The Brass Ring - Or The Bottom Rung
Below is a MRR and PLR article in category Writing Speaking -> subcategory Writing.
The Brass Ring or the Bottom Rung?
Summary:
In the United States, 24 million adults see themselves as creative writers, yet less than 5% have been published. In 2005 alone, 172,000 titles were released. It's estimated that 5 to 6 million manuscripts are continuously seeking publishing homes. As a result, many writers are turning to publish-on-demand (POD) companies such as iUniverse, AuthorHouse, and Publish America to get their books into readers' hands. In 2006, about 25,000 titles will be released through POD services.
The Debate:
Does publishing with a POD company help aspiring authors reach the coveted brass ring of a commercial publishing contract, or does it keep them stuck on the bottom rung?
Writers often believe that a POD book at least gets their name out there, demonstrating their ability to complete a 50,000 to 100,000-word manuscript. But does it truly help in achieving commercial publication? This question was posed to nearly 60 successful literary agents in the Hill and Power 2006 Survey of Literary Agents.
Agent Insights:
The consensus among these agents is that publish-on-demand books can seriously harm an author's chances of securing a commercial deal. Agents rated the impact from 1 (significantly hurt) to 5 (significantly helped), with an average rating of 2. While 28% rated POD titles as neutral (a rating of 3), they stated that a POD book would only help if sales were significant, between 5,000 to 10,000 copies. Unfortunately, only a few POD titles reach these sales figures; most average around 100 copies sold.
The Publishing Challenge:
Breaking into the book publishing industry has always been tough. Agents predict it will become even more challenging for unpublished writers in the coming years. With the rising number of unsolicited submissions, writers need all the help they can get to secure agency representation and ultimately achieve commercial success.
Contrary to popular belief, a publish-on-demand book is not the boost aspiring writers need to succeed in the competitive world of traditional publishing.
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