I have written this section to prepare you for the long hard struggle of getting published, what to consider and what NOT to consider when trying to get your work published.

I finished my first complete novel, REM, in December 1995 and had already done quite a bit of investigation, by going through the Writers and Artists yearbook and collating a shortlist of a few publishers. I then saw an advertisement by Minerva Press asking all new authors to send in their work for assessment. The choice seemed an obvious one as I packaged up my manuscript and sent it to Minerva Press.

Minerva Press

The response was very quick, probably only about two weeks before I had a reply, and what a reply it was. I received the editorial review of my book which basically glowed in my hands, it said how well it was written, about the relationships of the characters, how good the story was, it was such a fantastic review. What really made the review was the fact that they stated it could do well if published under the Minerva Press Imprint.

Without hesitation I proceeded to step further into the deal, it was going to cost quite a bit of money although I could pay in four instalments, and the risk seemed worth it, I had dreams of really making it with my first book!

To cut a very long story short. They suggest it should take between six to nine months for the book to be publishing although in fact it took eighteen months. July 1997 it was published, although I have very little to show for it.

Vanity Publishing

Minerva Press can claim all they like not to be one of these, although at the end of the day, and I hate to admit it myself that I was taken in by them, they do appear to be a Vanity Publisher. This term is quite commonly used, although the exact definition is hard to pin on someone. Effectively Vanity Publishing is where the work is published and copies are produced for yourself and not for distribution to book shops.

Minerva Press do claim to offer this whole publishing package, although it took ages before some of the book shops could get hold of copies that people had ordered through them. So at the end of the day my book does seem to be available, although there is very little sign of any proactive marketing, all that we have seen is an unprofessional looking 'flyer' which is distributed to the book shops.

Something else that has come to light with my investigations into why my book isn't selling. It would appear that the bookshops are so used to Minerva Press' quality to be of a low standard, that most shops wouldn't even consider stocking a Minerva Press title.

Book Shops

The fact that bookshops won't consider a Minerva Press title is probably my largest disappointment with this venture, so even though my book is of 'good publishable quality', because it has been published by Minerva Press, I probably will not get the return that I should hopefully deserve from all the time and effort it took to put together my creation.

Learning from Experience

I look upon my dealings with Minerva Press as a big learning experience. Basically I've learnt a lot about the publishing industry in the past couple of years, the do's and don't's and what people want and don't want.

The best approach is to acquire the services of an agent, as they will be there to look after you every step of the way. You'll get rejections, but then one day you'll get acceptance as well.. See Getting Published for further information.

Further information

Southern Eye, BBC2, Transmitted, Thursday 7th January 1999. Subject : Vanity Publishing

The above program was very interesting in terms of the fact that they mentioned Minerva Press quite considerably throughout the program.

For example, it appears the editorial review is actually a standard letter which differs very little from one book that they review to another. There is very little marketing involved which leads to the term Vanity Publishing, and the evidence that arose which suggested that they are just out to make money from unsuspecting and gullible first time authors such as you and I.

I am collating as much information about people's experiences as possible, as hopefully something can be done about the way that Vanity Publishers operate. Please send any information you can to mail@rwassell.com.