One of the most common questions asked of our chat guests is "Can you give me a list of submission friendly publishers?" It's followed closely by, "I've written fill in the blank, now where should I send it?" Both of these questions are actually asking the same basic question - how do I find the right publisher for my work? Okay, they're really asking for the speaker to tell them the right publisher for their work, but since no speaker can do that, we'll work on the question of how you (the writer) can find the right match (the editor/publisher) for your work.

I constantly hear folks say, "How come nobody accepts submissions these days." To that, I'm inclined to say - do you have a market guide? Have you read it? Really? Because in my market guides a lot of people are accepting manuscripts. Sure, some of the folks I would love to have publish me aren't but they are only one small slice of the publishing world. Many publishers accept submissions - don't let the nay sayers tell you they don't. If they do, look at the blankly for a moment, then go ahead and ask, "Do you have a market guide? Have you read it? Really?" Tell them I told you to.

WHAT HAVE YOU WRITTEN?

First, it helps if you know what you've written. "I've written a children's book!" you might say. If so, you need to dig a lot deeper. There is an amazing variety of genre and forms of children's books and you need to know what you've written. If you don't know, you're not going to find the best publisher for it. Let's look at the options by age --

Board Book - these are very short books (usually with less than 100 words of text) written on stiff board for toddlers and babies. Board books can also include novelty books like board books with fluffy bits for tiny fingers to feel or board books with flaps to lift. These are blindingly expensive to make and so editors (mostly) aren't looking for submissions for them in the slush piles. The majority of board books are commissioned (where they ask the writer to do one for them), packaged (where they assign a writer to write something for a specific novelty format) or condensed versions of picture books. So if you have an idea that you think might make a good board book, you're safer to think of it as a picture book first - then if it's successful, it could make it to board book form.

Picture Book - these books are a marriage of text and illustration. One of the key components of a picture book is that the text cannot stand alone to appeal to the reader; it needs the pictures for a real feeling of completion. Very short picture books are for preschoolers and young primary children. Longer picture books are for early elementary (and sometimes even a bit older elementary) and can include nonfiction picture books, picture book biographies, and multicultural or historical fiction picture books. There are more publishers looking for the short ones than the longer ones, so it pays to know which kind a publisher publishes. But whether long or short, there is an incredible burden on the writer to make every word count - there are no rambling wordy stories in picture books.

Early Reader - this category is one of the reasons you don't see many long picture books. Many of them have crossed over into early readers because the age group for them can read. So children in this age are looking for simple readable text with lots of pictures. Early readers are tricky because they must be both simple enough for the struggling reader and sophisticated enough for the growing interests of young school aged children.

Chapter Book - These are books for stronger readers who have the stamina for chapters. This is the biggest home of the series book because chapter book readers love the familiarity of the series. Word counts tend to run from 6000 words to 10000 words and this group include huge hits like Junie B. Jones, The Magic Treehourse, The A-to-Z Mysteries, Amber Brown, Marvin Redpost, The Dragon Slayer Academy and more. Humor is a big part of these books so if your story is a bit grim, it's better to move up to the next age. Most of these have a scattering of pictures throughout for reader interest.

Novel - Both fluent reading children and teens read novels. Novels have more complex plots, often no pictures, more complex vocabulary, subplots, and can tackle more serious topics (though the books that tend to be hugely popular with kids nearly always have a solid dose of humor.)

So now what have you written? If you're still not sure, you may need to show your manuscript to someone who knows children's books so they can help you classify it. If your book truly defies classification, you've probably got a problem. It might not be insurmountable though since the book that won the Caldecott this year was well beyond classification - The Invention of Hugo Cabret - was it a really really long picture book? A heavily illustrated short-ish novel? A graphic novel but with more traditional picture book illustrations? It's hard to say, but kids love it.

WHO PUBLISHES THAT KIND OF BOOK?

There are two ways to find who buys the category of book you've written and you will probably benefit from employing both. First, you need a market guide. There are actually several choices and you may want more than one. If you don't have any - you really need one. After all, you're going to set out on a journey to ask people to invest thousands of dollars to turn your manuscript into a book. It's really worth the amount of a market guide.

To get you started while you order your guide. You can find a collection of markets that are all perfectly safe at the Children's Book Council. This list includes the publishers who are members of the Children's Book Council - not all publishers are, but you should be safe with any of these publishers. Scammers don't join the Children's Book Council. You'll notice that not all the members accept submissions - in that case, don't send them submissions (though you may want to send them queries - a query is not the same thing as an unsolicited submission.) Send them to publishers who want them and send them the way they want them - more on that later. You can find the list at http://www.cbcbooks.org/about/cbc_members_printable.html

But, you'll notice that there really aren't a lot of markets in the list that want your full submission. That's why you really need a market guide. Here's three you might consider:

Book Markets for Children's Writers -- http://www.writersbookstore.com/ -- This guide lists over 570 markets (well more than are members of CBC). It also contains excellent tips on HOW each market wants you to submit, and how they do NOT want you to submit. Before submitting, read the directions carefully - really. Nothing upsets an editor quicker than a writer who tells them they found them in the market guide and then proves they paid no attention to how the market guide told them to submit. You'll also find some great articles on submitting, in general.

