Understanding the world of publishing will be one of the most important things for you if you are looking to write a book – and as you start to explore the world of publishing for yourself, you will find that there are publishing houses that are called “small presses” and there are publishing houses that are “large presses” or “major publishing houses. A great example of a tremendous major publishing house is one such as Random House, while a great example of a tremendous small press is Atticus Books; while there are certainly positives and negatives about both types of presses, there are some misconceptions about each as well, and you will need to make sure you understand the facts on both sides, and that you also understand the differences between the two.

If you are approaching a major publishing house, you first have to land an agent – which can sometimes take just as long as it will eventually take you to land a publishing deal; many small presses, on the other hand (Atticus Books being just one example out of many) allow you to contact them directly.

This tendency toward “direct contact” will also carry over through the remaining stages of the publishing journey; while a small press will not have a staff nearly as large as those of the major publishing houses, they will also be publishing far fewer books, and this enables them to work much more closely (and directly!) with each author than a major publishing house ever could.

Many people have come to believe that small presses do not run themselves as well or as efficiently as the major houses, but while this is true for some small presses, it is certainly not a blanket that can be draped over all; for instance, Atticus Books not only boasts a highly-regarded editorial and marketing department, but they also use the same book designer that has worked with a number of international bestsellers and Pulitzer Prize winners!

If you are wading out into the world of publishing, you will have to decide for yourself which route is right for you; but make sure you do your own research and make your own decisions, rather than simply going off of what others have led you to believe!

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