Q –
I am tired of making changes to my book. I have read it hundreds of times over the past few years. Each time I send it back to my publisher, they find more problems, and send it back to me again. I don’t want to read it anymore. I just want it put up for sale. They’re refusing to do that. I can’t afford to hire an editor. What can I do? Will another publisher take my book and let me publish is as it is right now?
A –
You should be happy that you’re working with a publisher who cares about what they’re putting on the market. Most print on demand / self-publishing service firms do NOT. They’ll slap just about anything up on the Internet for sale. And, that eventually comes back to bite them. For example, some libraries and bookstores won’t buy books that Amazon’s self-publishing division has published. Other firms are in the same boat. So, I’m glad you’re not using an author meat market.
I know it’s frustrating to keep finding errors in your own book. You nor your publisher want to put an error-laden book on the market. Readers WILL post negative reviews – lots of them. And, those will harm your reputation, as well as your publisher’s.
If you can’t afford an editor, please see:
Can’t Afford An Editor? Try These Four Fun Steps For A Much Cleaner Manuscript! By Angela Hoy
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I have never self-published and, even though I pay an editor to go behind me, the publisher still always manages to catch a few errors or wants to make house style changes. Authors should welcome this. I agree that it gets old with so many changes. But here’s an idea: Once you have completed your manuscript walk away from it. Give it at least two weeks–maybe a month. I call it “letting it get cold.” When you go back to read it you will be shocked at how many errors you will find. I never want anything out there other than my best work. But catching errors on the front end is the mark of a professional author. Many writer wannabees are too lazy to put forth this effort and their books rarely sell well. Good luck!
Who was the publisher?
Really sounds like a Vanity Press sucking all the money out of her wallet by using as much of the editing services possible.
I never heard of a real TradPub doing that at all.
Is this a very small very minor legitimate publisher?
Or was this a Vanity Press scam?
The publisher was not trying to sell her any services, nor did they ask her for more money. It wasn’t a scam.
One of my books was published by a traditional publisher in NYC. One of their editors kept inserting mistakes into my book. I would correct them and send it back. She’d insert more mistakes. Round and round we went. Finally, they told me I was not permitted to correct any more mistakes (inserted by HER), and they put the book on the market with the mistakes.