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The Advantage of Specialising
It is fair to say that you will have a much greater chance of success (defined in our limited terms as getting a book out for sale to readers while not losing large amounts of cash) if you produce a book in a specialist niche area. For example, it is almost impossible to successfully publish a work of fiction by an unknown author. Even established publishers have the greatest difficulties with that. Nonfiction books of local or specialised interest are far more likely to succeed, if they are of good quality, and genuinely relate to readers' own interests, not just your own. You will also find it much easier to get reviews in specialist magazines rather than in the mass media.
Getting Expert Help
To improve your own chances of publishing success, try to make use of experts in their respective fields. Also in the 'How To' series there are books to help you on your way, such as:
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Copyright & Law for Writers (Helen Shay)
How to Do Your Own Advertising (Michael Bennie)
How to Do Your Own P.R. (Ian Phillipson)
How to Start a Business from Home (Graham Jones)
Making Money from Writing (Carole Baldock)
Managing Your Business Accounts (Peter Taylor)
Successful Mail Order Marketing (Ian Bruce)
Writing & Publishing Poetry (Stephen Wade)
Writing & Selling a Novel (Marina Oliver)
Writing a Non-fiction Book (Norman Toulson)
Writing for Publication (Chriss McCallum)
Checklist
1. Have you decided why you want to publish a book?
2. Do you have enough cash available to get you started?
3. Are you prepared to devote your spare time and energy to publishing your book?
Final Comment
If the book which you want to publish is a work of fiction, don't be discouraged. Although selling novels is more difficult than selling 'niche' books, you can succeed. Remember Jack London and Samuel Beckett!
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2
Preparing the Raw Material
It is said that everyone has a book inside them, either fact or fiction, which is crying out to be written. You do not need to be a literary genius. There are very few Charles Dickens or even Jeffrey Archers in the world, so cast off your inhibitions and have a go!
Most fictional tales are based on personal experiences or reminiscences. Practical books can offer a wealth of experience and advice. If you have persevered and produced a manuscript, don't push it into a closet but set about having it published.
This chapter deals with the following:
how to prepare the script
knowing the limits to freedom of expression.
Preparing a Script for Publication
Handwriting
This is for many people the most pleasant way to write a book, sitting by the fire in the winter or in the garden during fine weather. Any additions can be easily made. On completion, however, the work has to be converted into typeset material ('camera ready copy') for the printers, and typesetting can be expensive. Make sure your writing is readable, otherwise you will encounter all kinds of problems and unexpected costs. You might be charged more for typesetting from handwritten material, than if it were typed. Check this out; it may pay you to have your script typed before sending it to the typesetter or printer.
Typing
Again the finished typed material has to be typeset. Make sure that your typing is clear and then where there are many alterations retype it. Use A4 size paper, and make all the typing double spaced lines, with generous margins left and right.
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Word-Processing the Script
Books can be written directly on a word processor. They can also be converted from handwriting and typing into material which needs less typesetting and so keeps costs down. Unless you have a definite need for it there is no need to go to the expense of purchasing a word processor as one can be hired, leased or borrowed instead. In Yellow Pages you will find a large number of advertisements about local word processor services, some of which offer tuition if required. Local newspapers also carry advertisements to the same end and it would be worthwhile checking for quotations on the cost of converting your books.
BREAKEVEN PUBLISHING
June 199X
Dear Sir/Madam
I am writing to you to ask whether you could let me have an estimate for typing or word-processing the manuscript of a book which I have written, and for providing me with two copies, double-spaced, on A4 paper.
The manuscript consists of 250 pages of handwritten script, and amounts to 85,000 words approximately.
Could you please let me know the length of time which it would take to convert this material into typescript? A sample page is enclosed.
Yours sincerely
Harry Bright
Fig. 2.
Enquiring about the cost of typing or word-processing a manuscript.
The word processor should be used to produce copy that cuts down the work of the typesetter, notably in these ways:
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justification
indents
editing
storing text on disk.
Justification
This means that both the left and right hand sides of the pages of the book are straight and parallel. A word processor can be set up to do this automatically. Text not justified, for example on the right hand side, is said to be 'unjustified right' or 'ragged right'.
Indents
These occur where words are set in from the margin, normally to start a paragraph. There are many examples of indents in the book which you are now reading. The normal indent is one em, a printer's measurement meaning one sixth of an inch.
Editing
A paragraph may end with a line consisting of just a few words on another page (a 'widow line'). The poor appearance of this can be adjusted easily on a word processor by removing an unnecessary word or words from the page. On resetting the word processor will readjust the whole page.
Disk
The finished article from the word processor can be stored on a 'disk', a small cassette-like object, which the typesetter will use to produce the typesetting electronically rather than manually. Check that the one you are producing is 'compatible' for use by the typesetter you have chosen.
Can't everything be done on a computer?
If you are a computer expert, or have your own machine, you will know the power of computers to cut out stages in publishing a book. Computer programs are now available which include spelling checkers, grammar and style checkers and word counters. Programs are also produced which contain a database of 5,000 plots and characters which can be used to create an infinite number of stories.
It is also possible for computers to read handwriting and convert it into electronic data. Indeed, computers have now become so sophisticated that they are able, through voice recognition, to convert the spoken word in the same way. It is thus conceivable that you could dictate a book into one end of a machine and thousands of copies of a complete book would come
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out of the other, rather like a literary combine harvester. This is no longer pure science fiction.
