Marketing plans are a foundational document that make sure the entire process of publishing a book is cohesive, intentional, and appropriate to the audience and the goals of the book. The marketing plan is referenced in almost every other stage of the publishing process, so we have to be careful and put a lot of thought into the decisions we make because mistakes could cascade throughout the process and cause problems later.
A university press is, generally speaking, a publishing company that is housed inside an academic institution. In contrast to the “Big Five” multinational corporations in publishing, university presses are nonprofit and mission centered, although not always small.
One of the most carefully considered decisions in the early stages of the publishing process is how to classify and categorize a book. These decisions are often the cornerstone of how a book finds its way home to readers who will most appreciate it. It’s a delicate balance between enticing readers to pick up just the book they’ve been waiting for, and gently signaling what readerships might not enjoy the book so that readers don’t end up feeling tricked into purchasing something that isn’t what they wanted.
The acceptability clause allows publishers to determine whether a submitted manuscript is acceptable. For authors who don’t have any legal knowledge or literary agent to help them negotiate the contract, they are often left to do their own research or accept what’s offered to them. This leaves the author with very little power over the development of their work, resulting in a generally unfavorable opinion of the clause.
Assessing the structural integrity of a house is what developmental editing is to a manuscript. When doing a developmental edit, an editor will organize their thoughts and notes into a cohesive document called the developmental editing letter, or sometimes just the editorial letter, which will then be sent to you. What can you expect from the editorial letter?
People often wonder why exactly it takes so long to publish a book. Well, here’s a peek inside our process at Ooligan Press.
Although I’ve been learning a lot about the different facets of publishing at Ooligan Press and in the Book Publishing Program, I wanted to learn more. So, when I heard the 2023 PubWest Conference was happening in Seattle, I jumped at the chance to attend.
Support diversity in publishing by reading Latinx authors. Feel free to let us know what authors you loved from this list and share other Latinx authors you love reading!
A book lover in a big city can seem like an oxymoron. A vast majority of the book community are introverts and it can be hard to find others like ourselves, but the good news is that Portland is known for its lively book culture. Here are a few places to visit for events and meetups so you can find other like-minded individuals in a big city!
The MFA curriculum presents writers with opportunities to hone their craft, workshop with other writers, and receive mentoring from faculty. What’s more, many aspiring authors see an MFA as their golden ticket to being published…But does an MFA actually increase writers’ chances of getting published?