How to Blog a Book

Inspiring You to Build Visibility, Boost Authority and Become an Author Post by Post

Inspiring You to Build Visibility, Boost Authority and Become an Author Post by Post

  • Home
  • About
    • Vote This Blog One of Writer’s Digest’s Annual 101 Best Internet Sites for Writers
    • Resources for Nonfiction Authors and Bloggers
    • Privacy Policy
    • Terms of Service
  • The BOOK!
    • Table of Contents
    • Page One
    • NEW! Revised and Expanded–2nd Edition–of How to Blog a Book
    • How to Blog a Book (Revised and Expanded Edition) BLOG TOUR
    • Previous Virtual BookTours
  • Services
    • Blog Services
    • Coaching
      • Blog and Blog-to-Book Coaching
      • Author Coaching
      • Writing and Book Coaching
  • Courses
    • The Productive Writer Course
    • Inspired Creator Community
    • High-Performance Writer Group Coaching Program
    • Turn Your Blog Into a Book Production Machine
    • Build a Business Around Your Blog
    • How to Blog a Book Audio Course
    • How to Blog a Book eCourse
    • How to Blog a Book Audio Recording
  • Contact

May 14, 2013 by Nina Amir 4 Comments

What Type of Traditional Publisher Best Suits You and Your Book?

Share this:

  • Facebook
  • Twitter
  • LinkedIn
  • Pinterest
  • Email
  • Print
  • More
  • Reddit
  • Tumblr
  • Pocket

Find out what type of publisher you need.Before you decide to approach a traditional publisher and ask to receive backing your proposed book project, you need an understanding not only of what publishers seek in a publishing partner but also how each type of publishing house differs. You want to familiarize your self with how to contact small independent publishers, mid-sized publishers and large publishers and why. That way you will be sure to approach each publisher correctly, and you’ll know which type of publishing house is right for you. You won’t just assume you want or need a big New York publishing house.

Large Publishing Houses

The publishing industry used to talk about the Big Six or the Six Sisters when referring to the number of large conglomerate publishing companies in the United States. These days, it’s the Big 5 or the Five Sisters since Penguin and Random House merged in early 2013. That made Penguin Random House the world’s largest publisher, moving it ahead of the other four publishers: Hachette, HarperCollins, Macmillan, and Simon & Schuster. Now the Big Five Publishers are:

  • Penguin Random House
  • Hachette
  • HarperCollins
  • Macmillan
  • Simon & Schuster

Each of these publishing houses operates many imprints. The large publishing houses have also created smaller book lines that have broken off into profit centers of their own—small and mid-sized publishing houses owned by the larger ones. In some cases, they purchased independent publishers. For example, in its adult publishing line (it also has a children’s line) Simon & Schuster’s imprints include:

  • Atria
  • Folger Shakespeare Library
  • Free Press
  • Gallery Books
  • Howard Books
  • Pocket
  • Scribner
  • Threshold
  • Touchstone

The conglomerates are actually bigger than they first appear when you look at who owns each of the Big Six companies. MacMillan is owned by German company Holtzbrinck, Hachette is owned by French company Hachette Livre, and HarperCollins is owned by Australian Media Corp owner Rupert Murdoch. Random House and Penguin were divisions of German conglomerate Bertelsmann; Bertelsmann own 53 percent of the new Penguin Random House, while Pearson owns the remaining 47 percent.

To approach a large publishing company you need a literary agent. Literary agents serve as the gatekeepers to acquisitions editors, who are the people within a publishing company who review book proposals and purchase new book projects. Acquisitions editors at large publishing companies do not accept “unagented” book proposals or query letters.

Large publishing houses can be impersonal to work with. You will be one among many authors because these houses produce many books per year. You will be a small fish in a big pond if you are a first time author—or even a second time author.

Small to Mid-sized Dependent Publishers

Small and mid-sized dependent publishers are those (mostly) not associated with or owned by the Big Five. They might be owned by an organization, university or some other mid-sized publisher and thus not “independent” but “dependent” upon some outside agency, association, or company. A few examples include Andrews McMeel (associated with Universal Press Syndicate), Chronicle Books (affiliated with the San Francisco Chronicle), Graywolf Press (a non-profit publisher), AMACOM Books (affiliated with the American Management Association), and Beacon Press (a division of the Unitarian Universalist Association).

Other such publishers include:

  • F&W Publishing
  • Adams Media
  • Globe Pequot Press
  • Health Communications
  • Quest Books
  • That Patchwork Place
  • Running Press
  • Ten-Speed Press

Sometimes you will find imprints of larger houses amongst the names of mid-sized publishers as well.

