Maintaining the Quality of Your Manuscript

The How's and Why's: A publisher should be able to maintain the quality of your book

by Pauline Cagayan

Publishers go beyond being confiding producers, responsive distributors, critical-thinker creators, and attentive editors. They are the ones who oversee the entire publishing process, implement policies in operations and keep an eye on the whole department within the company.

On the other hand, some publishing companies even deny this realism, several publishers focus first on finding the downside slice of a manuscript before looking at its excellencies. Subsequently, they’ll try to figure out how to work out those flaws by putting themselves in the reader's shoes–understanding what a book means to a reader and how to go beyond a reader's expectations. They will let you speak for the core of your book but their highlight is to know who is the market for your story and why should people read it.

“How can I make sure that this story will captivate the attention of my audiences?”

Apparently, the storyline of a book is just a percent of its beauty on the lenses of the publishers. Even if your tale has the most appealing exposition and holds an extraordinary plot twist it doesn’t mean that you’re hundred percent on your way to witness your book in print.

You’re getting there but not so close.

Your manuscript will undergo non-stop assessments, a kind of like CIA investigations, analyses just like your secondary research panelist and the harshest critics. I am neither giving a negative campaign on a publishing company’s end nor fooling writers to pursue self-publish, but if that’s how you get my point then go ahead.

Never give a try on trusting the quality of your book to a publisher right after asking yourself the reason why you hope to be a published author.

And if your answer is to fulfill your dreams of seeing a hardbound copy of your book; have it available for your workmates, friends, and family; and it doesn’t matter that you won’t get your capital back–then yes, go ahead, your reasons won’t find a thing. Just promise yourself to not expect a profit and won’t achieve a good quality book from its cover, twist, the way readers will know about it and its market.

Yet, if your inspiration to publish your book is to establish your journey and career as a published author, garner critical reviews, and make money out of it then it’s best to hand your manuscript to a publisher. Just get ready for a lot of adjustments or better yet prepare yourself to be rejected and receive a lot of judgment.

But always hold on to your core.

Remember JK Rowling? Harry Potter was rejected by a publisher not just once, thrice, or fifth time but twelve publishers mocked her story and said that it was too long, too conventional, too weird, or too old-fashioned. For the eyes of those publishers, Harry Potter is just for the children and cannot be enjoyed by the masses.

This doesn’t stop Rowling’s hopes because she believes that there’s a destined publisher for every story and her mission is to find those fates. And when she found the one, her story hit the shelves with unexpected success.

How does it happen?

What convinces the 13th publisher to exchange the deal?

This small publishing house in the United Kingdom, Bloomsbury Publishing creates the bridge for Harry Potter to gain victory. The thing is, they aren’t totally convinced by the power of the story. It’s just that they have this wit and brilliant Chairman and Chief Executive Officer Richard Robinson Jr. who geniously tests the potential of the book without being biased.

Rowling, together with her daughter, comes along to Bloomsbury to submit the manuscript for the 13th time. Upon assessing the book, this chairman lends the first chapter of the book to Rowling’s eight-year-old daughter Alice, and that’s where history happens. After reading, Alice insisted on continuing the next chapter of the book and so the publishing house exchanged the deal.

The roller coaster traversed by JK Rowling in looking for a publisher of Harry Potter is the best standard for why one should never quit on finding the right publisher, perhaps it was kismet Rowling saw Bloomsbury right after a dozen of rejections.

The need of the publisher to maintain the quality of the book is not just about nurturing the storylines, good characterization, verb fix, appropriate grammar, and a happily ever after. Publishers must go beyond assessing the competence of a book and that’s what makes their work uniquely challenging yet life-changing.

The best quality of a book that a publisher must attain and sustain in order to grasp a huge market has three layers: the making of the book, the beauty of the story itself, and the impact of both on the readers.

The story behind the making of a book, its journey from where the idea came from, and what inspires an author in conceptualizing his work create a greater impact on the readers and tend to convince them to purchase a copy of it out of curiosity. Publishers should know that readers are more interested in real-life stories, and showcasing what the author undergoes in writing his piece can be a good start in marketing a book. It sounds uncommon but knowing the personal information about an author– their place, marital status, profession and their views on life be it on politics, education, or society gives a crucial role for a reader in choosing a book.

Having a great story is the chief foundation of a book. Readers treat their favorite book as their guide in life which plays a vital role in their development as an individual. Most of the time, readers put themselves on the characters or much likely adore the role of a certain person to a point where they won’t stop asking for the next chapter. If a certain book goes beyond just a text, readers start to embrace more of its connections and eagerly want to share it with their friends and families. Publishers can add or lessen the piece of the story responsibly. After all there’s no successful publisher who’s not an avid reader and writer who genuinely understands the value of publishing and promoting a story. They know what a book means to a reader. It‘s not just for improving your grammar, communication skills, and memory but reading reduces stress, prolongs a life, spreads positivity, and improves oneself.

The main role of a publisher is to assure that the readers embrace the story of the book and its journey. Readers are the reason for an author’s success but they can also be the reason to lose track. Their reviews and point of view are one of the foundations of the future of the book so the publishers must have great vision, imagination, and the utmost ability in producing a book.

Write it down. Never stop telling a story because a lot of publishers await you.

A very good friend of mine once told me to always remember that the most important piece is what you see inside you– your eyes and imagination. The world is tough but you have to fight your way through because it’s about you and the things you believe you can do.

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