Submit Manuscript
How to Submit a Photo Story
Author: Rohn Engh
Research
Which publications will use a photo story on your subject? a) Check WRITER’S MARKET and PHOTOGRAPHER’S MARKET (www.f&wpubs.com). b.) Look up publications you’re interested in on Google or at the library or at newsstands. Study several issues. Check mastheads for correct spelling of the current photo or feature editor’s name. Make sure that they haven’t published your photo story subject in the recent past, nor do they have it scheduled for the near future. (To find out the latter, request their editorial calendar.)
The Slant
Figure out the angle or slant or “hook” of the article, based on your research of the publication and your personal point of view.
Your Research
Research your own subject thoroughly. Illustrate it with meaningful photos.
Query
Write a one or two-page query letter on professional-looking stationery. a.) Format: Typewritten (word processed), in accepted business letter format. Open with “Dear Mr. or Ms. Last Name,” not “Dear John or Joan.” Spell check, proofreading it as often as necessary, to make it flawless. One typing error or misspelled word can spoil the professional impression you want to create. b) Content: Your first paragraph should provocatively refer to your story idea, with a question, a brief story, a quote, an event, etc…. You must grab the photo editor right away or you’ve lost him/her. Your next paragraph or two can explain your photo story idea in more detail. Following that, in the next paragraph, say something about yourself, your credits, or whatever else you think the photo editor ought to know to underscore your track record and position to deliver what you promise. Include information about your website and a sampling of on-line photos and their resolution. Your closing paragraph should mention that you look forward to hearing from them.
Contact and Delivery
Most editors welcome a postal query, others prefer email. A Google search of their website will generally inform you of their submission guidelines.
Send out your query letter and sit tight. (Or better, continue researching and sending out other story queries.) It takes anywhere from two to six weeks to hear from a photobuyer on a query like this. (No news is good news.)
The Response
When a photo editor answers: If the answer is “no,” be ready with other appropriate markets to send your query off to. If it’s “yes,” begin your negotiations to receive payment. If it’s “yes, on spec” (meaning no guarantee of publication and payment, but if you send the piece they promise to give it attention), you might consider taking them up on it, especially if this is your first submission to this market.
The Future
Once you have several photo stories to your credit, you can open many doors by referring to them with a link to your website.
Article Source: http://www.articlesbase.com/publishing-articles/how-to-submit-a-photo-story-296637.html
About the Author
Rohn Engh is director of PhotoSource International and publisher of PhotoStockNotes. Pine Lake Farm, 1910 35th Avenue, Osceola, WI 54020 USA. Telephone: 1 800 624 0266. Fax: 1 715 248 7394 for more information on how to sell photos.
Tagged with: editor • illustrate • market • photo • photography • publication • publish • quote • story • subject • submission • submit • website
Filed under: Uncategorized
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Probably not. I think the fact they may have already read it is a negative not a plus. If they were interested, they would have requested you send it back exclusively for a period of 30 days or more. If they remember it, they will probably reject it again.
I have explained the submission process here a multitude of times. You really have to learn to advocate for yourself and follow submission guidelines and submit your work in a professional fashion. You immediately told all of them you were an amateur by the unprofessional way you submitted.
You should never ever never ever submit to more than two agents or publishers at a time. Then, they should both be agents that clearly state in their submission guidelines that they accept multiple submissions. What you send is usually a query letter and a synopsis – not a manuscript. I do not know of any agents who accept unsolicited manuscripts. Unsolicited manuscripts get slush piled and a clerk sends form rejection letters out when they get around to it.
In the query letter, clearly state that you have sent the query to another agent as well. That is the proper thing to do. If either is interested, they will contact you regarding the other query and request a manuscript and an exclusive. You went about it totally the wrong way.
I am wondering where you found these multiple agents, because I don’t know of that many who read children’s books anymore.
You should understand the children’s book market. You have chosen the most difficult thing in the publishing business – getting a children’s book published.
