Word Association Publishers
Publish With Us
Submitting Your Manuscript
Email publish@wordassociation.com.
If you do not have email, mail your manuscript either on a thumb drive or as hardcopy to:
Word Association Publishers, 205 E. Fifth Avenue, Tarentum, Pennsylvania 15084
Manuscripts should be typed in Microsoft Word, 12 point type, double-spaced—without paragraph indentions, bullets or other design elements.
(If your manuscript is handwritten, or not in digital form, we offer affordable manuscript typing.)
PLEASE INCLUDE THE FOLLOWING INFORMATION WITH YOUR MANUSCRIPT SUBMISSION:
• Your phone number or numbers.
• Best time to phone you.
• Your mailing address.
• Indicate whether you have written fiction or non-fiction.
Please do not send originals of photographs or artwork.
Please feel free to phone or email us if you have any questions about manuscript submission.
You will be notified via email or phone as soon as your manuscript is received. We welcome but do not require, a brief synopsis, not longer than 250 words (approximately 1 typed sheet).
And So It Begins...
The Word Association publishing process kicks off with a conversation you will have with Dr. Tom or Francine Costello.
It’s usually a phone conversation, but authors who live in the Pittsburgh region often prefer to come in for a face-to-face meeting. Sometimes, even an out-of-towner will choose to make the trip to our historic, little river town.
Either way, we do all we can to guide and instruct a prospective author. Their questions are not only welcomed, but encouraged.
Note: Manuscripts can be submitted either before our introductory meeting or immediately after the meeting so that we can prepare the contract proposal.
Although we will always respect the uniqueness of your book and your right to having the final say, we will never withhold our opinions, based on our years of experience in the publishing world. Our expertise is part of what you are paying for and we will always stand by an honest evaluation or bit of guidance.
When we have had an opportunity to review your manuscript, we will create a contract proposal detailing all of the services you have selected, and costs associated with each and an estimated production timeline.
We, of course, welcome any questions you may have regarding our proposal.
***FEES AND DEPOSIT -
Word Association requires authors to pay a deposit on the publishing set up fee.
Set up fees include services such as editing, cover and interior design, book layout and photo scanning.
The payment of this deposit is NON-REFUNDABLE.
Book printing orders MUST be prepaid upon signing of final design proofs.
Our Services
Editing
The criticism that's most frequently leveled at independently-published books is that they are not subject to the same rigorous editing as books published by traditional publishers.
There is truth to this criticism, but not when you publish with Word Association.
When we launched Word Association, our number one goal was, and still is, to offer authors the highest quality editing services.
You will work closely with the editor assigned to your project. They will do all they can to remain faithful to your voice and your intention while providing you with a meticulous review of your work and only correcting, cutting, or reorganizing with your full consent.
Types of Editing
There are several different types of editing. We focus on these:
Copy Editing corrects the problems of grammar, punctuation, style, repetition, word usage, and jargon. Copy Editing is the least expensive form of editing.
Substantive Editing is a rigorous form of editing. The editor will assess your manuscript as a whole, looking for and correcting problems of structure, organization, consistency, and continuity. Sentences may be cut or added. Paragraphs may be rewritten, condensed, or expanded. Blocks of text may be moved from one section to another. Substantive editing takes more time and is more expensive but it can be well worth the investment.
Most often, the author, editor, and publisher arrive at a customized editing somewhere between Copy Editing and Substantive Editing that is designed to suit the author’s budget and specific editorial needs.
Proofreading VS Editing
Often writers believe that proofreading and editing are one and the same.
However, Editing refers to making changes to a manuscript like word choice, tense, repetition, sentence structure, and phrasing to clarify meaning.
Proofreading involves reading the text closely to correct typos, misspelling and improper paragraph breaks.
It’s a mistake to proof your manuscript yourself. Even the most experienced authors need someone else to proof their own work. You don't necessarily need to have a professional editor do it. You could hire someone like an experienced English teacher. But whoever proofreads your book, you, the writer, are finally responsible for the finished product. No one will guarantee perfection. So when you get your manuscript back from the proofreader, always review carefully before it goes to print.
