The book is written. You want to get it published. If you don’t ask these two questions first, you are doomed to disappointment:

1) Why do I want my book to be published?
2) How much control am I comfortable giving up?

1) Why do I want my book to be published? As nice as it is to make money, it usually is not the first (or second, or even third) reason authors want their book published. How widespread or how targeted you want your readership to be will help determine the type of publisher you should be seeking: traditional big publishing house, university press, smaller independent publisher, or self-publisher. Within each of these categories there are varieties of publishers specializing in certain genres, formats and distributorship.

2) How much control am I comfortable giving up? Some people like to feel in control of every aspect of their life while some are delighted to leave all decisions up to others. The more advance money you accept, the less control over the product and sales you will have. Where you fit in on the spectrum of acceptable control will determine what type of publisher you will be most comfortable with.

At one end, traditional publishing offers the most in advance payment and marketing support but they make the artistic and marketing choices. They determine whether your book sells or sits in a warehouse, which affects royalties. You give up virtually all control until/unless your rights return to you, which could be a long time coming.

At the other end, self-publishing is just that. You pay for everything and become responsible for every aspect of your book’s production and sales; more details than you’ve probably considered. You also get to choose which responsibilities you want to take over and which you will pay others to handle for you. Self-publishing gives you complete ownership and control of your work — and the flow of your money — from the get-go.

In between traditional and self-publishing is a range of University Presses and Independent Publishers, who will negotiate the various aspects of payments or fees and available services. The degree of your control over your book will depend on the deal you strike.

Once you’ve answered these first two important questions, the next two important questions to ask are:

1) What will it take to get my book accepted by the kind of publisher I want?
2) How long am I willing to wait to get my book to market?

We’ll explore that in next week’s blog.