Our contract is specifically for the writing of your book, and doesn’t cover publishing your book. We are a writing agency, not a book publisher, and therefore like to maintain some clarity between the two. However, we have many years of experience of the international publishing industry and we often advise our clients on this element as a separate part of the process. There are various opportunities open to you.
Sometimes, our clients come to us via a literary agent or a publisher, who may already have contracted with them to write a book and the client is now seeking support in carrying out that contract. In some cases, the publisher may come direct to us suggesting our involvement. Either way, in this situation, you have the security of knowing that the finished work is going to be published.
On other occasions, a client may come to us and ask us to work with them not to write the complete book, but to write what is called a Publishing Proposal to present as a pitch to potential publishers. This process is less expensive, because the whole book isn’t being written yet, but it’s important to remember that a Proposal won’t necessarily guarantee a publishing deal. There are pros and cons to both, and we are always happy to talk about these with you before you make up your mind.
Most of our clients want a book written and aren’t so concerned that they don’t yet have a publisher. They either intend to self-publish, or they are confident that their story is so strong that, once written, it will find a commercial publisher.
If it is the former, then we have a lot of experience of being able to advise on how to self-publish so professionally that no-one would know the difference between your book and a book published by a big commercial publisher. Simon Petherick was asked by Idler magazine to give an online tutorial in self-publishing which can be accessed here.
If however you wish to find a commercial publisher for the book that we have written with you, then we always use our considerable knowledge of and experience in the international publishing industry to assist you as much as we can in that endeavour. It’s important to remember that a commercial publishing deal can’t be guaranteed (JK Rowling is most certainly not the only successful author to have been rejected by hordes of publishers before finally finding a deal) but with determination, patience and professionalism, a good book will usually find a home.
