Introduction and a few beginner questions

[sciongirl]

Hi, my name is Melissa. I am a dietetics student at Life University in Marietta,Georgia. I am working on my first children's nutrtion book. This whole blog has been quite informative! Can anyone answer me a few questions? I am still in the process of researching the publishing industry, learning how to find an agent, etc. I have seen some websites that set you up with an agent by taking basic info such as genre and target age and also ask how much money you are prepared to invest in the publication of your book, anywhere from $250-$5000. This all makes me wonder how much I should be prepared to spend to get a book published should I be accepted by an agent? Or should I even have to do that? I'm confused! Also, is there a difference between having a book agent and a book publicist?
Thanks for your input!

[Collectonian]

If they are asking you for how much you want to "invest", run do not walk away. You should never have to pay to find an agent or work with the agent. The agent is paid with a percentage of royalties when the book is sold to a publisher, not before. An agent is a partner you work with who works to sell your book to publishers. A book publicist is a media agent who markets the book and you to the media, etc. It isn't something you need to generally worry about if you are going the traditional work. The only time you may need to "invest" is money you might spend doing research and of course your own printing etc costs.

If you are doing self-published, then you might have to pay out of pocket for things, but if you want a traditional publishing contract, do not let anyone scam you into thinking you have to pay to publish.

[dios4vida]

Collectonian's right. If anyone in traditional publishing asks you to pay, they aren't legitimate. All publishers, editors, agents, etc. will be paid out of your royalties.

A great place to learn the basic ins and outs of publishing is Writer Beware. (http://www.sfwa.org/for-authors/writer-beware/. Don't worry that it's from SFWA, they work in all genres.) They outline a lot of this kind of stuff and even keep a list of known scam artists who pose as editors or publishers. It'd be a good basis to get acquainted with the 'no's of the publishing world.

Good luck, and welcome to the Bransforums!

[sciongirl]

Thanks, that helped a lot!