“In a world where the publisher is rarely considered a friend, the Book Guild Publishing comes across as a publishing firm with a soft human face.”
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ABOUT US

Our dedicated in-house team is always on hand to take you all the way from manuscript to bookshelf. Every author is treated as an individual, not a number.

Last year, 50% of our authors came back to us with another book - read on to find out why.

Book Guild Publishing is a well-established independent publishing company which has been publishing books for 25 years.

Apart from the intrinsic pleasure of publishing a diverse list, in a small way we help to maintain the broad base of general publishing so often under threat from 'reduced product lines' and 'list rationalization'.

We offer an eclectic mix of quality books: novels and stories to enchant and engage both adults and children, vivid memoirs and biographies that give insight into remarkable lives, past and present, and timely books on current affairs. We publish under 100 books a year so that we can maintain our high standards and we pride ourselves on offering an effective and efficient service to a wide range of authors, both established and new. We are committed to bringing quality books to their potential readers, and many Book Guild titles find both critical and sales success.


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HOW WE PUBLISH

Book Guild Publishing has been providing authors with publishing expertise for 25 years. We are experts in the fields of editorial, production, promotion and distribution, and offer our authors a high level of creative control and involvement.

In an age when ‘self-publishing’ is in vogue, we were the first to offer the middle way between self-publishing and mainstream. Our joint venture scheme (Partnership Publishing) with authors gives a total publishing package to the highest industry standards, and the coverage we achieve for our authors speaks for itself.

We are not only for first-time authors: over 40% of our writers have been previously published by solely mainstream publishers. 70% of our authors come to us by recommendation and reputation and over 50% of our authors come back to us with their second and third books.

We work in a variety of ways, for a wide range of authors:

1. Conventional Publishing

2. Partnership Publishing (with author contributing costs)

3. Production only

4. Sponsored books for companies and charities


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WHAT WE OFFER

Book Guild Publishing has a team of skilled and experienced professionals to offer you:

• An experienced marketing and publicity department with established contacts and an excellent track record of obtaining press, radio and TV coverage; bookshop and library distribution; online promotion, including Amazon.co.uk and www.bookguild.co.uk; and, global marketing where appropriate. More >

• A team of sales representatives who cover the whole of the UK and Ireland. More >

• Quick efficient distribution from our warehouse. We have accounts with all the major booksellers in the UK, including internet specialists such as Amazon.

• A team of highly experienced editors to deal with a broad range of subject matter.

• Expert editorial guidance, including thorough copy-editing and full consultation.

• A production team who maintain high standards while obtaining the best print-buying deal for your book.

• Jacket designers who excel at producing eye-catching, commercial designs.

• Full accounting every step of the way.

• Entry in our bi-annual catalogue.

• The effective selling of rights, such as large print and audio.

• Support for two years after your book is published.

• Representation at our stand at the London Book Fair.

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HOW TO SUBMIT

Step One: Publishing Enquiry

Initially, please send us, by post or email:

• A brief synopsis of your book.

• A covering letter with the title of your book, details about yourself, including your full postal address, telephone and email contacts, and information on any material previously published by you.

Email: katie@bookguild.co.uk
Post: FAO Katie Ellis, Book Guild Publishing, 19 New Road, Brighton, East Sussex BN1 1UF

It would be very helpful if you would tell us how you were referred to the Book Guild, eg. recommendation, a national newspaper, Writer's Handbook, an internet browser, etc.


Step Two: Submitting a Manuscript

Following your initial publishing enquiry, if you would like to proceed and submit your work for consideration:

• We are quite happy to receive a printed-out hard copy of your manuscript as it stands, for the purposes of assessment.

However, if we are to publish, we would need manuscripts in the following format:
- typewritten;
- double-line spacing;
- printed on one side of the paper only;
- wide margins all around.

• An SAE. We can't return material to authors who have not sent a stamped addressed envelope with the correct postage.

Please DO NOT send:

• The only copy of your manuscript, photographs and documents. We may not be able to return them.

We will acknowledge receipt of your manuscript on the day we receive it and will reply within one month of submission with our proposals. However we cannot be held responsible in any way for loss or damage of any material you submit.

Please mark envelopes, Submissions, and send for the attention of Lyn Parr.

