Why Publishers Won’t Market and Sell Your Book For You

A publisher is not a non-profit. It’s a business.

When you bring a book proposal to a publisher and try to get a deal, you’re making a business proposition. You are saying, hey want to get into business with me?

And if your business sucks, then the answer is likely to be no.

That might seem harsh, but most people have no clue about the volume of people with a great book idea who want to be published. There’s a lot of you and therefore, a lot of competition. Since last April, over 150 people have applied to work with me. I only handle a tiny sliver of the overall publishing market, but turn away lots of people (85% of those who apply).

One reason I turn down people is because of their visibility and audience, or lack thereof. I talk to self-published authors a few times a month who come into our call already discouraged because their book didn’t magically sell. This problem is almost always directly related to that author not having an audience of their own.

Marketing a book without an audience like having a business with no paying clients or customers. Without an established market and audience prior to publication, your book is sunk. Publishers know that. Unfortunately, most have had LOTS of experience with books that didn’t sell. The majority of…