Children's Writers and Illustrators Market -- http://www.cwim.com/ -- This one has 300 book publishers (plus a section of magazine publishers and a great section of children's agents). It also has articles on how to submit. Because I like the agent information, but it has less book publishers overall - I normally get both market guides. It's worth it.

Sally Stuart's Christian Writers Market Guide -- http://www.stuartmarket.com/ -- This one focuses on markets for Christian writers for both children and adults, books and magazines. If your primary interest is in Christian writing, this is a good guide to add because the Christian publishing field can be very different than secular publishing.

These are the basic market guides available. Get one or more. Really. It's worth the money if you (1) want to see your manuscript, (2) want to do it as quickly as possible and (3) want to actually get replies to your submissions. These days publishing houses are so tight on time that submissions sent with no consideration for how the house works are sometimes getting tossed without reply - even when you include an SASE. So, really, you need a market guide.

READ…GO AHEAD, I'LL WAIT

If you really want to write for children, you really ought to read children's books. Sure, you'll find folks who say, "I've published two books now but I never read children's books - I just right the best book I can." But for every person who says that, there are thousands who say, "I never read children's books" and they are writing books that will never see publication. Reading is key to understanding how to (1) handle the required format, (2) learn how respect for children has grown through the years and (3) get a real handle on how good kids books are now.

To do the last part of this, you're going to need to read books that aren't written by celebrities and that aren't connected with licensed characters and that aren't reprints of books written a long time ago. Sure, some books are classics, but your manuscript won't be competing with those. They already have a market. Your book is competing with the new authors coming out right now and a lot of those books are outstanding - so read them. It pays to know the competition, in case you're asked what will make yours stand out.

You'll also need to read every article in the market guide. They're in there to help you. They'll help you understand the guide and they'll help you understand the market. Understanding will help you sell. It's worth it.

BUT WHAT IF THE MARKET I WANT MOST IN THE WHOLE WIDE WONDERFUL WORLD DOESN'T TAKE SUBMISSIONS, SHOULD I QUIT NOW?

What can I say? Writing is a dramatic life. If the publisher you really love doesn't take submissions you can do one of two things - get an agent or get connections. I'm not going to cover agents here. Maybe in a different article or you can read about them here http://www.underdown.org/agents.htm-- but I will talk about connections.

The best way to make connections is to look into conferences. Many children's writing conferences will invite editors from closed houses to come and speak. And, as a perk, the speaker will (for a limited time) accept manuscripts from conference attendees. So, if you have a very favorite editor in the whole wide world - check out the writing conferences in your drivable area and watch for editor appearances at upcoming conferences. Then go - and be sure to attend the editor's workshop/panel discussion/whatever. Don't try to give the editor your manuscript - she doesn't want it at the conference. It's just one more thing to pack or lose. Go home and mail it to her after the conference is over.

To learn what conferences are in your area, go to your public library reference department and ask for the Children's Writers and Illustrator's Market (unless you bought one already). Check out their conference section…copy the conferences within your reach. Google them. Send for information. Start picking the ones that will let you make the needed connections.

THE ONE THING YOU DON'T WANT TO DO IS SUBMIT BLINDLY

Once you choose a publisher and gain the information you need to submit correctly, there is still one more step. Google the publisher's name and read through at least TEN PAGES of returns on your search. Why? Because by the tenth page you'll know if they have a bad reputation. Do this even if you got the name of the publisher from a market guide. Do this even if you got the information from your wonderful Great Aunt Hilda who had her book published by that company and she adores them. Getting published with a bad publisher is worse than not getting published. Sure, there's that initial thrill (I'm getting published) but it's going to be followed by a really hard fall. It's like dating the cute kid in high school only to find out that cute sometimes turns evil - the rush is not worth the crash.

If you're picking a publisher who has some negative stuff said about it, go ahead and send out an email to the fine folks are Writer Beware and ask them for advice - then take the advice. I've seen so many people taken advantage of AFTER they found out the publisher was potentially bad news, but they thought they'd just "give them a try." Don't be like that. Think of it this way - if you found out your sister was writing love notes to convicts on the off chance that they might have been wrongfully convicted, what would you tell her? Tell yourself that. And remember, a bad publisher is worse than no publisher. They'll take your money. They'll kill your manuscripts chance of ever being a real book. And they'll break your heart.

Do the research. If your book was worth the time you put into writing it, why treat it like it's not worth the time to find it the right home? Take your time. Don't rush. Do it right. Persevere. You'll be glad you did.