I want to publish a childrens book, HOW?

Question

i wrote a great book and i have illustrations and everything, but how do i publish it? thanks!

Answer 1

Go to Writer's Market and see who is interested in an unsolicited children's book.

Be aware that most publishers that take on a new author want a well known illustrator to help sell the book.

Answer 2

You start by querying literary agents. This is done with a one page letter describing yourself and your book. Sometimes the agent will request you include the first few pages or chapters, but that is an individual preference.

There are several websites out there that will help you find an agent, my favorite is QueryTracker.net at http://www.querytracker.net/ . It is free and has a list of literary agents and also tools to help you keep track of who you already queried and who you haven't, plus more.

They do a good job of keeping the crooks off their lists, but it is still a good idea to double check at http://www.sfwa.org/beware/twentyworst.html.

There are a lot of crooks out there. Never pay anyone to read or publish your book. A real agent will never ask for money except as a percentage of your royalties.

Keep in mind that finding an agent and getting published is not an easy process. Some people have to query hundreds of agents before they find one who will accept them (sadly, some never get accepted), but be persistent and keep trying.

You should also visit http://www.absolutewrite.com/forums one of the largest forums for writers. They can be very helpful.

Good luck.

Answer 3

Look into Writer's Market. You can probably find a copy in the local public library. In that you will find page after page of agencies and publishers, split into catagories. You will be able to find information about each one to work out a list of places you want to try to sell your book.

Different publishers & agencies have different rules on how and when they accept submissions. Many will not accept submissions from new /unknown authors, so skip them. Search for the ones who are accepting new clients and submissions. Follow their procedure as to how they want things done, whether it is to contact them ahead of time for permission to send the manuscript or to send a cover letter and 2 or 3 chapters, with or without outline. Some will accept computer files, but many will still want the old standard of typed double-spaced one-sided pages.

Make sure you spell-check and grammar check your submissions and make everything perfect, because many of them at the first typos will decide your work is not worth reading and give it a toss, picking up someone else's manuscript off the stack.

As a new writer, you have to prove to them your work is worthy of consideration. They have many to choose from, so you want yours to be the one they accept out of that whole stack.

Don't get discouraged. Expect many turn-downs, usually with no explanation as to why. They simply do not have time to go over what may be wrong with a certain person's work.

Many new authors try to decide if they should go with an agent or not. As a rule an agent will get you better deals and more money than if you try to approach a publisher on your own. That is their job. They know what different publishers are buying and how to approach them.

If you can get an agent, they will do all your legwork and submissions and phone calls to get your work sold, so I would advise you to try an agency.

Anyway, I wish you luck. As others said it is hard for a new writer to break into the business.

Answer 4

That's easy. All you have to do is first become rich and famous so that people know who you are, the less substance to your personality the better. And wallah.....you write a children's book...and everybody will love it!

That might seem at first to be a bit on the cynical side, but I mean really, have you seen who is publishing children's books these days??

Answer 5

candy, you will would desire to get a replica of author's industry 2009 and look up brokers that characterize youngster's books. i will supply you slightly perception on that. that's no longer elementary to get them printed until you're a celeb of a few type. that's unhappy yet authentic. in case you discover an agent interior the e book, you will would desire to jot down him/her a query letter explaining what you have with slightly synopsis secure. make helpful your letter is freed from any blunders in spelling or grammar. you will get samples of question letters on the cyber web. good success! PJ M

Answer 6

Redunicorn is right. And the illustrator gets more of the royalties than the author does.

The odds are heavily stacked against you. You have chosen the most difficult thing in the publishing business - getting a children's book published.

Let me describe for you the current nature of the children's book market. I just finished ghostwriting two children's books for a very major sports figure - already sold to a very major NY publisher. The first is with artist now and due out in Spring. I am currently working on another one with others to follow. This information was given to me by a Senior Editor at the publisher I write for (one of the top 5 on that list) ...

40% of children's books published today are by celebs like Madonna, Jamie Lee Curtis etc.

40% are written by existing, established children's authors like Eric Carle.

15-20% are reprints of children's classics like Curious George.

That leaves at best 5% for new authors.

And that percentage is being cut into by adult authors like Carl Hiaasen and Mary Higgins Clark entering the childrens' market recently.

To that, add the fact that most of the large publishing companies are backlogged with children's books they have under contract but havent gotten out yet.

As a result, most A list publishers aren't even reading childrens' books right now, which means agents arent either. Agents only read what they can sell.

There is very little room to break into the children's market. Only books that are extremely exceptional and have huge appeal stand a chance. Forget any holiday related books - the selling season is too short to make money.

And most publishers have huge backlogs of children's books they have purchased and are not published yet. It takes about a year for a children's book to make it out. It usually takes an artist about a month a page to illustrate. So most publishers have their production schedules for children's books filled out for the next few years.

Take a walk through any major childrens' book department and you will confirm what I am telling you. Getting a childrens' book done is almost impossible - and getting an advance for it is virtually out of the question anymore. Unless you fall into one of those categories above. I am fortunate to have the backing of a very major sports star to get me in the door with kids books. I write adult novels, but believe me I have tried with kids books before and failed for exactly the reasons I list here.

Ghostwriting has gotten me in through the back door, and now I will be able to sell some of the children's books that have my name on them. For now, someone else's name is on the cover. Someone whose name sells books - big time. Don't ask me how you can get a ghostwriting deal for a major sports star ... I really backed into this. It was a gift from Heaven really and it is a blast working with this person too!!! My mantle is now covered with sports memorabilia worth a fortune!! Presents.

That is the nature of the beast. You might get a copy of Writers Market and search for some small publishers who are reading childrens' books, but searching through the agents section, you will see that almost NO agents are reading childrens' books. Try for some small publishers that read without going through an agent. Expect a lot of rejection. Develop a really thick skin and learn to advocate for yourself.

Always remember that before you send anything to anyone, check them out. Preditors and Editors, Absolute Write Water Cooler's Bewares and Background Checks, Writers Weekly.com and Writers Wall are all great sources and totally free - although if they help you, it is nice to contribute a donation. Someone has to pay for running the sites. If you do not see information on the publisher or agent in question, write to Dave K at Preditors and Editors, Victoria Strauss or James Macdonald at Absolute Write or Angela Hoy at Writers Weekly. They are happy to pass along any info they have to help you.

As for self publishing it with someplace like Lulu - it will get you nowhere. Self published books dont make it to bookstores. It is a financial black hole to self publish. I recently read about a woman who refinanced her house and spent over 70 thousand dollars publishing and promoting her children's book. She has recouped less than 10% of her money and is in danger of losing her home.

Childrens' books are impulse buys. What is out on the tables for kids to see is what sells. Kids don't shop at websites for things like books. They have to hold them in their hand and nag Mom to buy it. The only way to achieve that is through a good traditional publisher. Self publishing will do nothing for you but take money.

I have starred a lot of great Q and A regarding writing on my profile. You can access it and print out the pages. Start a notebook you can refer to. There s a lot of good information here and I add more as I see good ones. I am doing it to help others. Feel free to use it. Add me as a fan and get the regular updates. Keep writing. Remember you have to need to grow a hide as thick as a herd of elephants. There will be rejection letters.
Just keep writing. Be exceptional!!

Good luck. Pax -

Answer 7

Go here it will give you everything you need to know.
http://www.lulu.com/
Have fun with your book!!!