Let me describe for you the current nature of the children’s book market. I just finished ghostwriting two children’s books for a very major sports figure – already sold to a very major NY publisher. The first is with artist now and due out in Spring. I am currently working on another one with others to follow. This information was given to me by a Senior Editor at the publisher I write for (one of the top 5 on that list) …
40% of children’s books published today are by celebs like Madonna, Jamie Lee Curtis etc.
40% are written by existing, established children’s authors like Eric Carle.
15-20% are reprints of children’s classics like Curious George.
That leaves at best 5% for new authors.
And that percentage is being cut into by adult authors like Carl Hiaasen and Mary Higgins Clark entering the childrens’ market recently.
To that, add the fact that most of the large publishing companies are backlogged with children’s books they have under contract but havent gotten out yet.
As a result, most A list publishers aren’t even reading childrens’ books right now, which means agents arent either. Agents only read what they can sell.
There is very little room to break into the children’s market. Only books that are extremely exceptional and have huge appeal stand a chance. Forget any holiday related books – the selling season is too short to make money.
And most publishers have huge backlogs of children’s books they have purchased and are not published yet. It takes about a year for a children’s book to make it out. It usually takes an artist about a month a page to illustrate. So most publishers have their production schedules for children’s books filled out for the next few years.
Take a walk through any major childrens’ book department and you will confirm what I am telling you. Getting a childrens’ book done is almost impossible – and getting an advance for it is virtually out of the question anymore. Unless you fall into one of those categories above. I am fortunate to have the backing of a very major sports star to get me in the door with kids books. I write adult novels, but believe me I have tried with kids books before and failed for exactly the reasons I list here.
Ghostwriting has gotten me in through the back door, and now I will be able to sell some of the children’s books that have my name on them. For now, someone else’s name is on the cover. Someone whose name sells books – big time. Don’t ask me how you can get a ghostwriting deal for a major sports star … I really backed into this. It was a gift from Heaven really and it is a blast working with this person too!!! My mantle is now covered with sports memorabilia worth a fortune!! Presents.
That is the nature of the beast. You might get a copy of Writers Market and search for some small publishers who are reading childrens’ books, but searching through the agents section, you will see that almost NO agents are reading childrens’ books. Try for some small publishers that read without going through an agent. Expect a lot of rejection. Develop a really thick skin and learn to advocate for yourself.
Always remember that before you send anything to anyone, check them out. Preditors and Editors, Absolute Write Water Cooler’s Bewares and Background Checks, Writers Weekly.com and Writers Wall are all great sources and totally free – although if they help you, it is nice to contribute a donation. Someone has to pay for running the sites. If you do not see information on the publisher or agent in question, write to Dave K at Preditors and Editors, Victoria Strauss or James Macdonald at Absolute Write or Angela Hoy at Writers Weekly. They are happy to pass along any info they have to help you.
As for self publishing it – it will get you nowhere. Self published books dont make it to bookstores. Childrens’ books are impulse buys. What is out on the tables for kids to see is what sells. Kids don’t shop at websites for things like books. They have to hold them in their hand and nag Mom to buy it. The only way to achieve that is through a good traditional publisher.
I have starred a lot of great Q and A regarding writing on my profile. You can access it and print out the pages. Start a notebook you can refer to. There s a lot of good information here and I add more as I see good ones. I am doing it to help others. Feel free to use it. Add me as a fan and get the regular updates. Keep writing. Remember you have to need to grow a hide as thick as a herd of elephants. There will be more rejection letters.
Just keep writing. Be exceptional!!
Good luck. Pax – C
Cool! I’ve looked that up several times in my life, because I too want to publish a book one day. Each publishing company DOES have their own preferences, but some similar things several pubilshers expect are:
1. Triple-spaced, but some computers cannot do triple-spaced so in this case, it’s alright to print them out double-spaced instead.
2. Do not print them out double-sided.
3. UNDERLINE the words that are meant to be italicized.
4. There was a certain font you were suppose to use, I believe it’s Courier New but I’m not quite sure, you may want to double check that. I’m 95% sure it was Courier New.
