Writing

DavidDvorkin

(20,224 posts)

21. I should add

Wed Apr 16, 2014, 05:42 PM

Apr 2014

that the gatekeepers at commercial publishers aren't in the business of judging literary merit. Their job is to judge commercial potential.

As a result, some good books are not published and many bad ones are. But that's "good" and "bad" from my point of view. From the viewpoint of the beancounters at the publishers -- the people who really count -- "good" = sold lots of copies and "bad" = sold few copies.

Many badly written books are self-published, but so are many well written books that traditional publishers are not interested in because they judge the books' commercial potential to be too small.

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How do you all go about getting a good critical reader for a completed novel? [View all] Squinch Dec 2013 OP

Short of paying for the help.... CherokeeDem Dec 2013 #1

I tried the only local fiction Squinch Dec 2013 #2

So true!!! CherokeeDem Dec 2013 #3

I did everything I could to take the emotion out of the agent submissions. Squinch Dec 2013 #6

I always advise people to study flap copy mainer Dec 2013 #5

I have a friend who edits books on a freelance Sanity Claws Jun 2015 #26

So I have found two local writers groups (YAY!) only to learn that they are both Squinch Jan 2014 #8

Good luck... hope you stay warm tonight! CherokeeDem Jan 2014 #10

This is a huge problem. SheilaT Dec 2013 #4

Thank you for your wishes. And the same back to you! Squinch Dec 2013 #7

Send it back to her right away! DavidDvorkin Jan 2014 #9

Really? This is what I need to know! Squinch Jan 2014 #11

Hmm. I had assumed she saw the whole thing. DavidDvorkin Jan 2014 #12

Thank you! Squinch Jan 2014 #13

You're welcome DavidDvorkin Jan 2014 #14

I'll post back if there are any developments. Squinch Jan 2014 #15

I once tried reading someone else's manuscript novel because he could not find a publisher Fortinbras Armstrong Apr 2014 #16

And the scary thing is that people like him SheilaT Apr 2014 #17

Aargh. Not that anti-self-publishing nonsense again. DavidDvorkin Apr 2014 #18

David, SheilaT Apr 2014 #19

I'll point to my own last few books DavidDvorkin Apr 2014 #20

I should add DavidDvorkin Apr 2014 #21

The point is, you know enough to get professional editing. SheilaT Apr 2014 #22

Sure, but many do DavidDvorkin Apr 2014 #23

You are probably not the only ones. SheilaT Apr 2014 #24

I've done this for pay and helped others get published, Liberty Belle Jun 2015 #25