Questions for published children books authors

amother

Wed, Mar 27 2024, 9:25 pm

When your book was accepted by a frum publisher, published , printed and sold, did you get any money?
How much?
Don’t worry I’m just trying to get rich, I just don’t want to lose .
Did you come up with the illustration ideas?
Did you ever get published by a non Jewish publishing house?
Did you ever self publish? How much did you have to lay out?

Thank you for taking the time to respond.

(It’s not for a survey, I’m trying to get a feel for the direction to take with my book idea)

amother

Daylily

Wed, Mar 27 2024, 11:46 pm

Yes. This is 20 years ago, I got a little over $1,000. I had nothing to do with the editing or illustrations, I literally submitted the manuscript and got paid a few months later.

Frum publisher, no experience outside of that.

I have self-published, but not a children's book. This was an educational work that I already had a platform for.

Self publishing is a big risk. You'd need to pay for illustrations, editing, printing, and distribution. When you sell to a store it is at a steep discount so they can make a percentage. If you try to sell on Amazon etc. aside from their cut, you need to invest in marketing.

If you have an incredible enough book that you feel confident self-publishing, it might be better to work harder on finding a reputable publisher to take it on.

If you can't get your book accepted by a publisher, look for some more objective opinions on it before investing heavily. Many of the self-published books I've seen were obviously self-published for a reason.

amother

Indigo

Mon, Apr 01 2024, 2:41 pm

I write books for the frum market, and I'll try to answer some of your questions. I am paid royalties based on how many books are sold, so I can't tell you how much you might make because it is very individualized. I did not lay out any money for publishing the books. I submitted my story, the editor sent me a contract and we were off. Publishing is a very long process, and even if your book was accepted tomorrow, it may be 2 years before it is even published, and then maybe another year until you start seeing royalties. I am not an artist, so I don't do any illustrations. If your manuscript is strong enough and fits the needs of the publishing house they will find an artist for your work. In terms of self-publishing, it is VERY hard to earn back any investment. Yes, there are some people (including children's authors) who make a great income from their self-published titles but it is still a minority. In terms of a mainstream house, if that's a direction you are thinking about going, start looking at agents now. Also, make sure you are very well versed in the books that are being published now. Don't rely on stories that were published even 5 years ago, the market is vastly different and if you aren't familiar with today's children's books you might be very surprised. Regardless of who you end up submitting to, make sure you've done your homework before you submit: write, revise your story, revise it again, have it critiqued by others (ideally other writers, not family members) and make sure it aligns with the person/publisher you are submitting to. Hope that helps. Good luck!