There was also a certain heading you’re suppose to use. There’s a few more things I forgot, like the font size, anything else I forgot to mention, oh, and not to mention what to put on the heading lol. But I hope this answer gave you a basic idea.
http://www.saskpublishers.sk.ca/publication/manuscriptsubmit.shtml
Please use this link. I’m pretty sure I left out a LOT, especially how to send it out, and it will definitely cover everything else I’ve forgotten.
I found this excerpt from “Finding an Agent” by Judith Bowen on absolutewrite.com.
Check out books in the library that list literary agents. See if they are members of reputable professional organizations. Go to writers’ conferences. Talk to other published authors. Gradually put together your own short list and send out query letters describing your manuscript–the fact that yours is completed is a plus– starting with the first agent on your list and working your way down. Chances are, none of them will take you on.
Don’t give up. Get out there and sell your manuscript to a publisher. Contrary to what you might have imagined – that it’s the agent’s job to sell your book – the truth is, your book is going to have to sell itself, whether you send it out or an agent does. Then, when you’re offered that contract, contact your short list of agents again, starting at the top, and mention you’ve got a contract to negotiate and you’ll be pretty pleased to find that the response will be quite different. Maybe your first choice or your second still won’t be interested, but your third or fourth will. If you’ve done your research, he or she will still be a fine agent with a good reputation.
***********************************
Here are “Seven Essential Points on Literary Agents”:
http://www.book-editing.com/nagle1.htm
Another good idea for looking for an agent is to read books similar to the ones you want to publish. See if there’s any way you can find out who their agent was. It’s best to know who else the agent has represented, especially when querying. It lets them know you’ve done your research.
Once you’ve done that research, check out if the agent is listed here:
Here is a link to a list of literary agents, but it’s alphabetical, not by genre – but this is from a reputable group that looks out for a writer’s best interest:
http://www.anotherealm.com/prededitors/peala.htm
You have to mail it in.
Contact page link below.
Most publishers do not accept unsolicited manuscripts. Which basically means that they have to request your manuscript before is going to get read. Otherwise, it’s going to end up in a slush pile on the floor.
You need to learn to write a good query letter in order to get anyone’s attention. There is a lot of good info and samples of query letters online. You could also enlist the help of a literary agent to ensure that your stuff is going to get read by publishers but again most literary agents ask for a query before they consider representing you.
How can I find an agent to submit my manuscript to a publishing company?
I have a beautiful (novel) Love story manuscript and they said I need a agent to submit it to be publishing Company. Please me. . . Kimberly D. don’t answer this please
Can I re submit manuscript to agent?
I recently sent a children’s book manuscript to multiple agents. I have received a few replies back saying they are unable to consider multiple submission inquiries. My question is, once all the agents have responded or after a period of time, can I then re submit the manuscript again to one of the previous agents but of course without it being a multiple submission. Do you think they would even bother to read it at this point?
Well in response to Persiphone_Hellecat, I actually did do my research before I submitted my manuscript. I have several copies of the Writer’s Market as well as other highly recommended books. I went through and specifically searched for agents who are seeking to represent children’s literature. Most of them requested a completed manuscript along with the query letter, so I did as each agent suggested. Those who stated only to send a query letter, i did. Those who said they did not accept multiple submissions, I didn’t send it to them. So I really didn’t just write something and send it off blindly. I do appreciate the advice you gave though and will definitely use some of it in the future. On a side note, I work a children’s museum centered around children’s lit, so I see kids reading books everyday and we have alot of local authors who come in for story time. The market is still there, it just may not be as easy to get published as other forms of literature.
What is the proper way to submit a manuscript to a publishing company?
I am hoping to write a nonfiction book. I was wondering what the proper way was to submit a manuscript to a publisher. I have not begun the book, but I would like to know beforehand so I know how to format my writing.
Thank you!
Sgt Pepper
How do I submit a manuscript to HarperTeen?
I want to submit a novel-length manuscript to HarperTeen (an imprint of HarperCollins) but nowhere on their website do they have submission guidelines! Does anybody have a link? Or something similar?
How can I submit a manuscript?
I have a lengthy stream of ideas that seem to be good in my opinion an others. I even wrote a manuscript that is somewhat 180 pages long. How do I submit my manuscript to a publisher?