BOWEN UNIVERSITY, IWO
COLLEGE OF COMPUTING AND COMMUNICATION STUDIES
MASS COMMUNICATION PROGRAMME
Course Title: Introduction to Publishing
Course Code: MCM 105
Course Outline
1. The Concept of Book Publishing
a. Publishing
b. Objectives of Book Publishing
c. Types of Publishing
d. History of Book Publishing
2. Books and Types of Books
a. What are Books?
b. Types of Books – Broad and General categorization
c. Structure of a book
d. Book development
3. Book Publishing in Nigeria
a. Book publishing in Nigeria
b. Book Publishing Houses
c. Departments of Book Publishing Houses
d. Professionals in Book Publishing
4. Writing Book for Publication
a. Writing
b. Writing for Publishing
c. Attributes of a prospective writer
d. Elements of a standard book
5. Manuscript Assessment and Acquisition
a. Unsolicited Manuscripts
b. Solicited Manuscripts
c. Sources of Manuscripts
d. The publishing Process
Publishing
What is publishing? Publishing is the process involved in bringing to the knowledge of the public;
learning, entertainment and informative materials. Okwilagwe cited in Akingbola (2008:49)
explains that publishing activities involve the manufacturing of newspapers, magazines, books,
newsletters, journals, reports and many other printed materials. To publish is to make public what
ideas, opinions and messages that have been conceptualised, organized, and developed by an
individual or group of individuals for the purpose of sharing with others.
However contemporary thinking does not want to isolate publishing to the printed matter in any
book or publication. The thinking is that good content alone cannot make a good book. Many
books have excellent content but are viewed as ‘sub standard’ because of the finishing of the
printed material. Instances abound where the text of such books are hardly legible, or because of
the poor binding the books seem to be falling apart before it gets to the hands of the end users.
Most times, these problems can be traced to the “self-publisher syndrome”. This is a situation
where, the author in order to maximize profit tries to publish his own works. This is why modern
thinkers frown at self-publishing no matter the enormity of the gains inherent there in. They are
rather encouraged to enlist the services of a reputable book house to undertake the business of
book publishing on their behalf.
In fact, to be a great book writer, an author not only needs to publish his book with a registered
book publisher, but he also needs a recognised and reputable one at that. There is a public relations
dimension to book publishing. Great publishers are often times reputed to showcase a string of
notable writers, and when you are on their stables, you are often considered as one.
Book Publishing
Book publishing has become one important industry in the world. This is because the world is now
surviving on information which books provide. There are many people, groups and organizations
involved in the business of providing different information through books and other printed
materials. The essence of this module is to expose students to the different areas of book
publishing.
publishing, scholars have developed generic terms for the process of producing literary works.
Nyeko (1999:1) opines that; it is “the process of producing for dissemination, books, films,
computer programmes, records, newspapers, periodicals, discs, bulletins, magazines and other
literacy materials.” Contextually, we can conclude that book publishing is that process that seeks
to capture social and intellectual activity and storing same for the information, education and
entertainment of the society.
Akpoko (2012:27) said book publishing “simply means to have a book or periodical printed out
and distributed for sale.” He pointed out that publishing normally covers a wide range of activities,
which include production of reports, books and other reading materials for the use of general
public.
Oso and Biobaku (2008) explain that publishing is a generic term used to describe the process of
producing literacy and information materials for utility.
Okwilagwe (2001:1) quaoted Chandler Grannis (967) who define publishing as:
To make public – to send forth among the people – the words and pictures the creative minds have
produced, that editors have worked over, and that printers have reproduced.
In this sense publishing is a process that involved creative minds who conceived ideas that want
others to share.
Publishing is a process that, according to Okwilongwe (2001) consist of planning, selecting,
editing, designing, producing, marketing and distribution of printed materials such as books,
magazines and newspapers.
Specifically when applied to book, publishing is completed only when a manuscript has been
transformed into a book and distributed to its intended audience.
Objectives of Book Publishing
Book writing serves many objectives. Oso, et al quotes Tuchman (1980) as saying that without
books, history is silent, literature dumb, science crippled, thought and speculation at a standstill.
