How to Publish a Book: A Simple Guide

Bringing your book to life is an exciting journey that begins once you finish writing and polish your manuscript. Whether you’re considering traditional publishing or self-publishing, understanding the process is essential. In the traditional route, the next step is to query literary agents who can help you navigate the industry.

Once an agent is on board, they’ll pitch your work to publishers in hopes of securing a deal. After you sign, the pre-publication phase involves editing and preparing your manuscript for readers. When the final version is ready, you’ll start signing copies in bookstores.

While both methods of how to publish a book have their pros and cons, it’s essential to compare factors like costs and earnings to determine the best fit. From my experience, avoiding hype and making decisions based on facts rather than judgment ensures you head in the right direction. Reading a well-researched guide or post on analysis can offer clarity as you navigate this exciting venture.

A few Benefits of Self-Publishing

Choosing to self-publish opens doors that traditional publishers and literary agents might otherwise block, allowing voices from diverse backgrounds to share their work freely. With fewer barriers to entry and no middlemen taking a cut, authors can enjoy higher margins, earning more from every book they sell.

Beyond financial benefits, authors gain complete control over the publishing process, making key decisions that shape their creative vision. Thanks to advancements in technology, self-published books now rival those of traditionally published authors, with professional printing and wide distribution networks ensuring that their work looks just as polished on bookstore shelves.

How to Publish a Book in 6 Steps

Step 1: Finish and polish your book

Before reaching out to agents or a publisher, it’s crucial to finish and polish your book until it’s the best version possible. I learned this after sending an early manuscript that needed more work, hoping the genius would shine through, but the feedback helped me revise and improve until it felt truly ready.

For fiction, a complete manuscript is required before submitting a proposal via email to an agent or publishing houses—a step that saves you from the pressure of delivering under deadlines, unlike my non-fiction colleagues who often pitch a whole overview with a biography, platform, comparative titles, and sample chapters before writing the entire book.

Crafting a solid outline and defining the target audience alongside a marketing and publicity plan helps ensure the proposal stands out. Though it takes time and privacy to get it right, the process pays off when you start selling your books and finally deliver the finished product to readers.

Step 2: Find the Right Literary Agent for Your Manuscript

Securing a traditional publishing deal begins with finding the right agent who understands your book’s potential and can connect with publishers through established relationships with editors. Start by identifying where your book fits in the literary world, whether it’s fiction or romance, targeting both university and commercial presses like Harlequin.

Refine your list of target agents and craft personalized query letters that capture your book’s essence. Send your queries in batches to assess what’s working, ensuring you follow up at each step—don’t leave your success to crossed fingers! If your manuscript is pitched well and aligns with the agent’s vision, you’ll receive offers of representation after their full reading. During the call, be ready to discuss their interpretation and any revisions they’re expecting. Consider whether their feedback aligns with your story and whether your personalities match—trust is essential, as agents earn a commission (typically a percentage of your proceeds).

If it feels right, they’ll negotiate your contract to maximize both print runs in bookstores and critical reviews. Their effort is risk-free, like an attorney working on contingency—no penny is paid unless they sell your book. With a strong track record, they’ll help get your work published and marketed successfully, ensuring you feel proud of the final result.

Step 3: Relax and Trust the Process

What to do while your agent pitches your book to publishing houses?

While your agent crafts the perfect pitch for editors at top publishing houses like Penguin, Random House, Hachette, Harper Collins, Simon and Schuster, or Macmillan, it’s crucial to stay patient during this process. Each press, whether university presses like Algonquin, Counterpoint, or Seal, or specific imprints like St. Martin’s Press, Tor/Forge, Farrar, Straus & Giroux, Scribner, Touchstone, and Atria, has unique preferences that must fit your book.

These editors not only acquire manuscripts but also collaborate with the author to refine the story, guiding every phase from pre-publication tasks like proofing and coordinating the cover designer to marketing, publicity, and distribution.

While awaiting email updates, avoid obsessively checking social media or stressing over your submission—this stage can vary, with some books selling fast through an auction, while others require multiple batches and revisions before an editor is ready to buy. Remember, sales departments need to be convinced that your story will generate money and capture readers’ love over the coming year of its life, making this waiting period essential for long-term success.

Step 4: Sign Your Book Contract

The moment you sign your book contract, your agent delivers the exciting call with an offer from a publisher ready to buy your manuscript. After a quick meet or phone chat to discuss revisions and iron out any pro or con, it’s time to negotiate the advance—the money you’ll get for the rights to publish your work.

Whether it’s a few thousand dollars or a six-figure sum, this earnings boost typically arrives in installments—one when you sign the deal, another upon delivering the edited manuscript, and the final at publication or further down the road. Once sales start rolling in, royalties begin, but not until you’ve earned past the $20,000 mark if that’s your advance.

The publisher must first recoup costs for printing, editing, marketing, and distributing the book, ensuring each sale contributes to both sides’ success. International potential comes into play with foreign rights, while the dream of seeing your story on film might also be part of the contract, proving every step from submission to adjust and accept is worth the wait.

Step 5: Complete Your Book and Start Pre-Production Planning

After finalizing your manuscript, the editor sends notes with suggestions for improvement, focusing on sentence structure, word choice, and concepts to solve any problems. A strong relationship with your editor ensures smooth collaboration, especially when working on a non-fiction proposal. Once you reach an agreement on the final round of changes, the pre-production process begins, involving your agent, project manager, and team. Differences are settled through negotiation, while the publisher handles the cover design.

You may suggest ideas, but the final decision rests with them—something I learned firsthand when St. Martin’s initially proposed a design I disliked, but thanks to my brilliant agent, I ended up with one I love. Next comes marketing and publicity: your book enters the catalog, the sales team pitches it to bookstores, and pre-orders go live on Amazon, Bookshop.org, and other online platforms.

During copyediting, the copyeditor fixes punctuation, inconsistencies, and factual errors, with the legal team reviewing potential liabilities. Then, ARCS are printed—a thrilling moment despite typos, cheap paper, and unfinished spine designs. The publicist sends net-galleys to reviewers, secures interviews, and plans events. Finally, the proofreader checks formatting, including widows, orphans, headings, and page numbers, ensuring no mistakes are missed before you approve the final version, marking the end of this detailed yet rewarding process.

Step 6: Grab a Pen and Start Signing

The publisher finally sends a box of printed books, and that thrilling George McFly moment hits—you’ve done it! But there’s no time to rest; publicity kicks into high gear with interviews for magazines, blogs, podcasts, TV, and radio lined up by your publicist. Meanwhile, reviews start pouring in on platforms like Goodreads, but remember, feedback is subjective—what one friend finds light and chick lit, another might find depressing enough to make them want to kill the book (figuratively, of course).

I learned this the hard way after the mistake of reading too many negative comments, but the positive ones reminded me why I love writing despite the occasional despises of some readers. So, take your vitamins, stay grounded, and embrace the journey!

Summary

Publishing your book is an exciting journey, whether you choose traditional publishing or self-publishing. Traditional publishing involves securing a literary agent who pitches your manuscript to publishers, leading to editing, marketing, and distribution. Self-publishing offers creative control, higher earnings, and fewer barriers to entry.

The publishing process includes six key steps: refining your manuscript, finding the right agent, patiently awaiting a deal, negotiating a contract, preparing for production, and finally, launching and promoting your book. Each stage requires careful planning, but with perseverance and strategic decisions, your book can successfully reach readers.