Saturday, December 02, 2006

How do I love thee Publishers Marketplace? Let me count the ways...

An excellent question was posed by my very favorite Alaskan writer Kimber an.
"Why should a writer subscribe to Publishers Marketplace?" she asked.
At first I was just going to answer her and then I thought, I hear this from a lot of writers.
I decided to do a blog entry on it.
OK.
Sit down.
Get comfortable.
Do you all have paper and pencil for notes?
Good.
Writing is a business.
(Gasp!)
If you want to be published you have to look at it as a business. I won't even get into all the stuff about writing everyday, finishing one book and starting another, improving your craft.
You know all that.
PUBLISHING IS A BUSINESS.
Got that?
You have to understand the language, the culture and common practices. Just like moving to a foreign country.
Publishers Marketplace is a cheap ($20 a month deducted from your handy dandy little charge card) and effective way to learn about the business. You hear the "buzz." Who's moving where. What houses are acquiring what projects. What's old. What's fresh. You can see the deals being made and how much they are going for and get an idea what yours may bring.
You can research agents and editors.
You can also get an idea of genre and who handles what.
There are member pages. You can get email addresses. It was invaluable to me in acquiring my agent.
Now?
I'm looking up editors and seeing what they acquire. I'm looking at the deals and seeing who's buying what.
I am learning the language.
A house is a publishing company.
A home is where your book goes.
Preempt
Good deal
Nice deal
Auction
All these become clear.
So get thee hence and join.
Today.
http://publishersmarketplace.com/

This is Publishers Market place...this is your writing career...this is your writing career ON Publishers Market place.
Any questions?

3 comments:

Anonymous said...

Thanks for answering. I think by answering more newbie questions, more newbies will visit your page and recommend it to others. More bloggers coming through mean more people will buy your book when it comes out. Publication is a business! ;)

On a sidenote, now that I'm Blogging in Beta I have to sign in every single time I point-and-click. It is sooo annoying. Yes, I always check the 'Remember Me' box. Is anyone else dealing with this?

Anonymous said...

I am looking forward to the time when I can afford the extra $20 per month for Publishers Marketplace.

Kimber An...
I am not having that problem, but for whatever reason, the beta won't always let me post pics (like today). I don't think that the 'remember me' box works at all. I am convinced it is for decoration only.

Michelle said...

i've heard so many complaints about Blogger Beta --

Orion this was a great post