WANTED: Good Ideas for Real Estate Books!

At Argyle Press, we're always looking for good book ideas for real estate professionals. The area of real estate and real estate sales is quite vast. The key to selecting a good topic for your book is to limit the subject area so that you have a unique and desired book. Many books are currently in print on general sales for real estate, so you would be far better off selecting a more limited or specific topic. Not so specific, however, that it would limit the number of potential buyers. A publisher would rarely produce a book of which it figures to sell less than 10,000 copies.

Argyle Press has conducted significant research on topic areas and we currently have about a half-dozen titles we believe will be good sellers.

That, however, is not to exclude other topics. But before you submit your book idea, you should take a look at what other books are readily available already and make sure yours is unique and interesting. And, most important, that you are capable of writing it.

Distribution
Most of the books you are familiar with are marketed through traditional retail channels. That works fine for mass-market books, but is not practical for targeted special-interest books such as "how-to" manuals for real estate professionals.

Why? Because even the largest book retailers have no room to stock the thousands of technical and "how-to" titles published each year. And most booksellers only want to deal with high-turnover books.

The alternative to retail sales is direct sales. By selling books direct, the publisher can target its audience and advertise directly to it. Today, over one-third of all books are sold directly to the consumer by mail.

Argyle Press also promotes and distributes to other mail-order companies. These range from real estate supply catalogs to state and local associations. We also sell to real estate supply stores and board stores. All titles are also submitted to a distributor that markets to libraries across the U.S. and Canada.

As you can see, Argyle Press, Inc., actively markets its titles--even on the Internet!--which, of course, benefits you, the author.

Pricing and Royalties
The final sales price of your book will depend on a number of things. Research has shown strong market-price potential of between $19.95-$29.95 for "how-to" paperback manuals of between 275-375 pages (the ideal length for such books); or between 75,000 and 100,000 words.

Argyle Press, Inc. prefers to work with authors on a royalty basis. These royalties range from 5%-7.5% depending on the actual cash value received from the sale of the book. For example, books sold to a distributor at a discount would earn a lower royalty percentage then books sold at full price.

We are also open to working with authors on a fee basis. However, this option would only be considered for proven and previously published authors.

Who Does What?
The Author -- As author, you are responsible for submitting a complete double spaced manuscript of 75,000-100,000 words. You are also responsible for illustrations and photographs (as well as the captions that go with them), and for indexing the book--a must for a good "how-to" book.

In addition, the author is responsible for guaranteeing that he/she is the sole owner and has the authority to copyright the work. You are also responsible for obtaining permission to use any and all copyrighted material used in your book.

The Publisher -- Argyle Press, as the publisher is responsible for editing, producing, and most importantly, marketing your book. Depending on the quality and complexity of the manuscript, editing, typesetting, and correcting can be done in about three months. The actual printing takes another 4-6 weeks.

Where To Go From Here . . .
Most publishers, including Argyle Press, Inc., prefer that you not send a completed manuscript for evaluation. Instead, send a one to two page "query letter" explaining your topic and how it is unique and needed. Then attach to that a two-page outline of the book's contents including chapter headings and sub-titles as well as any tables and charts, the number of pages, and the amount of time you will need to complete the manuscript. Be as detailed as possible with this outline.You should also include any writing samples you have done and, if possible, three sample chapters of the current work so we can determine your writing style.

From there, we will be able to determine the production costs and marketability of your book. If the decision is affirmative, we will contact you regarding a proposal and a publishing contract.

Query letters should be submitted to:

ARGYLE PRESS, Inc.
Attn: Editorial Department
4800 Numaga Pass
Carson City, NV 89703 U.S.A.
If you have any questions, email us at editor@argylepress.com