In most cases, mid-sized publishing houses only take agents submissions from aspiring authors. Some acquisitions editors, however, will look at a query or book proposal from an unagented author.

Working with a small or mid-sized dependent publisher can prove a more personal experience. You may still feel as if you are one among many authors since these houses do produce a good number of books per year, but you won’t be quite as small a fish in the pond. You also stand a better chance of becoming a big fish in that pond.

Independent Publishers

Independent publishers, also called small publishing houses, are independently owned. They are not part of the huge conglomerates nor are they dependent on any other agency. These are different than the “indie publishers” who have sprung up left and right—individual self-publishers who have started their own imprints, or self-publishing companies, to produce their own work. Most of these publishing companies have been around a long time, such as:

  • Career Press
  • Chelsea Green Publishing
  • New World Library
  • Berrett-Koehler
  • Chronicle Books
  • Hampton Roads
  • Jewish Lights
  • Hay House
  • Newmarket Press
  • Prometheus Books

Almost all independent publishing companies accept unagented query letters and book proposals from aspiring authors. They all have submission guidelines on their websites. I will cover query letters, book proposals and agents in forthcoming post.

If you want a personal publishing experience with a traditional publisher, this is your best bet. These house often produce less books per year—but not always—and have a bit more time and energy to spend on their authors. You may be treated like a big fish in a small pond if your book does really well or if you show up with a big platform or a track record for previously published books.

Share this:

  • Facebook
  • Twitter
  • LinkedIn
  • Pinterest
  • Email
  • Print
  • More
  • Reddit
  • Tumblr
  • Pocket

Filed Under: Traditionally Publish Your Book, What to Do When You Complete Your Blogged Book Tagged With: BIg 5 Publishers, independent publishers, mid-sized publishers, small publishers, traditional publishers

Comments

  1. Amanda Socci says

    May 15, 2013 at 3:36 am

    Very, very interesting. So much to learn.

  2. Dharam Kumar says

    January 15, 2019 at 3:33 am

    Very helpful post, thanks for sharning.

  3. Lynda Milner says

    July 15, 2020 at 5:59 am

    I am a self published author hoping to become an author in the traditional arena.
    I would like to research those companies’ procedures for getting published. My interest also include the companies that accept query letters .

Trackbacks

  1. How Books Get Sold to a Traditional Publishers says:
    May 16, 2013 at 4:09 pm

    […] by a traditional publisher, you need to understand the traditional publishing process. Keep in mind the different types of publishers, how they like to be approached, what they look for in aspiring […]

Leave a Reply

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *

About Nina Amir

Nina Amir, the Inspiration to Creation Coach, inspires writers to create published products and careers as authors as well as to achieve their goals and fulfill their purpose and potential.

Read More . . .

Follow Me!

Follow Us on FacebookFollow Us on Google+Follow Us on TwitterFollow Us on LinkedInFollow Us on PinterestFollow Us on YouTubeFollow Us on SkypeFollow Us on RSSFollow Us on E-mail

As Seen On:

social proof2

How to turn your blog into a book

Amazon.com
Barnesandnoble.com
IndieBound.com
WritersDigestShop.com

Create a Successful Author Website!

Book. Books and laptopPurchase a copy of my eBook!

Bestselling authors like Michael Hyatt and Joanna Penn use Scrivener and endorse this course! I tried Learn Scrivener Fast, too, and found it a quick, easy way to learn the Scrivener writing technology. Plus, you can use it to produce produce ebooks!
Click here to find out more!

250x250

bluehost

Writer's Digest: 2013 Best Writing Websites (2013)
This website has been awarded a Best Writing Website.
Sponsored by Writer's Digest, Writer's Market,
Writer's Digest University & Writer's Digest Shop.

TFOI Badge

Popular Posts

  • Are You Blogging a Book? List it here!
  • Can You Publish Blogged Material As a Kindle Ebook?
  • Darren Rowse on Book Deals and Discovery in the Blogosphere
  • 4 Ways Digital Marketing Helps You Blog A Book
  • Selling Your Ebook on Your Own Website vs. Amazon

Search

Categories

Archives

Copyright © Nina Amir 2023

»
«
Powered by Conversion Insights: Boost your online revenue.  
Are you a productive, semi-productive or unproductive writer? Take My Quiz To Find Out!
loading Cancel
Post was not sent - check your email addresses!
Email check failed, please try again
Sorry, your blog cannot share posts by email.