Does anyone know someone in publishing?

I work in publishing

And, T, I didn't forget about your HP book...once I get more news, I will let you know..

What are the first steps I would need in order to have a cookbook publised? Do I need a publishing agent?
Any help/advice would be greatly appreciated.. thanks

---

Posted by mv1003

What are the first steps I would need in order to have a cookbook publised? Do I need a publishing agent?
Any help/advice would be greatly appreciated.. thanks

---

yes, probably--I believe for trade books , you need an agent. I work in academic, it's completely differnent . ( and )

halarious!

thanks for your help

Honestly, I am not too sure what the procedures are..I can try and find out..and get back to you.

I also work in academic publishing.

My fiance has travelled the route of trying to get a publisher to look at this work. It is not easy. Even with an agent it will still be difficult. And getting an agent is tough in itself.

The most important thing you need to demonstrate to publishers is that there is a market for your book and that it will sell enough copies in order to cover their costs. No matter what publisher you contact, one of the first things they will ask about is the market for your book.

That was the stumbling block for my fiance (publishers thought the topic of his book was too narrow). He ended up self-publishing and sold 1200 copies with very little promotion. Go figure.

Good luck.

I am also in publishing (children's books) and while having an agent does help, it doesn't always seal the deal. If a cookbook is what you want to get published, you should start by submitting your recipes to cooking magazines and getting them published there. The more works you have published in magazines, journals, etc. the more credibility you gain. Magazines are nice to start because a lot of them ask for you to send things in. They are looking for you. Then go from there.

From what I have learned about signing up a book, we usually look for someone who has been published somewhere else and poetry contests or literary journal contests are always great places to get your name known. Goos luck!