Monday Microscope: Getting Published

I have a manuscript ready for publishing. What are the options I should be considering for getting published?- Rekha

Dear Rekha,

At the onset, congratulations for finishing your manuscript and being ready to publish it. As an aspiring author in India , currently there are three major options for you to consider. Basis your requirements, you could choose any one of these.

1. Traditional Publishing

There are a lot of traditional publishers based in India for e.g. Penguin Random House, Rupa Publishing, Aleph Books, FingerPrint!, Harper Collins India etc. They have detailed submission guidelines mentioned on their website which an author has to follow before sending in their manuscripts for consideration.

In this option, the author doesn’t have to pay anything to the publisher. This process is a time taking process as the minimum turn around to time for most of such publishers is three to six months, post which also the actual book publishing could take anywhere between a year to a year and a half.

    2. Self Publishing

In this option the author hires all kind of services needed for publishing a book himself/herself. It includes – an editor, a proof reader, typesetter, cover designer, printer etc. Though a bit costlier as an option compared to above, it gives the author complete control over the whole process and also the costs involved in book publishing.

In this if you wish to only release the e-book version of your book first the cost comes down drastically as platforms like Amazon Kindle and Juggernaut allow you to upload your manuscript at zero costs. Here, the cost that remains to be incurred would be towards editing, cover designing and marketing the book.

     3. Vanity Publishing

There are many vanity publishers in India where they charge the author for getting their book published by offering marketing services in addition to all the basic services (mentioned above) which necessary for book publishing.

The author needs to consider various aspects like costing, types of services needed and marketing options available before choosing the options.

This week’s Monday Microscope was answered by our in-house team expert, Namrata. Having worked as an editor for a publishing house, where manuscript assessment was her core KPI , she is now a freelancing beta reader for Team KC.