Book Guild Submissions – FAQs
Our Customer Service Team is the first port of call for authors wishing to submit their manuscript to The Book Guild. Hannah Dakin manages this team and oversees all submissions and initial inquiries. Here, she talks us through some of the common FAQs so that you can ensure that your book is ready for submission (and beyond):
What should I send as my submission?
Ideally, we would like to see the whole manuscript so that we can consider it fully. We are happy to accept a minimum of three sample chapters but will ask to see the whole manuscript if we decide to offer a publishing proposal. If the manuscript contains images (photographs, graphics, illustrations) then we ask to see some of the images at the submission stage so that we can check their quality.
A synopsis and author biography are useful at the submission stage. As well as the quality of the writing, the genre and commercial appeal of the book itself, we also have to take into consideration an author’s marketing ‘angle’ and their enthusiasm for being involved in the book’s marketing campaign. For example, if an author has written about Post Traumatic Stress Disorder – what is their connection to this subject? Have they suffered from it themselves? Why would a customer choose to read the author’s book over others? The more information that an author can provide about themselves and why they have written the book at the submission stage, the better.
Are all manuscripts considered for a traditional publishing contract?
We are currently considering non-fiction titles, mainly memoirs and sport-related autobiographies, for traditional publishing contracts. We are happy to consider all genres – fiction, children’s picture books, business/development, etc – but these are more likely to be considered for our partnership publishing programme.
How long will the submission/consideration process take?
We acknowledge all manuscripts within two-three working days. The full consideration process can take up to four weeks. We receive a lot of submissions and like to give each manuscript the attention that it deserves!
Can I use my own ISBN?
We do not offer this option at The Book Guild. All titles published by The Book Guild will carry an ISBN that is registered to The Book Guild, which enables us to distribute and market the book comprehensively to the UK market. This does not affect the copyright, which remains with the author.
Do I need to obtain permission to reproduce images in my book?
Permission needs to be obtained from the copyright holder if you do not own an image; it is your obligation to obtain copyright permissions and clearances where necessary – though we can advise on how to go about this. The quality of images is also very important; low quality or pixelated images make a book look unprofessional. With this in mind, we do not recommend using images that are less than 300dpi (dots per inch) in resolution, and certainly not to use images copied from the Internet (which are usually only a low 96dpi in resolution).
What is the average timescale required to produce and print a book?
We aim to have books printed and ready for publication approximately six months after receiving a signed contract from the author. This timescale allows time for the book to be marketed to bookshops months in advance of the official publication date, as this is how the UK book trade operates. It also gives plenty of time for our in-house production team to design a beautiful, commercially appealing, high-quality book.
