“A Clear Path: Choosing a Traditional Publisher,” Dana Delibovi

“A Clear Path: Choosing a Traditional Publisher,” Dana Delibovi

In the days of self-publishing and Kindle KDP, why would an author choose a traditional publisher? Dana Delibovi, poet, essayist, translator, and debut author at Monkfish Book Publishing, will discuss this question in a presentation about “A Clear Path: Choosing a Traditional Publisher” for the St. Louis Publishers Association (SLPA) on Wednesday, Nov. 13, 2024.

Delibovi will relate her personal experience in what have been the practical and personal benefits of seeking a traditional publisher versus self-publishing. She will also talk about why it made sense for her to accept the core principle that if a traditional publisher doesn’t want your book, it probably won’t succeed in self-publishing, either.

Delibovi will also highlight her experience in getting ready to query and submit her book to publishers. She hired Andrew Doty, owner of Editwright and current SLPA president, to conduct the developmental edit on the book, and it made all the difference.

She will also describe her experience in the periods from submission to acceptance and post-acceptance. Delibovi climbed a steep learning curve in “author marketing” — a.k.a., making a poet into a publicist. She will suggest ways that publishers can help authors get organized and get real about the publicity they need to do.

Dana Delibovi is a Best American Essays notable essayist, poetry editor at Cable Street, poet, and translator. Her debut book of translations and essays — Sweet Hunter: The Complete Poems of St. Teresa of Ávila — is the first translation of Saint Teresa’s poetry by a woman translator.