Ghost Writing
If you have an idea for a book but don’t have the time or inclination to write the book yourself, we can do it for you. Ghostwriting is a time-honored tradition. We work with writers we know to be highly-skilled in their craft and choose the one most suited to a given project. Our writing programs, which are designed to preserve the author’s voice and intent, are offered at various levels depending upon the amount of preparation work to be done. Writer and client work closely, and our writers will draft some preliminary pages for approval, to make sure that the writer and client are a good fit.
There are three levels:
Level One: The book is written from an author’s rough draft.
Level Two: The book is written from a detailed outline the author has prepared.
Level Three: The book is written from an interview with the author.
The fee for ghostwriting depends almost entirely on how much time the project will take.
An additional fee will be charged if the ghost writer is asked to research or to verify facts.
The Art of Design
Certain publishers have surfaced offering DIY advice to writers who believe they might save money creating their own book covers and interior designs. To this we say—good luck. As your book gets out into the world, how confident will you be if it is assessed by reviewers, book awards judges, book store buyers, or readers who have purchased the book. Word of mouth can stop a book cold if buyers write bad reviews about a book’s poor readability due to the designer’s inexperience in proper layout.
Design is as much an art as writing. Don’t sell your writing short by presenting your words in a clumsy and artless layout form.
Word Association designers hold degrees in design and are trained specifically in book and e-reader formatting. Designers and authors work closely throughout the process, beginning with an initial conversation about the author’s overall ideas and preferences.
Authors are asked to review concept designs for both the cover and interior design. No design element is used without the author's approval.
Cover Design
A beautiful cover design—both front and back—is essential. It has been said that it is the front cover that attracts a reader to pick up or click on the book but it is the back cover that sells the book. Authors are asked to prepare a single-page synopsis of their book, not more than three or four paragraphs, from which the back cover copy will be written.
Both the front and back cover designs will be based on the author’s preferences and our designers will prepare a variety of original concept proofs from which the author can choose. The front can be as simple as stylized typography. Or it can be as intricate as a full-color photograph or an original illustration or piece of art.
Interior Book Design
The interior design of a book has a profound influence on its ultimate success. Our professional page design and typography will provide the author with an original look that is both aesthetically pleasing and appropriate to the subject, providing a comfortable read.
Illustrations and Photographs
If your book calls for illustrations, we will match you with the perfect illustrator for your project. If you have your own illustrator, our designers are always happy to speak with them about proper specifications. This can keep you from incurring additional costs if your artwork has to be adjusted or re-done for printing.
If you are providing photographs for your book, for best reproduction, please submit them in 300 dpi.
Both illustrations and photographs should be emailed to us. (No Hardcopy Originals, Please!)
Indexing
Our experts do all levels of indexing.
Foreign Language Translation
If you choose to have your book published in a language other than or in addition to English, we can, in most cases, provide the services a skilled, professional translator.
Book Credentials
Any book which we choose to publish under our imprint will be assigned an ISBN (International Standard Book Number). Since many bookstores will not even consider selling any book that has no ISBN, this is an important credential. We will also have an ISBN bar code imprinted on the book cover or dust jacket. Most bookstores now require this bar code for scanning purposes. We also assign a Library of Congress number to any book that qualifies for one. The LOC is prestigious, because your book will not only be listed in the Library of Congress, but your book will actually be on its shelves.
Soft Cover, Hardcover, Coil Binding
In an array of sizes and shapes:
Soft Cover with Perfect Binding:
You choose from a wide variety of coated and uncoated cover stock
Hardcover
You choose from:
Casebound (cover printed directly on the book)
Dust jacket
Lay-flat binding (perfect for cookbooks)
Coil Binding
You choose from:
Coated (in a wide range of colors)
Wire
E-Books
E-books are the perfect way for an author to expand their reach to the millions of book buyers who love digital books for their convenience and portbility. Our designers in creating E-books that are every bit as beautiful as printed books.
Audio Books
Audio books are experiencing massive growth in the book industry and are another important product for an author to consider. We work with the most professional audio book producers and distributers.