This assertion tells of the invaluable nature of books.
The objectives of book writing in this case, have been summarized into 5 classes:
- To announce
- To expound
- For historical reason
- To transmit knowledge or teaching
- For economic reasons
To Announce
I. Many writers have an inbuilt yearning to express an idea, have an intuition about a phenomenon
which they believe is true, or a future idea which they think will occupy a significant space in our
world of existence, and so on. It is this desire that makes them to write books that contain such
ideas.
II. Just like the town crier of old, books serve the purpose of information dissemination. It serves
as a notice board for whoever cares about any information.
III. Communication can be in the form of one person relating with the other or the writer relating
with a mass of people. The world consists of millions of people that are in different geographical
locations, speaking different languages, have different colours, religions and creeds. Book writing
has achieved the function of communicating with these same people thereby bridging this
diversity.
IV. Writers especially, novelists provide a lot of entertainment value to the reading audience.
Though their writing might be fictitious or factual, but they are always infuse with very enthralling
features that makes the reading experience exciting.
2. To Expound
I. Many historical events are not the same as we have them today. This is because there was a time
when certain knowledge was highly restricted. There was a time when plants were thought to be
organisms that you plan, they grow, and you harvest them. A bad crop does not produce well and
a good one does well. It was not known that plants could be ill as human beings hence their
performances can be low. It was not known that man’s present appearance is a function of his
genetic make-up. These are areas where new knowledge has been added to previous knowledge to
bring us to the present.
II. To challenge knowledge. At a particular time, scientists believed that the world was as flat as a
table and a continuous movement towards a particular direction will only bring you to the precipice
and an eventual fall into an endless abyss. In our present world, that knowledge have been
challenged and found to be false.
III. Book publishing has served the purpose of continuous re-evaluation of knowledge. Most
writers evaluate previous positions and theories and establish new ones.
3. Transmit Knowledge
I. Scholarly writing often refers to that body of writing that seeks to contribute new knowledge or
contribute to existing knowledge.
II. Whatever form the scholarly knowledge may take, be it in the form of confirmation, disputation
and repudiation or expansion, scholarly knowledge always aims at transferring knowledge from
one person to another. The book is the tool of the teacher to achieve this aim. Sometimes the book
replaces the teacher.
4. To Serve as Reservoir
Book publishing serves as a reservoir of knowledge. It is what we write today that eventually
becomes history. Africans have been found in the act of trying to re-write their own history. This
stems from the fact that most of their literatures were oral. The written word has the ability for
longevity while the oral one does not. This was why the misinterpretation of the African realities
by the European writers were widely condemned, and steps taken to right these wrongs.
Many writers like Descartes, Aristotle, and Sophocles achieved the status of immortality by
writing. These writings have become what we refer to today as history. Book publishing has served
as a reservoir of contemporary events.
5. Economy
The book publishing industry, especially in modern times, where society has become knowledge
driven, has become a veritable source of wealth.
In super literate societies, writers live off what they write. Many writers simply write wholly or
partly to make money. Many see this as derogatory, but the fact remains that a good reason for
writing is economic. As long as a book holds appeal to a wide range of audience it will bring profit.
Types of Publishing
Okpobo (2012) explained that there are three types of publishing arrangement that are commonly
practiced today. These are:
(a) Corporate Publishing: This is the traditional publishing arrangement where the publishing
houses accept manuscripts from the author and undertake to produce the book. Here the publishing
organisation funds the publishing process right from editing, typesetting, page layout, filming,
plating, and printing, binding, trimming, and finishing to the marketing of such books. He pays
royalty to the author based on the sale of such book in line with earlier agreement between them.
The publisher is absolutely in charge of production and marketing of the book and bear all the risk
involves in such business or the profits associated therein.
(b) Vanity Publishing: This is a publishing arrangement where you pay for the cost of publication
of your book. The publisher will accept to publish the manuscript first before he signs an agreement
to publish such book. He normally builds in his profit into the agreement to publish the manuscript.
(c) Self-Publishing: This is an arrangement where the author takes his manuscript to the
publishing house, pay for the production of the book and collects all the copies. The author will
then market the book or give them out freely. Self-publishers take more risk financially even
though they are always satisfied by seeing their names in print.
