Person holding hardcover book with blank cover (Monstera Production 2020).

What does a publisher look for in a book? After attending the 2024 Edinburgh Women’s Fiction Festival, the answer to this question seems more elusive than ever.

The consensus of those in the “Discoveries: Demystifying Publishing” panel is that editors, as well as agents, are looking for “promise not polish” (Finan and Morrell 2024). Ciara Finan (2024), agent at Curtis Brown, claims that in her experience what she and many publishing houses are seeking is potential; they are not looking for perfection, or even a full-bodied piece of work, but for the bones of a book that both editors and readers can connect with.

Finan (2024) breaks done what publishers are looking for as follows:

  • Great stories, characters and voice;
  • Stories that will stand the test of time; and
  • Quality.

These simple principles can demonstrate to agents and editors that a writer has “promise” and that “the polish” will subsequently come.

There is an assumption that the decisions made by publishers are dictated solely by market predictions. However, Rachel Morrell (2024), editor at Black and White Publishing, detaches herself from current trends. Going back to the key question, what does a publisher look for in a book? I now ask, what does Rachel Morrell look for in a book? The answer is simple – Morrell wants to publish work that interests her personally.

Speaking to Annabelle Wright, Project Manager at the Women’s Prize Trust, Morrell (2024) asserts that most editors and agents are of this mindset, of publishing for personal interest. Such a notion seems at odds with an overarching, popular belief that publishers work to meet consumer demands. Morrell and Finan lean into the idea that publishing is an entirely personal industry – or is it?   

The subsequent panel, “An Insight Into Indie and Traditional Publishing”, turned the notion that publishers are looking for “promise not polish” on its head. Julia Boggio (2024), while in discussion with Jane Anderson, talked about how her novel Shooters was rejected by publishers due to the emphasis the industry now places on BookTok.

To put it bluntly, prospective writers are being side-lined as publishers look for younger writers more likely to go viral on TikTok. Great pieces of work, with the potential for success – with “promise” – are snubbed by publishers. If we choose to follow this line of argument, it seems publishers are more concerned with the marketable quality of a book, rather than its literary value.

Boggio’s claim can certainly be substantiated – Caroline Hardman, a literary agent for Hardman & Swainson agency, says that BookTok is “having a strong effect on what publishers look for” (cited by Barnett 2023). Whether we like it or not, social media influencers are subliminally becoming the new marketing managers of fiction titles. Publishing houses are relying on these influencers to do the leg-work of promotion.

Edinburgh Women’s Fiction Festival Logo (Edinburgh Women’s Fiction Festival 2023).

Attempting to uncover the secret formula to getting published is futile. After one afternoon attending the Women’s Fiction Festival, two drastically different answers present themselves to our question. Each publishing house is different, and within each publishing house each editor is different again. I don’t believe publishing can ever truly be “demystified” nor that we will ever discover what a publisher wants.

Bibliography

Anderson, J. et al. 2024. Edinburgh Women’s Fiction Festival. Edinburgh. September 27-28 2024.

Anon. 2024. Black and White Publishing. Publishing Scotland. [Online]. Available at: https://www.publishingscotland.org/ps-member/black-and-white-publishing/ [Accessed October 05 2024].

Barnett, D. 2023. ‘I can’t stress how much BookTok sells’: teen literary influencers swaying publishers. The Guardian. [Online] 06 August 2023. Available at: https://www.theguardian.com/books/2023/aug/06/i-cant-stress-how-much-booktok-sells-teen-literary-influencers-swaying-publishers [Accessed October 07 2024].

The Bookseller Editorial Team. 2024. Predictions: what lies ahead for the trade in 2024? The Bookseller. [Online] 05 January 2024. Available at: https://www.thebookseller.com/news/predictions-what-lies-ahead-for-the-trade-in-2024 [Accessed October 07 2024].

Images

Monstera Production. 2020. Person holding hardcover book with blank cover. Photograph. Available at: https://www.pexels.com/photo/person-holding-hardcover-book-with-blank-cover-6373291/ [Accessed 14 October 2024].

Edinburgh Women’s Fiction Festival. 2023. Edinburgh Women’s Fiction Festival Logo. Illustration. Available at: https://x.com/EdWomensFicFest [Accessed 14 October 2024].