What do you want in a Publisher?

[CrystalSpiritinc]

Greetings all,

I have been doing a little research regarding the reasons authors move towards the Self-Publishing route. I know that for some,it is beneficial because they don't want to lose control, want more royalties, don't want to wait more than 12 months etc. There are plenty of reasons, all that I find valid and to be honest were some of the same reason I started out as a self publisher. However; if you were to consider publishing with a traditional publisher, what is it that you would want or need? As a publisher, I am starting to receive manuscripts from authors that either tried the self-publishing way and it didn't work for them or they are still not sure as it can be a little scary.

So, I am trying to see what could be done to address their needs (being proactive) before I even consider the option.

Thanks in advance for your feedback!

Vanessa
Crystal Spirit Publishing, Inc
www.crystalspiritinc.com

[pls]

Vanessa, I would want transparency, quick, honest responses to queries and questions, generous royalties, treatment as an equal in a writer-publisher joint partnership, and an all-out marketing program - again, a joint writer-publisher effort - in a publisher.

[shadowwalker]

I want a fair advance and royalty rates; editors who know what they're doing working with me to give the book its final polish; format and distribution to all outlets; marketing strategies proven to work. Publicity would be nice, but I'm patient, so as long as the marketing is done right, I'm fine. I'd want veto power on book cover, but otherwise willing to concede the experts usually know what they're doing there. Also, I want them to have a good enough reputation so I can concentrate on my writing and not worry they're going to muck things up elsewhere.

[trracki]

Currently I am focused on that great debate between self-publish and traditional as I near completion on my manuscript. What I like about traditional publishers is they have the knowledge to make my manuscript the best it can be. They also know what works and what doesn't work in terms of price, page count, cover, formatting, etc.. They have the network to make sure that the book gets out into the right hands so that its more widely reviewed and promoted.

What I don't like about publishers is how they treat their authors. First authors have to somehow climb out of the slush pile, which is touted to be a 1-in-100 odds event. Then they have to have an agent because if they don't the publisher is going to know they can put the screws to the author, even then the screws are still applied. Once the contract is signed now the publisher says, "this is mine not yours" and you have to accept the cover and the title and say goodbye to residual rights.

Why is publishing not a partnership? Why is there a sort of master-slave mentality?

I'm the rare breed of author that makes a good living doing something else but still wants to write because they love it. I'd like to call writing my second profession. I want my books to succeed and am willing to put down a decent amount of money to do that, namely decent marketing (avg. marketing budget is $5K I read), and am willing to do a lot of legwork to make sure the word gets out about how my book is entertaining and it deserves a read. My fear is that a publisher is going to still give me a lousy royality regardless of how much money and how much time I put into building my platform. How is that fair?

I spoke with a four book, bestselling author, last week. He said that he had given up on traditional publishing because the royalties were a joke. He was making 3x more money self-publishing in eBook format only and that his 5th book wouldn't go print even though he had a traditional publisher asking for a contract. When I am told things like that it makes me really rethink going the traditional route.

I want a 50/50 partner, not a dictator.