ABSTRACT
This chapter looks at the way the publishing industry functions, and how the readers' work can fit into this. Rowling’s career is unusual, not only because of her extraordinary initial word-of-mouth success, but because so much of her fortune has been made through spin-off products — including a film franchise. The experience of Bernardine Evaristo is more typical of the career trajectory of a successful writer. The chapter also looks at ways in which studying creative writing is useful in a range of different careers. It describes the publishing industry and how this relates to the readers' own writing. The chapter also describes book-length work and mainstream publishing and includes other genres and areas of publishing. It provides a brief overview of the literary professionals that the readers will encounter when seeking a publisher for their work.
