9 Misconceptions about Traditional Publication

It doesn't happen often, but occasionally I find myself in the middle of the conversation with a new writer who is interested in heading down traditional publication roads. In some cases, the new writer is already familiar with the basics associated with querying and the hunt for an agent or publisher. However, sometimes I come across a new writer who is clueless about what it will really take to get their book published by traditional means.

If you fall into this clueless category, know now that you are not alone and are normal. I was there once myself, completely delusion and as clueless as they come. When I started on my own publication journey, I had no idea what it was really going to take. As I started to learn about this industry, I discovered how much I really didn't know.

It's that old saying: the more you learn, the more you realized how much you don't know. And I'm still learning!

Today, I want to address some of the misconceptions that many new writers have about the traditional publication road.

Novel Word Counts by the Genre

We’re coming up to competition season. As such, there seems to be an increase in the number of questions and discussions online about the accepted word count range for novels.

In a previous post, I discussed the limitations that word counts can have on short stories. In a recent post, I briefly outlined what the differences were between a short story, novella and a novel. Today, we’re going to compile into one list what the current accepted ranges are for debut writers heading down traditional publication roads.

The publisher wants double hyphens & triple dots…

Recently, I found myself in a Facebook conversation about ellipses and em-dashes. There was a whole thread about spaces or no spaces and the merits of each, along with the side effects associated with different practices and typesetting issues.

The original question was with regards to Scrivener and the way it handles ellipses. Obviously, this is something that I can comment on as a regular user of Scrivener. So, I piped in.

Within Scrivener, you can convert ellipses into triple dots at the time of compile, just like you can convert em-dashes into double hyphens.

My comment was a bit longer than that (just a tad), but it sparked another thread of conversation.

“Why would you ever want to convert em-dashes to double hyphens?”

My answer: “Some publishers require it.”

A Synopsis is NOT a Blurb

Over the past few weeks, I’ve been helping writing buddies prepare submissions for various writing contests. From PitchWars through to RWNZ’s Great Beginning, each of these contest required a synopsis as part of the submission packet. PitchWars required a query letter too. However, there was one thing that seemed to be a constant theme: there was confusion about the difference between a synopsis and a blurb.

To put it simply, a blurb is the short teaser that snags the interest of a reader, enticing them to read more. This is what is typically used on the back cover of a printed book. It’s a blurb that one will find in a query letter.

A synopsis is the spoiler alert, containing ALL plot points from the main thread of the story from start to finish, including the ending. It’s an editing tool that the public will never see unless you let them.

Let’s break this down a bit further.
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You Need to Register Your Copyright

Every so often, I come across some blog post or a Facebook group message, or something, where a writer is asking about copyright certificates and the like. Amazon is becoming more insistent on obtaining those copyright certificates, and rightly so.

Too many times, I have encountered some horror story where some honest writer has had their precious work taken down from the Amazon sites because some BLEEP has chosen to claim that they own the copyright. If this happens to you, it falls on you to prove the other person is wrong.

To complicate matters, far too many writers choose not to register their copyright with a copyright authority because of the cost. However, these are the writers that run the risk of finding themselves being the victim of some copyright scam.

All writers want to protect their writing as much as possible, and for the most part, people are honest. It’s the shady ones that you need to worry about. Here is where taking a few simple steps can save you.

There’s a reason for the standard manuscript format

In this day and age, many submissions are handled through email. Agents and acquisition editors will often look at the submissions sent to them on an electronic device, commonly a computer or tablet screen. For many submissions, the initial contact is contained in the body of an email (no attachments). If additional materials are asked for, agents and editors expect things to be in the standard manuscript format. Yet, agents and editors will still look at those added materials using electronic devices.

So, if everything is now electronic, why must we format our manuscripts using a format that was devised back in the day when everything was printed? Well, believe it or not, the standard manuscript format is very specific for a reason.