Writer’s Digests’ 100 Common Publishing Terms
Advance. A sum of money a publisher pays a writer prior to the publication of
a book usually paid in installments, such as one-half on signing contract; one-
half on delivery of a complete and satisfactory manuscript.
Agent. A liaison between a writer and editor or publisher who advocates for
his or her client (writer). Agents usually take a 10-15% commission from the
advance and royalties.
All rights. Situation in which an author sells all rights to a work. Not
recommended for writing that could have reprint potential.
ARC. Advance reader copy—an early version of the book sent out to media
outlets for possible reviews and interviews.
Assignment. Editor asks a writer to produce a specific article for an agreed-
upon fee.
Auction. Publishers sometimes bid for the acquisition of a book manuscript
that has excellent sales prospects. The bids are for the amount of the author's
advance, advertising and promotional expenses, royalty percentages, and
more. Auctions are conducted by agents.
Backlist. A publisher's list of its books that were not published during the
current season, but that are still in print.
Bimonthly. Every two months.
Bio. A sentence or brief paragraph about the writer; can include education
and work experience.
Biweekly. Every two weeks.
Blurb. The copy on book covers or book dust jackets, promoting the book and
the author or featuring testimonials from book reviewers or well-known people
in the book's field. Also called flap copy or jacket copy.
Boilerplate. A standardized contract.
Bound galleys. Prepublication edition of book of final galley proofs, also
known as "bound proofs."
Byline. Name of the author appearing with the published piece.
Category Fiction. A term used to include all genres of fiction.
Chapbook. A small print or digital book of poetry or fiction—usually fewer
than 40 pages.
Circulation. The number of subscribers to a magazine.
Clips. Samples of a writer's published work.
Contributor copies. Copies of the magazine issues or books sent to the
author in which the author's work appears.
Co-publishing. Arrangement where author and publisher share publication
costs and profits of a book. Also known as cooperative publishing.
Copyediting. Editing a manuscript for grammar, punctuation, printing style,
and factual accuracy.
Comp titles. Comparable or competitive titles—usually included in a book
proposal.
Copyright. A means to protect an author's work.
Cover letter. A brief letter that accompanies the manuscript being sent to an
agent or editor.
Critiquing service. An editing service in which writers pay a fee for
comments on the salability or other qualities of their manuscript. Fees vary, as
do the quality of the critiques.
CV. Curriculum vita. A brief listing of qualifications and career
accomplishments.
Electronic rights. Secondary or subsidiary rights related to electronic or
multimedia formats.
Elevator pitch. Concise pitch for a book or screenplay that can be delivered
in the time it takes to travel in an elevator.
Endcap. Special retail display at the end of an aisle—usually seen in retail
stores, including bookstores.
Evaluation fees. Fees an agent may charge to evaluate material.
Exclusive. Situation where an author gives an agent or publisher the ability to
consider a submission without competition from other agents or publishers.
Authors should always cap the exclusive time period.
Fair use. A provision of the copyright law that says short passages from
copyrighted material may be used without infringing on the owner's rights.
Feature. An article giving the reader information of human interest rather than
news.
Filler. A short item used by an editor to "fill" out a newspaper column or
magazine page.
Film rights. Rights sold or optioned by the agent/author to a person in the film
industry, enabling the book to be made into a movie.
Foreign rights. Translation or reprint rights to be sold in other countries and
territories.
Frontlist. A publisher's list of books that are new to the current season.
Galleys. First typeset version of manuscript that has not yet been divided into
pages.
Genre. General classification of writing, such as the novel or the poem, or to
the categories within those categories within those classifications, such as the
horror novel or the sonnet.
Ghostwriter. Writer who writes an article, speech, story, or book based on
another person's ideas or knowledge.
Graphic novel. A story in graphic form, long comic strip, or heavily illustrated
story; of 40 pages or more.
Hi-lo. A type of fiction that offers a high level of interest for readers at a low
reading level.
High concept. A story easily expressed in a quick, one-line description.
(What is and isn't high-concept fiction and how to pitch it.)
Honorarium. Token payment.
Hook. Aspect of the work that sets it apart from others and draws in the
reader/viewer.
Imprint. Name applied to a publisher's specific line of books.
Joint contract. A legal agreement between a publisher and two or more
authors (or creators), establishing provisions for the division of royalties the
book generates.
Kill fee. Fee for a complete article that was assigned and then cancelled.
Lead time. The time between the acquisition of a manuscript by an editor and
its actual publication.
Log line. Brief summary of a TV program, movie, or book that captures the
main conflict of the story with an emotional hook to generate interest.
Marketing fee. Fee charged by some agents to cover marketing expenses. It
may be used to cover postage, photocopying, or any other expense incurred
in marketing a manuscript.