However, we would advise that a computer be treated as a tool like any other. If you really want to spend eight hours a day in front of a computer screen, instead of working with paper and ink, then you should note the following:
Guidance on using a computer
The rush of businesses to computerise has started to rebound. It is now emerging that employees who spend long periods of time working at computer keyboards can develop serious illnesses. These can include RSI (repetitive strain injury) and eye problems. Employers have already had to pay out large sums in compensation for such injuries. A recent case involved two British Telecom employees who were awarded £6,000 damages as compensation for repetitive strain injury caused by keyboard work at high speed, using inappropriate furn
iture. British Telecom appealed against the judgment but the matter was settled out of court on undisclosed terms, and the appeal effectively abandoned. This case is not a binding precedent but it was the first of its type to come to court.
More recently, in the case of Pickford v ICI Ltd (1996), a secretary employed by ICI had spent three-quarters of each of her eight-hour working days typing. She developed writer's cramp and claimed compensation from ICI. The Court of Appeal allowed her claim and stated that it was plainly foreseeable that typists might contract writer's cramp if they typed for prolonged periods without a break. It has recently been estimated that 5 million working days are lost each year because of upper limb disorders caused by keyboard work. Schoolchildren are reportedly beginning to suffer. One environmentally sound solution is to keep a goose in the back garden for a good supply of quills!
The best advice to employers and computer users generally is: use computers and don't let them use you. Also note that salespersons dealing with computer software and hardware will never mention the possible medical effects of long-term use. In a Financial Times article, Stanley Kalms, boss of Dixons for 44 years, stated that he preferred pen and ink to computer technology and that he could not use a computer. If he has managed to run 800 high-technology information shops so successfully without using a computer then
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you can be confident of publishing your own book without one!
What about desktop publishing? This is a general term for computer programs which can arrange combinations of text and pictures in any number of sophisticated ways. These programs are good for small in-house runs but useless for long print runs unless you have a very expensive printer. Some users make the claim that the availability of cheap desktop publishing systems will revolutionise publishing. We remain sceptical of such claims, except for the production of souped-up pamphlets. The health problems caused by long hours spent before computer screens and keyboards, which are only now starting to emerge, never seem to be taken into account by desktop publishing enthusiasts.
Personal computers and word processors have continued to develop apace since the last edition of this book. From the do-it-yourself publisher's point of view, the following developments are significant:
- Colour printers are now very cheap. They give self-publishers wide scope for experimentation with the arrangement of words and pictures.
- The Internet is now within the reach of anyone with an up-to-date personal computer. This is a global system of connections between computers through telephone lines. John Updike has recently published the first chapter of a novel on the Internet and has invited contributions to further chapters. Publishing on the Internet is at present in its infancy. Further developments must be expected.
The Limits to Freedom of Expression
What are you going to write about? Be careful because there are restrictions on freedom of expression. These cover:
copyright
libel
contempt of court
obscenity
blasphemy
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privacy and confidentiality
racial hatred
official secrets.
Some of these topics are legal minefields. This book cannot hope to cover all the legal technicalities in detail. It can give general guidance on problem areas to be avoided. If in doubt, see a lawyer. However, remember that even a short and simple piece of advice from a solicitor can be very expensive. You might be able to keep legal costs down by approaching Citizens' Advice Bureaux or advice centres, or even by doing your own legal research, but extreme caution must be your watchword. Let's consider them each in turn.
Copyright
The law forbids using other people's written words without their consent. Copyright protection covers, in general, the author of words, not the creator of ideas. A person whose copyright is infringed can get a court order preventing further breach and financial compensation. Breach of copyright is the professional publisher's nightmare and general guidance can only be:
DO NOT COPY OTHER PEOPLE'S WORK
WITHOUT THEIR PERMISSION
For example, in a recent case where magazine publishers reproduced copies of advertisements which had appeared in another magazine, the court stated that they were liable for breach of copyright.
The preparation of this book has involved obtaining permission for the reproduction of certain items. In nearly every case, a telephone call was sufficient and no charge was made. These permissions are acknowledged at the front of the book.
Libel
This is a false attack on someone's reputation. The courts can award very high damages for such defamation. Any book which contains personal criticism should be very carefully checked for the truth of its contents. A recent example is the case of Slipper v BBC (1990). In that case, Chief Superintendent Slipper claimed damages for libel on the basis that a TV film had portrayed him as a ridiculous buffoon.
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BREAKEVEN PUBLISHING
June 199X
Dear Sir/Madam
I am writing to you to ask for your permission to reproduce a page from your book on bombing raids during World War II.
I am the author of a book entitle "Bright Memories" to be published by myself. The book deals with my own experiences during World War II.
I wish to reproduce a page of your book as a part of mine. I am not sure whether the copyright is owned by you as author, or by the publisher.
I would be most grateful for any assistance which you could give me in this matter.
Could you please let me know whether you would be prepared to grant this permission, and if so, the terms upon which it would be granted.
Yours sincerely
Harry Bright
Fig. 3.
Asking for permission to reproduce copyright material.
Contempt of Court
This covers threats to the administration of justice, including comments on trials in progress. In 1990, Private Eye magazine's publication of articles about a person who was suing it for libel was stated to be a contempt of court because it created 'a serious risk that the proceedings would be prejudiced'. The magazine and its editor were each fined £10,000.
Obscenity
This means material which 'tends to deprave or corrupt' and is a serious
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criminal offence. Only hard core pornography is now likely to attract the attentions of the police but publishers should be aware of, at least, the Lady Chatterley's Lover trial (Penguin Books), the Oz Schoolkids Issue case and the Last Exit to Brooklyn trial. These cases show that publishers of obscene material can run the risk of lengthy and expensive criminal proceedings even if eventually they are found not guilty.
Blasphemy
The offensive treatment of the Christian faith is a criminal offence. An attempt was made to prosecute Salman Rushdie's book Satanic Verses for blasphemy but the High Court ruled that Islam was not covered.