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RIGHTS SOLD

EXTRACT AND SERIALISATION
Mud and the City
Country Life

Hey Diddle Diddle
Charles Hendray
QS Weekly.com

Email Survival Guide
Paul Johnson - 2007
UK Metro

Duke of Hazard
Phil Dampier and Ashley Walton - 2006
New Idea Australia

Before the Last All Clear
Ray Evans - 2005
Daily Mail

Never Take No For an Answer
Marilyn Hawes - 2004
Daily Mail

An Invisible Child
Jo Evans - 2003
The Times

OPTIONED FOR FILM RIGHTS
Yamashita's Map
Champagne, Charlie and Me
Nothing Purple Nothing Black
Hancock's Last Stand

FOREIGN RIGHTS
The Price of Patriotism
(Slovenian rights)
On the Trail of Arthur Conan Doyle
(French, German and Spanish rights)
Six Feet Under
(Simple and Complex Chinese rights)
Second-Hand Books: A First-Hand View
(Chinese rights)
The Price of Patriotism
(Italian rights)
The Art of Belonging: A Memoir
(Japanese rights)

AUDIO RIGHTS
Doctor! Doctor!
Slainte
Romanov Blue
Operation Romanov
The Impregnable Miss Parker
A Light in the Darkness

LARGE PRINT
The Tail of Augustus Moon
Dawning Gold
Daffodils Before Swallows
End to End
Dame Murder
Brassy Women
Little White Lies
Doctor! Doctor!
Frayers of Knottsley
Doon the Road
Tric-Trac
No Fancy Life
Lillian's Story
Friends & Neighbours
Before the Last All Clear
Travels for my Country
A Private Viewing
On Yer Bike Nurse
Over the Distant Hill
Doctor in the Navy
Just a Nurse
The Impregnable Miss Parker
Home Kids
Damnation
The Sodbury Crucifix
The Stepmother

SECOND EDITIONS / REPRINTS
The Touch of Durrell
The Human Reality
Call the Hands
I Wish You Weren't My Mummy
Yamashita's Map
The Little Boy Who Listened
Wit and Wisdom of British Prime Ministers
Duke of Hazard
What's in the Queen's Handbag
The Beautiful Game is Over
A-Level Politics Made Easy
A Land Fit for Criminals
Wizzy-woo and his brand new friends
Email Survival Guide
The Sun Islands
A Natural History of the Cuckmere Valley
Darkly, Deeply, Beautifully Blue
How to be a Successful Therapist
Spies, Lies & Whistleblowers
Before the Last All Clear
Bad Boy
A Butterfly Notebook
The Tigress and the Rose
Man of Stone,Operation Romanov
An Invisible Child
How to be a Successful Therapist
Story of Patagonia
A Challenge Too Far?
Oops!

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AUTHOR FEEDBACK

A small selection of the feedback we have received unsolicited from our authors.

"I would like to place on record my appreciation of the wonderful job you and your staff have made of producing my book The Tenth Child, to be published at the end of February.
 
Those who have seen and read early copies of the book are full of praise for the professionalism and quality of the finished product. They are unanimously of the view that it has led to a book which is easy to read and visually appealing.
 
For my part, I cannot thank those members of your staff with whom I have had any dealings over the last 12 months or so enough for their patience and kindness to someone who admits to being a bit impatient at times.
 
I am sure that the marketing process which is just getting under way will be equally impressive and look forward to it and, hopefully, to the success of The Tenth Child.
 
Again, my thanks to everyone." Harold Bolter, The Tenth Child



"I am very pleased with the production of my book and its striking jacket. It is very professional indeed and I had great support from the editors. I must also praise Kerry and Laura for all they have done to publicise the book for me." Elizabeth Manson Bahr - Children of the Sun

"Thank you for all your support and for providing a very professional service to a new author." Sean Trafford - Maritime Safety

"I would just like to record how very satisfied I have been with your Book Guild Publishing, since signing a contract with you just under a year ago for The Touch of Durrell. All of the team that I have dealt with, in particular with Joanna, Janet, Laura and Kerry, have been remarkably professional and a delight to deal with; which of course has given rise to the fine publication of my book. I take this opportunity in wishing your publishing firm every possible success with future publications." Jeremy Mallinson - The Touch of Durrell

