Working for a self-publisher who has connections to a few traditional publishers puts me in a unique position. We have just short-listed a number of our authors' books from which we will select five to forward to those traditional publishers for their consideration.
In reviewing the selections, there were some books that surprised me by their absence but in retrospect, I shouldn't have been surprised.
While the books themselves were worthy of consideration, the conduct of these authors when dealing with our staff was unprofessional. I'm not referring to poor grammar or lack of technological knowledge but personal behaviour. We decided to forward authors who would be easy to work with in a traditional mileau.
After all, we want to maintain a good reputation in the industry. Putting forward an author whose work is solid but who is abusive on the phone or unreasonable in terms of process will not reflect well on us. It is important for authors to note that publishing is a pretty small community (cf. Jacqueline Howett) and your conduct can impact your success in unexpected ways.
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