Part 2: What Are the Steps to Traditional Publishing?
- Jackie
- Jan 31
- 5 min read
Updated: Feb 13
You've done it! You've finished the first draft of your brand new book! You've decided to aim for traditional publishing because you want the publisher to handle editing, cover design, and formatting.
You also want to see your book in bookstores across the country. You understand there can be a long timeline to traditional publishing, but you'll have an entire team of people behind you and your book so you don't mind.
But what actually are the steps to getting traditionally published?
Self-Edits
The first thing you need to do is self edit. This is where you go through your entire manuscript in several stages, looking for any errors you can fix yourself.
The first stage involves high level things like plot holes, slow spots, inconsistent characterization, and any other problems with the story itself. This stage can take multiple drafts to finish as you should only focus on one problem at a time.
The second stage is to look at the actual words, sentences, and paragraphs you're using. Should that paragraph actually be earlier in the chapter? Is that sentence unnecessarily long? Is there a stronger word you could use instead? This can usually be done in a single final draft.
The final stage is to look over spelling, grammar, punctuation, and all the other small, fiddly things that make your book look professional. This can be done on your final draft.
Beta Reader(s)
Once you've edited your manuscript to the best of your ability, the next step is to send your book to beta readers. These are people who are familiar with your genre and can tell you anything you weren't able to see in your self-edits. They can also tell you if your book meets reader and genre expectations.
Because you (likely) won't hire any editors to work on your manuscript, beta readers are especially important for people wanting to traditionally publish. Having a second set of eyes on your story is essential before you submit to agents or publishing companies.
To learn about the different kinds of beta readers, you can read my blog post Should You Pay for a Beta Reader?
Optional: Professional Editing
Hiring professional editors is not required when seeking to become traditionally published. In fact, a significant number of literary agents actively discourage it. Because your book will be edited by your publisher, hiring your own editors is an unnecessary cost.
However, agents also want the most polished version of your book that you're capable of. If you feel that hiring an editor would be beneficial, then do so.
If you're unsure what level of editing you require, you can read my blog post What Are the Different Types of Fiction Editing?
Query Letter
After revising your manuscript according to feedback from your beta readers (and potentially editors), you need to craft your query letter.
Your query letter is basically the pitch for your book. It tells the agent or publishing company what your book is about and where it would fit in the current market.
Your query letter should be no longer than one page long and should include: the genre, approximate word count, and title of your book; the plot of your story with specific and unique details but without spoiling the end; and information about you such as your pen name, your education, or anything that is related to your book.
Literary Agents or Direct Submission?
Once you've polished your query letter, you need to decide if you want to query an agent or submit directly to a publishing company. Querying an agent adds an extra step to getting your book published, but they offer benefits that directly submitting to a publisher does not.
Literary Agents
Literary agents are the people who submit your manuscript to publishing companies and negotiate your contract. Certain agents will also work with you to edit your manuscript before submitting it, but not all agents do. They'll usually have this information on their website or on the website of their agency.
Once you have acquired an agent, they will work with you on every manuscript you want to get published as long as the manuscripts fall within the genres they represent.
Legitimate agents do not cost money or charge a reading fee. Instead, they take a percentage of your advance and royalties. This amount is typically 15%, although this can differ between agents.
The most important parts of querying an agent are to only query agents who work in your genre and follow their submission guidelines. Every agent has different submission guidelines that can be found on their website or their agency's website. Not following these will make an agent auto-reject your manuscript.
Please keep in mind that acquiring an agent does not automatically mean your book will be published. Your agent will submit your manuscript to publishing houses on your behalf, and it is possible that it will be rejected.
Direct Submission
Direct submission involves submitting your manuscript directly to a publisher without having an agent. These are called unagented submissions.
None of the large publishing houses or their imprints accept unagented submissions. If you want to publish through a place like Penguin Random House, you MUST have an agent.
However, most boutique and small publishers accept unagented submissions, as do some mid-sized publishers. Submitting to them is nearly identical to querying agents. They typically require a query letter and have submission guidelines on their website for you to follow.
Please keep in mind that not having an agent means you won't have anyone to negotiate your contract for you. It is advisable that you hire a contract lawyer to look over any contracts you receive before you sign them.
Also, signing one book with a publisher does not guarantee that they'll sign another one. Unlike agents, they do not automatically establish an ongoing relationship with an author beyond the book they accepted.
In summary, there aren't many steps to getting traditionally published, but that means each step is incredibly important. Finding the right agent and crafting the ideal query letter are essential to becoming traditionally published.
But if you want a bigger reach, someone else to handle everything besides writing, and an entire team to support you and your book, traditional publishing is the path for you.
Did this post give you a new perspective on traditional publishing? Let me know in the comments or on social media (Facebook or Instagram)!
Happy writing!
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