Essentials in Book Publishing

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For a traditional publisher to accept a book for publication, it needs to have several things essential in every book. Now, I expect you already have the book written, so these are the necessary steps after you complete your first draft. 1. Grammar and punctuation. This is where editing comes in. When you start work on the finished product, you need to go over your book to make certain you don't have missing or misplaced punctuation. Good grammar is dependent on your characters. Do they speak with proper grammar, or don't they pay attention to the finer points of good diction? Whether they do or not, your non-dialogue paragraphs must have good grammar. 2. Editing. Editing is important in every manuscript. You need to read it through for clarity. Your reader will know if you've edited your manuscript by the number of typos you missed, missing dialogue quotes, and incorrect capitalization. I guarantee if you missed it, they won't. Neither will your publisher. If you are self-publishing, you need to go over your manuscript several times until you are satisfied with it and believe you got rid of every typo and missed punctuation. Then have someone else read it. They will catch what you didn't. That's also a guarantee. 3. Research. Every book, fiction, and non-fiction needs research. Your publisher will recognize if you took the time to research your subject. 4. Format. Every book has front pages. Here is where you find the title page, copyright page, ISBN is also on the copyright page, dedication/acknowledgment page, and table of contents if you have chapter titles. This is also where you will find reviews from people who read your book prior to publishing. You can have any number of front pages. These pages can be numbered, but it isn't essential. I don't like numbering the front pages. Usually, front pages are numbered in lower case roman numerals. And speaking of numbering, every book has page numbers. It doesn't matter where on the page you have the number, it must be there. You can choose to leave off the number on the first page of each chapter. The first page of every book starts on the right hand side. If your front pages are an odd number, you will need a blank page before your first chapter. 5. Cover. Front and Back. What is the first thing a person looks at when they pick up your book from a bookstore shelf, besides your front cover, it's your blurb on the back. Some authors choose to put their picture on the back, if you do, be sure your blurb is on the last page of your book. I guarantee people will look for it. They want to know what the book is about and if it's worth the money. Publishers also look for this information. You don't need a picture of yourself, but you do need an author bio. Your reader and the publisher want to know your credentials in writing the book, whether it's fiction or non-fiction. Your front cover must have a picture that will entice you to look inside and check out the back blurb. It must also have the title and author name. 6. Spine. When you browse books in a library or bookstore, the first thing you see is the spine. It needs your title and name. 7. A good story. If you pass all the above with your publisher, the next thing they look at is the first page of your book. If they read past the first several paragraphs, there's a good chance your book will be accepted, unless you're unpublished or don't have a following. Then self-publishing comes in handy. Traditional publishers encourage self-publishing for unknown authors. It's why I self-publish. When you self-publish don't exepect the company you publish with to do what you didn't. They won't put in the page numbers or front pages. They will only print what you give them. Are you writing a book? Does it have all these components? Do the leg work. Writing and publishing takes time. It often takes up to eighteen months from the first word of your first draft until you have the finished book in your hands. If it takes less time than that, you missed something. Thanks for reading. Valerie Jean Routhieaux is the author of seven books. A four-book Colonial America series, a two-book Island Paradise mystery series, and one stand-alone suspense romance. She will soon have her eighth book published, Where Eagles Soar. You can find her books on Amazon. The image belongs to me. This is the unfinished front cover for Where Eagles Soar.