Books and Types of Books
There are different books that are produced to satisfy different needs of people in different fields
of endeavour. This unit discusses books and their different types.
A book is an instrument that helps the author to communicate his thoughts and experiences to the
larger public.
A book usually possesses the following characteristics.
- They are instruments of communication
- They possess written or visual symbols to convey their meanings.
- They are published for wide circulation.
A book therefore can be defined as “a set of printed pages that are fastened inside a cover so that
you can turn them and read them (Oxford Advanced Learners Dictionary 6th Edition). It is “a
written (or printed) message of considerable length meant for public circulation and recorded on
materials that are light yet durable enough to afford comparatively easy portability’’ (The New
Encyclopaedia Britanica).
A book is a very important medium of communication because it is seen as “an invaluable
repository of thoughts and knowledge and a means of collating a considerable store of information
in a small space and in a durable form” (MacBride, 1981:06).
Okpoko (2012:3) summarise the importance of books as follows:
(a) Basic to our system of education
(b) Repository of our culture and all types of knowledge.
(c) Medium of storing and retrieving information
(d) Channel of communication
(e) A part of national development
(f) A print medium that store information from generation to generation – a historical document.
Ihwa and Adikpo (2009) describe books as materials that promote knowledge of all kinds. They
said books are set of non-periodical printed sheets of papers of at least forty-nine pages excluding
covers that serve as media of access to knowledge of values, wisdom, aesthetics and human
imagination. They summarized the functions of books thus:
(1) To serve as a form of communication
(2) Serve as symbol that convey meaning
(3) Use for the circulation and distribution of knowledge (Ihwa and Adikpo, 2009:4)
Types of Books
Books are categorized into classes in order to organize the body of knowledge and to direct readers
on where to seek same. Books are generally categorized into the following types.
a. Fictional books: These are books which tell about imaginary events and people.
b. Non-Fictional books: They are factual books whose contents relate true information concerning
people and events.
c. Realistic Fictional books: These are books and stories that are written as if they could happen
today.
d. Historical Fictional books: These are books of stories of events of the past, which might not
have happened.
e. Science Fictional books: These are books that deals with scientific facts but situated in a
futuristic form. They deal with planetary travels and inventions, which could happen most
probably through scientific advancement.
f. Fantasy books: These are books about situations which can hardly happen in in real life.
g. Mystery books: These are books about unsolved life events. The themes of such books often
revolve around crime and murder.
h. Biography books: A biography is a book about a person’s life.
i. Auto Biographic books: A book about the author’s life.
j. Poetry: Books that use rhythm and rhymes to explore and relate feelings, to make human minds
see images.
k. Folklore, Myths and Legends: Books that tell of oral traditional stories of the people has been
put down in print form.
l. Humour: These are books that encourage a read-laugh situation.
m. Classics: These are books that have become eternally relevant, and people read them for many
years.
These different types of books can also be broadly categorized into two: they are the educational
books and the general books.
(a) Educational Books: Okpoko (2012: 6 – 7) explained that educational books are those prepared
to and published based on a given syllabus normally released by an authority. In Nigeria, such
authorities may be Ministries of Education, Science and Technology, Justice, or agencies such as
Nigerian Educational Research and Development Council, and such books are normally for use in
schools and colleges.
(b) General Books: General books are all types of books written for general use by different
people with no specific level or group. Some of these general books include biographies, memoirs,
autobiographies, novels, drama and poetry. However, some of these general books can be used as
educational ones.
Structure of a Book
Every book should be produced with a formal standard structure for easy usage by readers. Okpobo
(2012:111) has explain that a book can be structurally divided into three parts namely.
(a) Prelimary mater which are the materials before the main text.
(b) The main text, and
(c) The oddment which are materials that follows the text.
(a) Preliminary Matter
The following are the materials that come before the main text in a book:
(i) Half Title: This is also called bastard title because the page contains the title of the book. It is
called half page because it is only the major title of the book that is written on this page before the
full title. Sometimes it is followed by “pages of respect” which are blank which protect the half
pages and the full titles.