"You and your team made last night go with a real bang and everything went so smoothly that my contribution seemed quite a doddle.  Although I pay tribute to you all in the Acknowledgement in the front of the book, I do want to reiterate my admiration and gratitude for the way the entire enterprise has been handled. Do tell them I how much I appreciate it." John Wells-Thorpe - Behind the Facade - following his book launch at The Old Market, Hove

 

"Throughout the past year, your very helpful staff have guided me through the editorial process and sent regular reports about progress. When I came to Brighton I was also impressed with the arrangements for publicity and for registration with the PLR. Please convey my thanks to everyone involved in the production and marketing of the memoir." Jessie Howard - Servant of the Services

 

"Yesterday was the first opportunity I have had to see the completed book and it is stunning.  Thank you all so much for your hard work and patience and helping to make my dream come true!" Stephanie Gray - The Cuckold

 

"I see Three Hundred Hours is to be released by Trans-Atlantic Publications in the States on Sunday (along with the work of Brian Reeve and W.V.Squair). That was a surprise. Most of Trans-Atlantic's 2008/9 releases seem to be Hodder, Pan, Picador, MacMillan - the big hitters. Well done Book Guild!" Roderick Low - Three Hundred Hours

 

"Carol told me I would enjoy the process and she was absolutely right. Three words sum up the company in my mind: impressive, professional and remarkable.  Let me say that it has been a pleasure right from the outset and you have no idea how pleased I am that I chose the Book Guild." Nick Jones - No. 1 Chesterfield Square

 

"I have received my author's copies and am please to say that I am even more delighted than usual with the final product - indeed a book of most handsome appearance. Many, many thanks." John Scurr - A Pirate for Harriet

 

 

"To my Dear Friends at the Book Guild, you have all given me this wonderful chance of becoming an author and have changed my life forever. That deserves a hell of a big Thank You from me to you." Carole Patti Clarke - I Wish You Weren't My Mummy

 

"I was delighted to receive my copies of the memoir last week and I would like to warmly thank you and your colleagues at The Book Guild for producing such a splendid book for me... When we first corresponded you made a number of promises to me about how your Company would turn my script into a book. You have generously fulfilled all those promises." Denis Coe - Variety Certainly Adds Spice

 

"I should like to thank everyone at the Book Guild for the work they put towards publishing the book. I loved the jacket, and as a whole the book looked great. I also loved my story. If I wrote it again I would do it just the same. It is 'idiosyncratic, witty and engaging' and fits no particular genre. That's why I enjoy publishing with the Book Guild - it gives us all a chance to push the boundaries of book writing." Jane Graham - Cobalt Blue (2008) and The Painted Chook (2006)

 

"I just wanted to thank Laura and Kerry for helping me with all my book signings – ten so far and counting! All the publicity and marketing that you’ve done is finally paying off and I am having the time of my life!" Susi Osborne - Ripples of Life

 

"I have had two books published with you before... with these I have had quite a bit of local success and been to numerous schools to talk about the stories etc... I have been very pleased with the service you have offered in the past." Sharon J Kirk - Bitsa the Vintage Car and Friends 1 and 2

 

"The box of books arrived this afternoon, and I just wanted to say that I am absolutely thrilled with them - they have surpassed all my expectations! Thank you all so much for the extremely hard work you have put into the production, and your patience, too!" Belinda Morse - Calamity & Courage

 

"The box containing the copies of Three Dimensions was delivered yesterday... and I am delighted to see that the book has turned out just as I wished it to be. The Book Guild has done a beautiful job.
I would like to thank everyone who worked on it - especially my pen-pals, Lyn and Janet, recipients of so many 'prioritaire' letters requesting a change in the text. Prose writers must be much easier to deal with that writers of poetry who weigh every word...
The project of the publication of this collection meant a great deal to me, and I am grateful to all who helped in its realization." Margaret Millett - Three Dimensions

 

"Thanks so much for all your attention to both books. It has been beyond my expectations so far, and I've been here before. How you and your team operate is extremely impressive." Andrew Iyer - The Betrayed and Domino Run

 

"Thank you so very much for your production of Reach for the Moon. It is everything I hoped it would be...
I shall be ever grateful to you for the stunning, professional result. Your brilliant designer Adrian Murrell has designed the jacket cover exactly the way I hoped it would be and I could not be more pleased with the way it is. The enthusiasm and helpfulness of the team was stupendous all through the various stages of the book. Nothing was too much trouble for them and every query was dealt with immediately. Quite simply my sincere thanks for your production of Reach for the Moon. I am so lucky to have The Book Guild publish it." Cyril Ornadel - Reach for the Moon

