Today I thought I'd cover a topic that some of you probably have never even heard of, book packaging. This is when a publishing company has an idea for a book and outsources the tasks involved in creating it.
"Book-packaging (or book producing) is a publishing activity in which a publishing company outsources the myriad tasks involved in putting together a book—writing, researching, editing, illustrating, and even printing—to an outside company called a book-packaging company. Once the book-packaging company has produced the book, they then sell it to the final publishing company.
In this arrangement, the book-packaging company acts as a liaison between a publishing company and the writers, researchers, editors, and printers that design and produce the book. Book packagers thus blend the roles of agent, editor, and publisher. Book-packaging is common in the genre fiction market, particularly for books aimed at pre-teens and teenagers, and in the illustrated non-fiction co-edition market."
Big and small publishers enlist the help of book packagers. Some famous series that have been done this way include Sweet Valley High and Nancy Drew.
Pro to working with a book packager? Competition is low and pay can be good depending on the project. Packagers will often work with the same writers on a regular basis and turn around times are quick meaning it can be a good source of income.
Con to working with a book packager? You don't get name credit. The Publisher owns all copyright of the project and therefore you can't use or resell reprints or excerpts. You get paid a flat fee and (most) don't pay royalties so even if the book become a major success and gets turned into a blockbuster movie you won't get a cent more than the original amount agreed in your work-for-hire contract.
Would you consider working with a book packager? Have you already worked with one and have some feedback to share? (I'm not asking you to tell us what project it was as I know you can't give that information away, but tips about the process or some feedback about your experience, even in very general terms, would help shed some more light on the topic ;)).
The most correct answer is: it depends.
If you create a manuscript that is a master piece with obvious sales potential your origin shouldn't factor too much in the decision of whether or not to offer you a publishing deal. You will of course have to get your foot in the door and get your manuscript read by the right people in order for this to happen but if you find a good agent* to represent your work you shouldn't be at a disadvantage over native writers submitting their work.
*Yes you will need to be represented by a literary agent. All of the 'Big' American publishing houses only accept manuscripts via established agencies and don't consider individual submissions direct from the authors.
When people refer to the 'Big Six' they are commenting on the biggest publishing houses:
- Hachette Book Group
- Harper Collins
- Macmillan
- Penguin group
- Random House
- Simon & Schuster
Let's take a look at the for and against to better understand if your manuscript could get a yes or no:
For
Harper Collins is one of the world's largest publishing houses. Originating in the United Kingdom it now has it's headquarters in New York City in the US. Harper Collins has publishing groups in various countries including the United States, Canada, United Kingdom, Australia, New Zealand and India. It also publishes several different imprints. With such an expansive collection of countries being part of the company and being represented either under the Harper Collins title or by one of it's imprints it's clear that they are more than open to taking on foreign writers. This is just an example to highlight the fact that some 'Big' publishing houses are international and that they don't limit themselves to just American authors.
Against
Obvious problems arrive when the writer is not Mother-Tongue English as in most cases taking on a manuscript would mean intensive editing, costing the company more time and money than they would predict having to invest on the work of a native. This is just one example of why American publishers often steer clear of foreign writers. More points are covered in this article from Publishing Perspectives about why it's so hard for foreign writers to get publishing deals with American Publishers http://publishingperspectives.com/2010/01/the-translation-gap-why-more-foreign-writers-arent-published-in-america/
There have been numerous Filipino writers that have made it into the history books. Carlos Bulosan for example was even commissioned by President Franklin Delano Roosevelt to write the essay 'Freedom from want' and his book 'America is in the Heart' had a huge impact on Filipino-American literature. To give you a more recent example, Philippine author Ninotchka Rosca won the American Book Award in 1993 for her novel 'Twice Blessed'.
As you can see it's not a question with a cut and dry answer. The chance is there but you'll find you're likely to have the odds against you.
Are you a foreign writer published with one of the big American Publishers?
Do you think foreign writers stand a chance of being published by a famous American Publisher? What are your thoughts?
