How publishers choose manuscripts
Publishers invest in every book they release: editing, design, printing, distribution, advertising. So they decide on two questions. Does this book fit our list? And will it sell? You answer the first by only approaching publishers that publish your genre. You answer the second with a clear concept, a recognizable audience and, if you have one, your reach.
Step by step: submitting to a publisher
- Research the right publishers. Look at who publishes books like yours: in bookstores, on bestseller lists, on the copyright page and in the acknowledgments of comparable titles, where authors often thank their editor and agent.
- Read the submission guidelines. Most publishers state on their website whether they accept unsolicited manuscripts, in what format and how long a response takes. Follow them exactly.
- Write your query letter. One page: the hook, genre, word count, audience, a short pitch, what makes your book different, and a brief bio.
- Prepare the material. For fiction, usually the first chapters of a finished manuscript. For nonfiction, a book proposal with overview, chapter outline, target market, comparable titles, your platform and a sample chapter.
- Be patient and keep track. Rejections are normal and often say more about a publisher's list than about your book.
What goes into a query letter and a book proposal?
The query letter is your application. In two minutes it has to show what the book is about, who it is for and why you are the one to write it. In nonfiction, your expertise and your platform carry the most weight; for a novel, the core of the story. Include concrete numbers about your reach if you have them: followers, newsletter subscribers, listeners, clients. For publishers, an existing audience is one of the strongest arguments there is.
Literary agent or straight to the publisher?
Literary agents pitch manuscripts to publishers, negotiate contracts and take a commission on your earnings, typically 15% on domestic and 20% on foreign sales. The large trade houses rarely look at submissions that don't come through an agent. For nonfiction, guides and books with a clearly defined audience, going directly to a specialized publisher is often faster.
Publishers accepting unsolicited manuscripts
Many independent and small presses accept submissions directly, some all year round, some only during open submission windows. Check each publisher's guidelines page for the current status and the requested format, and never send your full manuscript where a query is asked for. A publisher that accepts unsolicited manuscripts is not automatically a vanity press, but one that asks you for money is.
How to spot a vanity press
The most important rule: a publisher pays you, not the other way around. Warning signs:
- You are asked to pay toward printing, editing, cover design or marketing.
- The acceptance comes very fast and with lots of praise, but without any feedback on the content.
- You are required to buy a minimum number of your own copies.
- The contract mainly regulates your payments and says little about how the book will be sold to readers.
Hybrid publishers are a separate category: the author shares the costs and receives a higher royalty. The Independent Book Publishers Association (IBPA) has published criteria for reputable hybrid publishers since 2018 and expanded them to eleven points in 2022; only a publisher that meets all of them counts as a hybrid publisher in the IBPA's sense. If you want to finance your book yourself, self-publishing is usually more honest and cheaper. What each route costs is covered in How much does it cost to publish a book?
The alternative for people with an audience
You have a community on YouTube, Instagram, TikTok or a podcast, or you are an expert in your field? Then you don't need to send a finished manuscript around the publishing world. Orbita Media specializes in exactly these authors: we develop the book concept with you, your writing mentor turns your texts and voice messages into the manuscript, and you keep the final say on title, content and cover. It costs you nothing. Our authors include Gregor Gysi, Fler and Jörg Sprave as well as creators with communities of up to 2.2 million followers; see all our authors.
And if your book is already finished?
You have a finished manuscript with a cover and want to publish it yourself, but still with a publisher's ISBN and orderable in bookstores? That's what ShelfPublisher is for, the author platform of Orbita Media GmbH. Access is by invitation; the publishing team reviews every request personally.