publishing a book

[Margehrita]

Is it possible to present an idea for a book to a publishers without having a completed article. If so what would the criteria be for it to be taken into serious consideration?

[Buenchico]

If your name is J K Rowling you could just give a publisher the smallest hint of an idea for a new book and get a commission. The rest of us need to provide a bit more detail ;-)

Publishers will pay an 'advance' to an author if they're reasonably confident that
(a) the book will sell ; and
(b) the author will actually present the finished work to them within an agreed time frame.

For a newcomer, both of those conditions are hard to meet. No publisher would provide an advance to a newcomer solely upon the basis of an 'idea'. However, they might consider paying an advance to a writer who presents them with, say, the first 5000 words plus a synopsis of the rest of the book. Even so, they'd be far more likely to offer an advance to an established writer (who they felt they could trust to complete the job on time and to a high standard) than to a newcomer.

In practice, most publishers would only pay an advance to a newcomer if their name was already known to their potential readership (either as an 'expert' or possibly as a 'celebrity'). Even JKR had to complete her first book, and hawk it around several agents and publishers, before getting anyone to take her writing seriously.

Chris

[saxy_jag]

What Buenchico says.

A rare exception might be if it's a non-fiction book, such as a 'how-to' type book. Again, the idea would have to be exceptional and you run the risk of the publisher nicking the idea (because there's no copyright on ideas) and getting another, already-signed author to write it.

Best advice is write your book first and then start looking for a publisher.

[Margehrita]

Great, Thanks for the advice. I'll wait til I've finished it. I'd say I'm 2 thirds through so look out for it on the shelves of all good bookshops soon :-)

[Old Salt]

An accepted practice and one I have used from time-to-time, when still cosidering or writing a piece, is the Query Letter.

http://www.essortment.com/all/howtowritequ_rrx u.htm

The above website should answer all of your questions, or you could simply GOOGLE a question such as, "How to write a good Query Letter."

Don't be disappointed if you get no response to your letters.

Good Luck and remember, "Don't let the &%*+$!#~ grind you down." Most writers could wallpaper a block of high-rise flats with their rejection slips.

Been there, done that.........
Old Salt