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THE INSIDE STORY
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BOOK MAKING IN THE WORD WORKS
After a manuscript goes through a rigorous
editorial process, is approved by the editorial board, and
a contract between author and Word Works is negotiated and
accepted, the following elements are addressed to produce
a printed book.
Identifying Numbers
The ISBN must be registered with Bowker,
the ISBN issuing organization. (Word Works bought a large
number of ISBNs in the 1970s when we began to publish books.)
Booksellers use ISBNs to identify books and ISBNs are used
in barcodes. The Library of Congress number must be applied
for. The LOC number is used in library cataloguing systems.
Blurbs
The author contacts about three poets who
have already made a name for themselves in the literary
community and asks them to read and provide comment on the
soon-to-be published manuscript. These blurbs will be printed
on the back cover of the book to help promote the new book.
Cover Art
Often through a collaboration between author
and Word Works representatives, cover art for the book is
sought among contemporary visual artists who might be willing
to lend their work. Recompense for use of the art is five
percent of the run (number of books produced) if the artist
wants that many books.
Bios
The author is then responsible for providing
author and artist bios and photos.
Publisher's Details
A Word Works officer updates the identifying
description of Word Works, its current list of books, and
any information about the signature this book is sponsored
by. Imprints include the Washington Prize, Hilary Tham Capital Collection,
International Editions, and special anthology editions.
Barcodes
Barcodes
are needed so that a book can be carried in major book
stores. Book stores use barcodes at the cash register to
quickly scan price information and keep inventory control
on all books. A barcode uses the book's ISBN. The Word Works
orders barcodes from a company that creates an electronic barcode
file.
Book Design, Page Layout, Galley Proofs
The book designer then begins to design
the strategy for the book, including size, fonts, page layout,
and cover design. Once the book is in page layout, galleys
(2 pages on the same sheet of paper) are printed and sent
to the author and usually two Word Works editors for correction.
Corrections are made (sometimes several galleys are produced
depending on how many corrections cycles are needed) and
specifications for printing for the book are written. The
art director reviews the book design and specifications.
Printer Selection, Book Proofing and
Production
Printers are selected and sent the specifications
for cost estimate bids. Book designer, art director and
fiduciary officers evaluate the bids and the best printer
for the job is selected. The printer begins to work and
provides proofs as requested by Word Works to ensure a quality
product. Proofs are checked by the design artist and at
least one Board member often the Artistic Director or President
of Word Works. Then the book is printed and bound.
Book Packaging and Distribution
Word Works books are usually shrink-wrapped
in groups of 5 copies to preserve them. Books are then sent
to the author who typically gets 15% of the run (artist
gets 5% if he/she so chooses). A committee of Word Works
volunteers sends books to buyers and contributors who ordered
advance copies and the rest are stored in our book storage
unit for future sales.
Timeframes
Typically a single author book can take
anywhere from 6 months to a year to develop, print, and
distribute. Books developed strictly within the organization,
such as our anthologies and the Lee Sang translation, have
required two to three years because of complications related
to the number of contributors involved, the number of images
printed inside the book, and the larger than average cost.
Advance Orders and Fundraising
For all of our book signatures except the
Washington Prize, fundraising and advance order sales also
consume a huge chunk of time in making a book possible.
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UNSOLICITED MANUSCRIPTS
Word Works accepts unsolicited manuscripts
through the Washington Prize.
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THE EDITORIAL PROCESS
The Editor-in-Chief leads this process. Suggestions from the editorial board for any changes to the manuscript are given to the Editor-in-Chief who works with the author. Changes could include a new title for the book, request for new poems, deletions of selected poems in the manuscript, reworking of a particular poem, and repositioning of a particular poem within the manuscript.
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AUTHOR RECOMPENSE
The Word works author gets 15% of the printed
run. If 500 books are produced, the author gets 75 copies
to sell at the retail price. 1000 produced, author gets
150 copies.
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ARTIST RECOMPENSE
The artist receives 5% of the run printed
if he/she chooses.
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CONTRACTS
The Word Works uses a standard book contract for all its authors.
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AUTHOR AUDIENCE & COMMUNITY SUPPORT
The Word Works encourages all its authors to notify his or her audience about publication of his or her Word Works book. This is particularly emphasized for all Captial Collection books, because the funding must come from advance book sales and community donations to this imprint series.
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