Best publishers

[spittendrigh]

If best publisher means most sales (for a well written interesting manuscript).with highest commission who are the leaders now?

[Hellmtflies]

Digital or hard copy?

[spittendrigh]

Good question. Hard copy I think.

Who would be the most prestigious?

[St Vrain Angler]

The question implies five distinct--and arguably unrelated/subjective--categories: most sales, well-written manuscripts, interesting manuscripts, highest commission, most prestigious. However, a quick internet search shows Penguin Random House leads the five major publishing houses in bestselling hardcover and paperback sales in the U.S.

[uptrout]

In most situations (all?), the big five* publishers don't accept submissions directly from authors; instead, you have to submit through an agent.

*Penguin/Random House, Hachette Book Group, Harper Collins, Simon and Schuster, Macmillan
(They are generally the most prestigious.)

[oddsnrods]

I have worked with many publishers (large and small) over 40 years as an illustrator, in the UK, US and Canada- both Trade and Educational (T&E). Times, plus the market, have changed to the point where I would now work with few, if any.

They expect much, yet contrive to pay very little- I have yet to receive one cent of hoped for royalty payments over the years; fortunately this profession was not my prime source of income.

The latest twist, is that creatives are often expected to sign away their ownership, our copyright, as a matter of course- mostly against local copyright law.

There was never much money in contributing to books, even when print was king, it was 'nice to do'.

Malcolm

[spittendrigh]

Indeed. I stopped writing magazine articles 30 years ago because $200 for 4 days work was like .....

I might choose to make no money by self publishing. We will see.

What I want is they sell paper snd I sell epub bytes. Is that deal possible?

[oddsnrods]

Ironically, it was the magazines that usually paid illustrators fairly, with quick turn around and interesting jobs. I could count on two or three outdoor/ fishy publications for regular work each month.
But then their advertising slowly disappeared, along with the readership, when the web came along.

Malcolm