Mass market. Non-specialized books of wide appeal directed toward a large
audience.
Masthead. Page in a magazine or publication that usually lists contact
information, editors (and their titles), and more information that's helpful for
freelance writers.
Memoir. A narrative recounting a writer's (or fictional narrator's) personal or
family history; specifics may be altered, though essentially considered
nonfiction.
MG. Middle grade. The general classification of books written for readers
aged nine to 11. Also called middle readers.
Midlist. Titles on a publisher's list that are not expected to be big sellers, but
are expected to have limited/modest sales.
Model release. Paper signed by the subject of a photograph giving the
photographer permission to use the photograph.
Multiple contract. Book contract with an agreement for a future book(s).
Multiple submissions. Sending more than one book, article, or poem to a
publisher at the same time.
Narrative nonfiction. A narrative presentation of actual events.
Net royalty. A royalty payment based on the amount of money a book
publisher receives on the sale of a book after booksellers' discounts, special
sales discounts, and returns.
Novella. A short novel or long short story; approximately 7,000 to 30,000
words.
On spec. Writer submits a completed manuscript for publication "on
speculation." The editor is under no obligation to buy the finished manuscript.
One-time rights. Rights allowing a manuscript to be published one time. The
work can be sold again by the writer without violating the contract.
Option clause. A contract clause giving a publisher the right to publish an
author's next book.
Payment on acceptance. The editor sends you a check for your article, story,
or poem as soon as he decides to publish it.
Payment on publication. The editor sends you a check for your material
when it is published.
Pen name. The use of a name other than your legal name on articles, stories,
or books. Also called a pseudonym.
Photo feature. Feature in which the emphasis is on the photographs rather
than on the accompanying written material.
Picture book. Book aimed at pre-schoolers to 8-year-olds that tells a story
using a combination of text and art—or artwork only.
Platform. A writer's quantifiable reach within their target audience, which
includes speaking experience, publishing history, social media followers, and
more.
(Improve your writing or author platform in 30 days.)
POD. Print on demand.
Proofreading. Close reading and correction of a manuscript's typographical
errors.
Proposal. Summary of a proposed book submitted to a publisher, particularly
used for nonfiction manuscripts. Proposals commonly include a cover letter,
one-page overview of the book, marketing information, competitive books,
author information, chapter-by-chapter outline, and sample chapters.
Query. Letter that sells an idea to an editor or agent.
Remainders. Copies of a book that are slow to sell and can be purchased
from the publisher at a reduced rate.
Reporting time. The time it takes for an editor to report to the author on his or
her query or manuscript.
Reprint rights. The rights to republish a book after its initial printing.
Royalties. A percentage of money that an author receives from a publisher
based off sales terms stipulated within a contract.
SASE. Self-addressed, stamped envelope.
Self-publishing. In this arrangement the author pays for manufacturing,
production, and marketing of his book and keeps all income derived from the
book sales.
Serial. Published periodically, such as a newspaper or magazine.
Serial fiction. Fiction published in installments, often broken off at a
suspenseful spot.
Serial rights. The right for a newspaper or publication to publish sections of a
manuscript.
Short-short. A complete short story of 1,500 words or fewer. Also called flash
fiction.
Sidebar. Feature presented as a companion to a main article or story
highlighting one aspect of the main article or story.
Simultaneous submissions. Sending the same article, story, or poem to
several publishers at the same time.
Slush pile. Unsolicited manuscripts and pitches received by an editor,
publisher, or agent.
Subagent. An agent handling certain subsidiary rights, usually working in
conjunction with the agent who handled the book rights. The percentage paid
to the book agent is increased to pay the subagent.
Subsidiary rights. All rights other than book publishing rights included in a
book publishing contract, such as paperback rights, book club rights, movie
rights, and more.
Subsidy publisher. Book publishers who charge authors for the cost to
typeset and print their books, the jacket, etc., as opposed to a traditional
publisher who pays the author.
Synopsis. Brief summary of a story, novel, or play. As part of a book
proposal, it is a comprehensive summary condensed in a single-spaced page.
Tearsheet. Page from a magazine or newspaper containing a writer's printed
story, article, or poem.
TOC. Table of contents.
Trade book. Book that concerns a special interest for a general audience.
Translation rights. Subsidiary rights for book to be translated and sold in
another language.
Unsolicited manuscript. A story, article, poem, or book that an editor did not
assign.
USP. Unique selling position—what makes your book or article unique in the
marketplace.
Work for hire. Situation in which a writer writes material for a publisher or
company for a specified amount of money—usually selling all rights to the
work, including potential reprint rights.
YA. Young adult. Manuscripts written for readers aged 12 to 18.
To learn more,
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