(ii) Front Piece: This page normally appears on left-hand page called verso. It is the page that
comes immediately after the half title. Sometimes authors use the page to present titles of their
previous books.
(iii) Title Page: This contains the title of the book, the names of the author and the publisher with
his official logo.
(iv) Imprint: This page house copyright, data of publication, date of impressions and editions,
printer’s imprint, and international standard book number (ISBN).
(v) Dedication: This page normally appears on the right-hand page of a book called recto. It is
always brief and devoted to a loved one or ones by the author(s).
(vi) Forward: This contains notes from a well-known person other than the author. It normally
appears on recto (right-hand) page with the date, name of the writer and place where it was written.
(vii) Preface: This page normally summarises the work section by section or chapter by chapter,
but some books do substitute preface for forward.
(viii) Acknowledgements: This is the page where the author(s) express (es) appreciation for
assistance received in the course of producing the book.
(ix) Table of Contents: This page contains chapters, section, titles and the pages where they
appear. It is the page that helps readers to locate the information they want to use.
(x) List of Illustration: It has all the list of illustrations in the book and the pages where they
appear. This page is only for textbooks with illustrations.
(b) The Text: This is the main body of a book, and it should start on a new page. Normally, it
should begin with the titles which are set in capital (upper case).
(c) Oddments (Materials after the main text)
(1) Appendix: This is a page that has additional information about the subject matter. The
information on this page is meant to complement, illustrate, and corroborate the text.
(2) Author Notes: These are pages where some clarifications are made by the author on the subject
matter.
(3) Glossary: This is a page devoted to special words or terms used in the book which are arranged
alphabetically for easy use by readers.
(4) Bibliography: This is the page that has the list of books, journals and other written works
consulted. People interviewed during the research for the book will also be documented here. All
bibliographies are normally alphabetically arranged but not to be numbered serially.
(5) Index: This is the list of words, phrases or expressions arranged with their reference pages.
All good books are produced with these structures for professional use and ease of reference.
Book Publishing in Nigeria
In Nigeria, the historical account of publishing revolves around the activities of the missionaries,
colonial administration, and the anti-colonial struggle. The role publishing played in spreading the
Christian mission, publicizing the activities of the colonial rulers and sensitizing people against
the evils of colonial administration is significant. The history of publishing in Nigeria can be traced
therefore to the first press in Nigeria, which the Presbyterian Mission established in Calabar in
1846. The press was set up with the primary aim of providing Christian literature to the new
converts. In 1859 Henry Townsend established another press in Abeokuta that published the first
newspaper in Nigeria. IWE IROHIN FUN AWON ARA EGBA ATI YORUBA. Henry Townsend
was of the Church Missionary Society (CMS) so his press also published Christian literature.
Herbert Macaulay established the first indigenous newspaper called the LAGOS DAILY NEWS
in 1926. The same year the DAILY TIMES OF NIGERIA was also established.
In 1949 Oxford University Press (OUP) established a sales outlet in Nigeria. Thus, the foreign
based publishing houses such as (OUP) Macmillan, Longman, etc. followed suit by publishing for
African readers.
In 1956 indigenous authors/printers such as Onibonoje took advantage of the free education
programme and the establishment of modern schools in Western Nigeria to publish their cram
books and pamphlets. They also undertook the distribution themselves.
In 1963 the strong presence of the local branch of foreign publishing houses like OUP was strongly
felt in Nigeria. Works like IJALA ARE ODE, a Yoruba poetry genre by Temitan were published.
In 1972, the Nigerian Enterprise Promotion decree, which stipulated that any company operating
in Nigeria must be incorporated in Nigeria and must also have Nigerian directors, also deepened
the indigenous participation in the publishing business.
Some of the indigenous publishing houses that emerged at the period include Fourth Dimension,
Aromolaran, Illesanmi, Litramed Publication, etc. The book publishing business has continued to
wax stronger in Nigeria ever since. Today, some of the book publishing houses are; Heineman
Publishers, Spectrum Publishers, Kraft Books Publishers, Stirling – Horden Publishers, University
Press Plc., Macmillan Press, Longman Publishers and so on.
