Book Marketing Maven

Is Self-Publishing an Impediment to Landing a Publishing Contract?

Authors sometimes ask if self-publishing their book will hurt or help their chances of landing a contract with a traditional publisher. In today's guest post, Stephanie Gunning, a former senior editor at Bantam-Doubleday-Dell, shares her expertise on this topic.

Often self-publication is meant to be an interim step to finding a mainstream publisher. But if the author publishes his book independently or through a print-on-demand company, is it still be possible to sell it to a traditional publisher later on? Could he ruin his chances by bringing the book to market himself?

Unlike the sure thing of hiring a printer, you have to pitch a publisher. Traditional publishers are businesses that operate on the bottom-line of profit and loss. Executives try to avoid unnecessary risks, so they want proof you can succeed. When they consider a book for acquisition, they don’t care where it came from—they care where it has the potential to go.

Publishize Your Way to Expert Status

Susan Daffron’s new book, Publishize, is a great resource for business owners, coaches, speakers, and other professionals who want to enhance their expert status by publishing a book. This is Susan's ninth book and in it you'll find the self-publishing secrets that made it possible for her to self-publish 8 books in less than 18 months.

Here's what a few publishing pros have said about the book:

"A roadmap to turn businesspeople into published authors."
   -- Dan Poynter, author of The Self-Publishing Manual

"Well-written, honest, pulling no punches, and full of good advice. Read Publishize to make informed and profitable decisions about the entire publishing and marketing process."
   -- Shel Horowitz, award-winning author of Grassroots Marketing for Authors and Publishers and six other books

"Susan Daffron eloquently nails the why’s and how’s of self-publishing in her new book, Publishize. This book is a great gift . . . I highly recommend it."
   -- Fern Reiss, Director of the International Association of Writers and CEO of PublishingGame.com