What are the steps and costs for publishing a book?

Answer 1

1. finish a viable manuscript
2. submit a query letter to agents
3. when you have an agent, s/he will submit your manuscript to publishers. if you are very lucky and talented, they will pick it up for publication.
4. 18 months later, your book will come out. you may get an advance check or royalty checks.
do not trust publishers who ask you to front part of the publishing cost

Answer 2

It varies depending upon the book and your goals for it. If you want to make a profit, my best advice is to try a different industry. If you want your book read, consider putting it up on a web site for free downloads. Then publicize it through appropriate groups and communities on-line.

If you have your heart set upon being an author for profit, then I suggest going the traditional route: write a salable book, pitch it to an appropriate agent, sign with the best publisher, assist the publisher in getting the word out to the largest possible part of your audience, and repeat.

If you really want to be a publisher, then you should understand that this business is a socially acceptable form of high-stakes gambling. Launching a trade book often costs something more than $20,000. Launching a mass-market bestseller can cost significantly more. You can't count on any bet, no matter what the odds, to pay off. You need to have large numbers of projects, all of them likely winners, in order to have the odds in your favor.

For further information on small publishing, you might see some of the Yahoo publishing groups, as well as my site, www.GropenAssoc.com. There, you might look at the texts from some of my seminars and speaking engagements.

Answer 3

Please don't publish a book on your own.
Firstly you can show your book to some well known publisher and ask them if they could publish it on behalf of you. Then they will tell you how much you are going to get as they bear the risk.

There's a big possibility that you can't sell every copy but once a publisher is willing to publish your book, you just wait for them to inform you how much profit you have made.

Answer 4

It's too expensive for you