Rhetoric and Composition/Publishing
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[edit] Overview of Publishing
Authors publish books and articles because they believe their work is interesting or useful to other people. Many texts, such as this Rhetoric and Composition wikitext, are published online and available for free, often without any paid authors or editors. While there are plenty of opportunities to get paid for writing for commercial websites and electronic publishers, the bulk of professional authors still depend on print publication to earn their living. Likewise, scholars who publish books or articles in prestigious print journals tend to be more influential and successful than those who either never publish or publish exclusively online.
Getting your work published may seem scary and overwhelming, but there are readily available resources to help you. If you are interested in freelance writing for magazines, the Writer’s Market is probably one of the most accessible and helpful sources (see below). If you are interested in publishing scholarly or professional research, you will need to familiarize yourself with the journals and book publishers associated with your field. It is very important to know a publisher's expectations before sending them a manuscript. Pay close attention to the publisher's policies; some do not accept any unsolicited manuscripts, and many have strict rules about formatting, subject matter, and deadlines. Don't waste your money and everyone's time by sending out manuscripts that are certain to be instantly rejected.
If you want to send an idea to an editor, you may do this through a query letter. A query letter should be short and to the point. The point is to interest the editor into buying your idea or article or at least requesting a book proposal or entire manuscript. Included in a query letter is strong opening lead about the article, book, or piece, a description of the development or structure and content, any other information or images you intend to include, what skills you have to be writing the piece, and a solid closing requesting to write or submit the piece. It would be wise to include a deadline for reply.
[edit] Types of Publication
- Print Publication
- There is the traditional way to be published...in print. This can be easier than you think. All it really takes to "get published" is the ability to reproduce and distribute your work. If you have access to a printer you can see your work in print. While publishing in established print venues is usually considered most prestigious, there are several other forms of print media that are more accessible and, some might say, more radical and full of potential.
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- One such forum for writers, which may be perhaps less discriminating, are 'Zines. 'Zines are one of the more multimodal, grass-roots forms of print media. Aesthetically, 'Zines revere the found, the somewhat sloppy, the everyday, the mix. Zines repurpose, combine, and arrange existing text in new ways. 'Zines are sometimes typed, sometimes handwritten, sometimes "artsy," and at other times dead serious. Without exception, though, 'Zines circulate writing and ideas that have not been sanctioned by edited print journals, magazines, or other publications. For this reason, publishing your work in your own 'zine (or someone else's) is generally seen as less prestigious than publishing in an established organ such as The New Yorker magazine or equivalent.
- Academic Publishing
- Academic publishing is a way for scholars to share research and is also a way to review other works. This type of publishing most often includes journals and books in academic fields such as the sciences and humanities, but pretty much covers any topic imaginable. You are probably most familiar with academic journals in electronic form. Many colleges have online journal indexes which include scholarly journals that have been peer reviewed. They are called journals but are really just papers or articles. Categories for journals range from physics and geometry to education and art.
- Commercial Publishing
- Commercial publishing is the not so academic approach to publishing. This type of publication could include academic or scholarly information, but that is not usually the overall focus. Basically anything that is not purely academic is probably commercial. Commercial publishing is focused on profit rather than sharing or reviewing research. Commercial publication can include books, articles, journals, magazines, and more. Sometimes the work is supported by an advertiser. Advertisements can even be part of the package itself, such as with magazines.
- Electronic Publication
- One can also be published electronically. While working on a contract it is important to acknowledge whether the work will be made available in electronic format. Electronic publishing is quite different from paper publishing. Some argue that writers deserve more of the share of profits when dealing with electronic publishing because of the high costs of printing, storing and shipping. Fees involved with electronic publishing include formatting of devices, upgrading files and equipment, and security. Electronic publishing also includes fees in favor of the writer or publisher. There are fees from licensing electronic rights like e-book distribution fees.
- One concern is that works published electronically do not stand the test of review by peers, as a print journal does.
[edit] Know Your Rights
As a writer seeking publication, it is important to know your rights. Did you know that there are more than five different types of rights? It may seem extreme, but if you do not know them you may not be getting paid as much as you should and publishers may take advantage of your work. Some rights are clearly specified and are considered to be expected rights. If you are unclear on what rights you are giving away or keeping, you will want to clarify them before signing a contract.
There are first serial rights, which can be summarized as the rights you give to a newspaper or magazine to publish your work for the first time. One-time rights means the publisher has the right to publish the work only once; however, you could also be submitting that same piece to another publication at the same time. Second serial rights or reprint rights are the rights given to a publication to publish a work that has already been published in another newspaper or magazine. You may choose to give up all rights to the work, meaning you give up your work and cannot publish it again. Electronic rights include online magazines, databases, games, and CD-ROMs. You will want to clarify which of these rights will be used. Subsidiary rights include works possibly associated with your work, such as movie, TV, audiotape, electronic, and translation rights.
[edit] The Writer's Market
The Writer’s Market is a very valuable resource for freelance writers. Writer’s Market offers market information, tips for getting published, advice from agents and editors, and formatting information. These services are available in the Writer's Market book and is offered at WritersMarket.com. There is an annual or monthly fee for the services online, but it is minimal considering all that is offered. The Writer’s Market is a direct link to searchable databases for more than 5,600 writing markets for writers to submit work for publication. You can also search through the information page by page in the book version. Either version will give you valuable information for contacting publishers, leading you one step closer to publication.
[edit] Tips for Getting Published
- Revise your work
- Make sure you are using a writing style that people will enjoy and be able to follow. Cut out any extra parts that do not add to the overall story or point. Look for inconsistencies in the work. Watch out for repetitive phrases or words and rewrite them. Don’t forget to check for typos and grammatical errors. Have someone else revise your work. Someone else may be able to check some things that you yourself were not able to catch. Someone else can also tell you if there are any unclear parts. This may mean hiring a professional copy editor to look over your work. The more professional your work is, the more seriously it will be taken by publishers and agents.
- Consider attending writer’s conferences
- Publishers, agents, and other writers who attend these conferences can give you valuable feedback or tips. For many fiction pieces it is likely that you will need an agent. Some publishers will not even look at your work without a representative agent. Be sure to research your agent to make sure he or she is legit. Watch out for any hidden or unsuspected fees.
- Find someone to publish your work
- If you have an agent and he/she is willing to help you get published, consider yourself lucky. If not, you will have to do some research to find a publisher willing to publish your work. Look into the company and be clear about what types of work they publish. You wouldn’t want to send a children’s book to a company that only publishes nonfiction. Consider entering writing/ publishing contests to accomplish this. Some magazines offer contests that may result in cash prizes and having your work published. Not only do you have the opportunity to win prizes, but more importantly you will get your work out there so that it can be noticed.
- Don’t give up
- Being rejected by multiple publishers is discouraging, but you shouldn’t let this stop you. Thousands of writers are trying to get published. Your work may be overlooked from time to time. Just keep sending out your work, because you never know when someone is going to decide that they want to publish you.
[edit] External Links
