Issues in Traditional Book Publishing

Publishing Books Through Regular Publishing Houses

Nov 18, 2009 Linda Gentile

Publishing books the old-fashioned way is a dream of many authors. Acceptance by publishing houses brings prestige. Yet conventional book publishing is a harsh business.

Conventional publishing is the act of finding an agent or established publishing house that will accept one's work. This is the most prestigious form of book publishing, preferred by many, and indeed carries with it a great deal of kudos. Authors receive an advance on their royalties, then are paid a percentage of sales once their royalty is earned out.

The Harsh Business of Book Publishing

Publishing by a conventional house is no guarantee of riches, however. According to the Publishing Rants website, at most 50% of authors "earn out" their advances. An advance is a sum paid ahead of publication and future royalties (usually 8%-10% of sales) count against its total.

If the publishing house paid the author a $5000 advance, he would have to make over $5000 in royalties before receiving any more. Worse, some publishing houses even hold back a percentage of the advance as a hedge against the advance never being earned out.

At 10%, that would mean that $50,000's worth of his books must first be sold. This would be easier with a hardback edition than a paperback; however, increasing numbers of books start off their lives in trade paperback. Additionally, book publishing royalties are usually only payable twice a year. And finally, the agent, if any, will need to take a cut, in the region of 15%.

The Publishing House May Leave Promotion Up to the Author

For the publishing house, conventional book publishing is a numbers game. Each book is a commodity from which profit needs to be made. Unfortunately, publishing houses do not automatically get behind their authors. In an editorial on the Publishing Perspectives website, bestselling author M.J. Rose notes that, increasingly, the author is expected to get involved in promoting her own book. Unfortunately, this also means that she may be spending her advance, which was hitherto considered the author's "fee," on promotion.

The conventional book publishing situation is therefore not much different from the situation when the author self-publishes. Increasingly, there is no more "free ride" with a publishing house. Yet promotion is not a choice: a book without marketing will quickly land on the remainder pile. Since remaindering may well impact the author's chances of publishing a second book, it is to be avoided.

Why Would Anybody Choose a Conventional Publishing House?

The prestige and credibility that comes with conventional book publishing is self-evident. Unlike subsidy publishing and self-publishing, there is absolutely no stigma associated with this method. There is no need, either, for the author to deal with distribution to bookstores, returns or all the messy aspects of self-publishing. These issues are all handled by the publishing house.

With conventional publishing, there is a possibility, if not necessarily a probability, of real riches. Being accepted by a conventional publishing house is exciting, a true achievement of which the author may rightfully be proud. While the process of conventional book publishing may not make the author rich, he does have powerful backing and a chance to make something of his words.