How do you know if a book is ready?

As others have noted, at absolute minimum you must have someone look over your work for technical mistakes (spelling, grammar, sentence structure, vocabulary). You must do this even if you self-publish. No one is going to read a book so badly structured that it's incomprehensible.

I think it is also imperative to have an editor, someone who is at least moderately objective and who will be honest with you about plot and character. It helps to have someone familiar with your book's genre, but for me it's not a requirement, because you also want readers who are outside your niche to find your story appealing and understandable.

Also, remember that even the most loved books have detractors (and conversely, the most hated books have fans). Your goal should not be to please all of the people all of the time, because that will never happen, but to please some people enough that they recommend your book to others because they think it's worth sharing.

posted about 9 years ago

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Lauren Ipsum‭

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In general, I think @lostinfrance's answer is excellent, this is just a supplement to that:

You can't necessarily ever know if your book is ready or not in terms of content, but you do need to make sure it is ready from a technical point of view. If it has any spelling, grammar or formatting issues, it will never be given a fair read by most people (particularly professionals in the industry).

There are a number of good books out there (you should be able to find some at your local library) that cover all the basics of formatting a manuscript correctly for submission.

As far as content, it's good to get an outside opinion (not a family member or best friend) but ultimately you need to make the determination for yourself --any given person is just giving you his or her own reaction, another reader might respond differently.

posted about 9 years ago

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Chris Sunami‭

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