Photo by Pond5One my Facebook publishing groups seems to attract a large number of first-time authors. Many of them are even more clueless than I was when I was getting started, and trust me, I was pretty darn clueless. I’d written a historic cookbook called, Anna’s Kitchen, and I thought I knew it all. Let’s just say I’ve come a long way since then. Even so, I’m sometimes flabbergasted at some of the things people are posting. One example would be a prospective author who couldn’t afford to pay her illustrator. She wanted to know if it would be okay to split the book profits 50/50 instead?
Umm…no!
There are many myths out there about writing and publishing books. One of the biggest, and most persistent, is that authors make big bucks from their book sales. Some do, but they’re the exception. In reality, most authors need day jobs if they want to pay their bills. Their book royalties are income supplements at best. For some, it’s only beer money.
There are out-of-pocket expenses which come with writing and publishing books. This includes editing, proofreading, and cover design. Laptops and tablets cost money. Pens and paper cast money too. I realize money may be an issue for many of you. If so, you may be tempted to do it all yourself. My advice, however, is don’t. Very few people have the skillset to do it all, which means you will have to hire people to do certain tasks.
As noted, it’s easy for someone who has never written a book to assume their book will make a profit. Therefore, they may think it’s perfectly okay to offer to share a portion of their future profits, or royalties, in lieu of paying for the work. However, this isn’t how the book business works. The people proofreading your manuscript and designing your book cover have bills to pay. Asking them to work on spec is, at the very least, unprofessional. Would you ask a plumber for free? Probably not. So why would you expect a creative professional to work for free?
What about asking your spouse, or your best friend, or your great-aunt Mary? Again, I don’t recommend doing this. Family and friends usually aren’t qualified to do the task. But let’s say you need an editor, and your great-aunt Mary just happens to be a retired English teacher. Sure, you could ask her. Keep in mind, however, that she may say no, or she may expect a favor from you in return.
The fact of of matter is that you have to pay your people for services rendered. If you can’t afford to pay them, then you can’t afford publish your book. At least for now.
Gayle Martin
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