We are looking for books about outdoor recreation on or by the water, about daily life next to an ocean, lake, or river, or about home-based businesses or professions that can be conducted within close proximity to a beach even if the business is not necessarily beach-related (freelance writing is one obvious example). Our publishing schedule is already full for the next year, so we would prefer that you send a brief query first outlining your book's subject, it's "slant," and its potential market.
For non-fiction books -- If your idea is intriguing and fits our needs, we will contact you and ask you to provide a proposal with these sections:
- Overview--a description of the book that makes it sound like a "must have."
- Comparison--your analysis of competitive books on the subject and an explanation of why your book offers the reader a benefit by being different.
- Target--a description of your target audience.
- Market--an explanation of where and how your book can be sold in addition to the traditional bookstore and library outlets.
- Promotion--a preliminary list of potential free promotion and publicity venues. We will enlist your help to develop this list more fully once the book is accepted, but need to have some idea of where to start looking.
- Estimated Completion--when could the completed manuscript be delivered?
- Specs--How many double-spaced manuscript pages or an estimated word length. Illustrations, including photos, charts, diagrams, etc., needed for the book. Note that we are unlikely to accept a book that is heavily illustrated, requires much four-color work, or needs special types of illustration such as maps.
- About the Author--details on why your previous experiences and accomplishments guarantee this book will be high quality.
- Samples--A sample chapter if you have one, or clips of previously published materials you've written.
For works of fiction--We are only interested in historical or mystery fiction with a tie-in to a beach, island, or waterfront setting. Perhaps one day we will expand into science fiction, fantasy, romance, etc., but for now, we ask you to please send those manuscripts to someone else.
Historical novels--To help you narrow consideration of us even more, we are unlikely to consider war stories, but would be very open to action and adventure within the context of the historical setting. We're not against pirate stories per se, but would be more interested in what the inhabitants of the old town of Brunswick in North Carolina might have worried about as Blackbeard sailed the coast than in what Blackbeard's exploits were. We would be more interested in the daring-do of an early 1800s shrimp fisherman in the Gulf of Mexico who is in conflict with Lafitte than in Lafitte as the central character.
Mystery fiction--Again, our interest is dominated by the setting of the novel as well as the interesting character of the detective. If your detective and story roam the plains of Nebraska, another publisher would be better for you. If your story takes place on South Padre Island, or Vanuatu, or on a small boat making for the Maldives, you might want to consider us. An excellent example of a book that would be right for us is Margaret Maron's Shooting at Loons. An excellent example of one that would be wrong--although it's one of our personal favorites by a family friend--is Tony Hillerman's Dance Hall of the Dead. We also will not consider publishing a mystery taking place in New York, Los Angeles, Chicago, or any "national" locale even though it may be by the ocean. Reasons in a moment.
Mystery series--We realize a popular detective is a popular detective. If you have an idea for a series but the detective will not always be located on beach, island, dock, or boat, we will still consider such a series provided the main thrust of the series is to keep the detective occupied in one of those settings. But after all, Travis McGee wasn't always in Fort Lauderdale.
CURRENT NEEDS--We do not plan to start publishing any fiction until at least 2001. As with our non-fiction requirements, it is best to send a two-page synopsis of your novel idea first. DO NOT SEND FULL MANUSCRIPTS! IF YOU DO AND WE HAVE NOT ASKED FOR IT, THE MANUSCRIPT WILL BE THROWN AWAY IMMEDIATELY UNOPENED!
If we like the premise shown by the synopsis, we will contact you and ask for:
- A 20-25 page treatment. This forces you to outline and carefully consider the plot points and dramatic rise of the novel.
- Three sample chapters, preferably the opening chapter, the midway turn in the novel, and the final turn (called "plot point two" by Robert Ray) as the detective realizes who the perp is.
- A promotion and publicity outline listing potential free promotion venues we can build on. If we accept the novel for publication, we will ask you to be closely involved with us in developing plans to market the book. We are a small company whose marketing budget is limited, so we look for creative ways to publicize and market inexpensively, thinking outside the traditional "box" of bookstores and libraries.
- Since we are small, it is unlikely we will offer an advance for your book. However, we will pay either a royalty based on cover, not net, price, or a flat dollar amount per book. If you are looking for an advance, however, you should search elsewhere first.
A Brief Note On Our Approach To Fiction Publishing
We are looking for the type of novel which is well plotted and can be tightly written (even if it isn't yet), but would not necessarily appeal to a major publisher. When we build a marketing plan for the novel, we will concentrate primarily on making it a successful novel within the region where the story takes place or based on some other "hook" to a specialized audience, i.e., if the story takes place on Bainbridge Island, we will concentrate our marketing and sales efforts in Seattle, Vancouver, Portland and their surrounding areas. If our hero is based in Puerto Rico, then we would look at marketing to Puerto Ricans, travelers to Puerto Rico, and to Puerto Ricans living on the mainland U.S. In such a case, we might also look into translation to reach a Spanish-speaking audience as well.
If a book can gain a devoted following within a region or niche, then we will assist the author in trying to interest a major publishing house to purchase the novel and develop a national market for it, as well as assist him or her and their agent in seeking a movie company connection if they so desire. Most well-paid novelists make more money from movie rights than from their books.
We are interested, though, in working with authors who want to develop a lifelong career, not necessarily overnight riches. We are also interested in reprinting good novels that have gone out of print, providing the author has maintained the rights to the property and understands we are looking more for regional "stars" than national celebrities.
If this narrow focus applies to your work and you would like to explore the possibilities with us, please send your initial inquiries "Attn: Editor" to the address below or via email to editor@dixonprice.com .
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