Writing and Publishing - Two VERY Large Hats

Time. The bane of writers and publishers alike. Time marches right by writers all day long. Time works hard and writers ignore the role model aspects of this intangible enemy. Before I wax too poetic or overly deep, time stands as the one common bitching point for writers and publishers.

We never seem to find enough of it, yet time stands before us, the ever-lasting-gob-stopper tool that truly runs 24/7. Heck, time defines 24/7. As writers, we avoid our keyboards like they possess some sort of plague, yet when we finally park our butts and key, our pleasure synapses fire off like kids to a recess playground.

That's the quirky world of writers, but what about publishers? I'm president of a small press - ClearView Press Inc. I can safely say that time vexes me as much if not more as a publisher than a writer. One of the reasons for my frustration is not that I procrastinate and put off tasks (ok, sometimes I do, but I can blame the writer in me), but that writers DO NOT FOLLOW INSTRUCTIONS!

I get manuscripts all the time from writers who refuse to read and follow our submission guidelines. As a small press, I tend to be everything from the toner-refiller to the receptionist to the submissions editor. I shy away from pagination and the more technical aspects of publishing, but that's what my small staff is for. These writers that submit appear to be devoid of an understanding of the English language. I get physical manuscripts in the mail even though I guarantee all writers the reciept of these dead trees will most certainly end up in the recycle bin without so much as a sentence read.

Then there's niche markets. When I recieve a manuscript that states 50 "million women will have to have this book" I hit the delete key. Writers need to look up the word "niche" and come to some sort of agreement with the concept that there are local niche markets, county-wide niches, state regional, state, full-regional and national niche markets. If you can't find the local market, how the hell are you going to get a regional or national market?

Writers don't want to work that hard. What they miss is that marketing and promoting are a blast but in order to get there, you must put in some 'detailed reading' and adherence to guidelines. Many, if not most writers appear to have the mindset that their work is over once the manuscript is done - and there's another pet peeve time-waster - manuscripts edited by friends, family or the local English teacher or someone with a MA in creative writing.

Find a professional editor and present a professional manuscript. There are many publishing companies that will publish, no questions asked, for a fee. ClearView Press Inc. is not one of them. If a writer has a manuscript they want us to look at, read and follow the submissions guidelines. I do not have time to teach writers how to identify a niche market, develop an action plan and implement an marketing plan for their book. That's the author's job these days.

It's a good job to have too. In the past, writers were at the mercy of the big houses and had to jump through their hoops. Now writers have huge control over what they do and how they manage their book promotion.

My frustration as a publisher is that writers (of which I am one) waste my time with their reluctance to follow through on the responsibilities of following guidelines to get their books published. All a writer needs to do for me is show 'exactly' how they are going to sell 500 books. This isn't astronomical That figure is ridiculously low, attainable and practical.

If an author can sell 500, it's my theory they can sell thousands. At 500 copies, both the author and my small press make money. Win-win. If authors would only get it together long enough to do what's required, they might just find what they need to be successful.

And they need to stop wasting my time - I do a damn good job of that on my own...