, Sweat and Tears !
If you believe believe in yourself, you must have the determination to carry on and win in the end. It may takes months or it may take years
.
Good luck - and do not let the Fort Knox, NoReply Mentality People in the Publishing World get you down.
There may, just may be somebody out there who will give your creative talent a chance to succeed.
I sincerely hope so.
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