 

"I received my delivery of Special Houses. They look fantastic ... could you please pass on a huge thank you to everyone involved with producing the book as I never expected such a beautiful turned out piece of literature. Once again many thanks." Pauline Morgan – Special Houses

 

"Anne Fleming recently sent me a copy of her excellent book, Byron the Maker... Her choice of publisher is well chosen, the whole production of this book is brilliant: the Book Guild, for me, is well on a par with all the major publishing companies, in this or any other country." Brian Butler

 

"I’ve had over 70 books published, but I haven’t been so thrilled with a books in years. Pop Rivals is superb…the care that’s been taken is second to none…If only other publishers would take as much care as The Book Guild." Denis Bond – Pop Rivals

 

"I felt I had to write to thank you and everyone at The Book Guild for the high quality of care and attention to every detail the company has shown in the production of my book…from the copy-editing to the production and now the publicity, I have found everyone associated with The Book Guild to be thorough, follow-through, imaginative and very pleasant. I spent many years as a professional journalist and I have often found it difficult to trust my work in the hands of others. To have so many professional people under one roof is rare indeed!" Leonora Langley – Let The Children Sing

 

"I’d like to thank all at the Book Guild for such a thorough and professional service. They fulfilled everything they said they would do, and more, and I look back on my time with you with fondness. I would like to thank you especially for your enthusiasm and energy, which never faltered. You should be proud of The Book Guild and the work you do." Sarah Dykins - Lessons from an Angel

 

"I am delighted with The Man Who Would Be Bing and the pre-release publicity has been terrific. I think it’s fair to say that you have at the very least, met all my expectations and indeed exceeded many of them." Ken Crossland - The Man Who Would Be Bing

 

"Thank you very much for all the publicity blurb for Mystery In Sherwood. I found it very impressive, professional and packed with essential information – a model of what a campaign should be…You have some very talented people on your staff…Best wishes to all concerned; and your copy of the Book Guild catalogue…I am proud to be in it. May we be associated for a long time to come." Geoffrey Palmer - Mystery In Sherwood

 

"It has been a great joy working with The Book Guild and I am indebted to all your colleagues for making this such a constructive and happy experience. Nothing seemed too much trouble. I am delighted with the finished product, quality of paper, text, maps and illustrations and a dramatic dustcover. Congratulations." Sir Alexander Glen - Target Danube

 

"I should like to congratulate and thank all of you who were involved with the production and publicity…I could not have wished for a better result." Quintin Bach – Soviet Aid to the Third World

 

"There are no words to describe my most sincere thanks for your excellent work…I am more than delighted with everything." Ida Pearson – Neana and her Magical Adventures

 

"I thought that it was appropriate to write to you conveying my appreciation, to all involved at The Book Guild, of the excellent marketing of Operation Romanov." Robert Lloyd-Smith - Operation Romanov

 

"I feel the need to congratulate you on the excellence of your product. I am really impressed with the end result and am pleased to be associated with such quality." Tony Rhodes - Everyday is Saturday

 

"I can't tell you what fun I had doing (the book)..... no cruise could have given me such a super time. In no small way this was due to the care, efficiency and expertise of your company and its employees. I cannot remember the last time I interfaced with an organisation for the best part of a year and never had criticism or irritation. You were all an absolute delight to work with and I can understand why your authors come back with further work." Professor Arnold Maran - The Voice Doctor

"I did enjoy the whole process, so please pass on my thanks to all the team involved in helping me get Bangkok to BC created." Andy Scurr - Bangkok to BC

May I take this opportunity of saying how enjoyable my experience with publishing with the Book Guild has been.  From when I came down to Lewes to meet the team, and from all the fantastic help you gave to allow this book to reach the shelves.  Joanna Bentley and Janet Wrench were superb and helped shaped the book to its finished form.  When general practice quietens downs a bit - hopefully soon! - I will definitely use the Book Guild again." Dr Michael Barrie - The Surgeon's Rhyme

"I just wish to thank BOOK GUILD for what I regard as excellent service." Harold Aspen - Creation, The Physical Truth



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