What is publishing?

Publishing is defined as the preparation and issuing of any printed material for public distribution and sale. As the definition implies, publishing traditionally refers to the distribution of the printed word such as in books, magazines, and newspapers. However, with the advancements in technology that we enjoy today, publishing today includes e-Books, websites, blogs, etc.

Publishing is a multi-million dollar business as well as a multi-step process, which includes every aspect of printing from the, development, marketing, production, to the distribution of the product.

The process begins with the writer developing, writing, and polishing his/her work, which once the writer has finished, they submit it to the publisher or have an agent submit it to the publisher. The writer's first contact with the publishers is with
a query letter or proposal.

Many publishers do not except unsolicited manuscripts, those that do, the majority of these unsolicited manuscripts end up in the slush pile. Generally, it is the job of a senior editor's 1st assistant to go through the slush-pile. If the assistant discovers any manuscripts that are interesting, then the senior editor may consider the manuscript for publication. The majority of manuscripts that are unsolicited are from unpublished authors as established authors usually either already have contracts with the publishers or the author is represented by a literary agent.

Once a manuscript has been accepted, the editor may require the author to rewrite or make small changes to the work. All major publishers have staff who copy edit the manuscript to guarantee that it matches the house style, and is grammatical
correct. The author may also be required to make structural changes or include more information by adding more detail, or even complete scenes. There are several publishers that hire and employ fact checkers. It is the job of these individuals
to check the factual affirmation made by the author and determine if these statements are correct. The printing process also includes typesetting, paper quality, cover art, and proofreading.

Usually it is the publisher who controls all aspects of the advertising and marketing of the book, however smaller publishing companies may use subcontractors for this
purpose as well as for editing, proofreading, and layout.

Unfortunately, there is a rising trend of publishers using specialized companies to hand the sales of books to wholesalers, national-retail chains, and small bookstores,
replacing the dedicated in-house salesperson.

Book-packing is when the complete process of publishing a book, from the acquisition of the manuscript up to the printing stage is performed by an individual or outside company, prior to being sold to the final publishing company.

Usually, these books are marketing concepts and the publisher will hire a writer to write the book. This process is a common practiced seen in the genre fiction/science fiction, and young adult markets.

As the Internet continues to evolve, it has posed an interesting challenge to many publishers, as well as the distributors and retailers, with many Internet companies, such as Amazon considering a move towards establishing their own Amazon imprint. This has already proven to be a successful move for Barnes & Noble, Ingram Industries, who is the parent company of Ingram Book Group, which is a leading US book wholesaler.
Ingrams' print-on-demand division is called Lightning Source. In addition, there have been several publishers who have announced they will begin selling their backlist titles directly to consumers through their website. Though these books are generally more expensive, publishers have learned that there are readers who are willing to pay any price for their favorite book.

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