How Do I Get My Music Published?

This article is being simultaneously published on the Discipleship Ministries worship and music website and as the cover article for Christian Sound & Song (Issue No. 20, July 2004, pp. 6-9, 12). Christian Sound & Song includes articles on a wide range of topics, but is especially intended for contemporary music and musicians. Contact Editor-in-Chief Thomas LeFevre, 888-350-5502.

How does a composer or arranger go about actually publishing his or her music? What is the process of placing the music into the hands of a prospective publisher? What can I do to increase the chances of the publisher accepting my work? Are there things I should not do? This article will help answer those and other related questions. It is written from the point of view of sacred music intended for use in church worship, although much of it will apply to areas outside the church.

Which Works Shall I Submit?

Choose your best work. You know which of your works are the best and which are not. Think about beautiful, singable melodies; interesting harmonies; tunes that enhance the text; texts that are usable. Submit works that you would use in your own choir or church.

How many works shall I submit? Sending a full packet of scores to a publisher in the hope that one of your pieces will be selected is a sure way to encourage the publisher to give little consideration to any of it. Don't send more than three works at a time, and for some publishers, one might be better.

Select a publisher. Be selective in choosing a publisher to send your music to. Look at a publisher's catalog of offerings (usually available on a website) to determine the kinds and styles of music that publisher offers. It would make more sense to send a new praise and worship chorus to Hosanna-Integrity than to Oxford University Press. Look through your own church's music library for an idea of what the different publishers specialize in. Consult a variety of hymnals, both denominational and independent, to learn about general stylistic, theological, and liturgical content. Be aware that some publishers neither solicit nor accept works for consideration. Some publish only works by their own staff or contracted composers and arrangers. It is quite possible your manuscript will be returned unreviewed.

Work with a publisher for major works. If a publisher is going to invest its considerable time and expense in bringing a major work or collection into print, as well as standing the risk that it may not turn a profit, it is reasonable that the publisher will want to have a voice in the final product. Some publishers prefer to have one of its editors work closely with the composer throughout the conception, composition, editing process, while others will suggest changes to your work, sometimes significant. This is your decision to make. How collaborative do you want to be in order to have your work published? How many changes to your work are you willing to accept?

Seek the Advice and Opinion of Others

Is it usable? Show your work to others whose opinions you value and trust. Ask them to review or evaluate, soliciting their opinions of music, text, singability, range, difficulty, usability, and perhaps especially the question of whether or not they think musicians would purchase it.

Whose advice shall I solicit? Seek out music ministers, choir directors, organists and pianists, praise team leaders and members, choir singers, pastors, academic professors, music teachers, performers, composers and arrangers.

Art -- Expression -- Income

Why is this a conflict? Sometimes it is, sometimes it isn't. The question for you to answer is, Why do you want your music published? Do you see it as an artistic creation that should be shared with the world? Is it a vehicle for your own personal artistic, political, or theological expression (or some other kind) -- is it a way of your saying something? Do you want to make money from your music? Is it a means of furthering your professional standing or career? Is it a gift from God? All of these are good reasons for publishing music -- none are bad. But a publisher must make a profit and is less interested in your talent as a gift from God, or in your personal theological statement, than in the bottom line -- will it sell? Your hymn may, indeed, be a gift from God for the world, but if a publisher doesn't think it can make money from it, then it will likely be rejected. In almost every case, music publishers are not primarily evangelists. Understanding this fact, what follows are some points for you to consider if your aim is to compose music that a publisher can see as having the potential of making money.

Seasonal demands. Church music that sells is often seasonal: Advent, Christmas, Lent, Easter, and the other seasons and days of the liturgical year. Some publishers are always looking for sacred works that connect with the secular or civil calendar: Mother's Day, New Year's Day, Veterans Day, patriotic occasions, Memorial Day, Thanksgiving.

Medium. Take care with the musical forces required to perform your music. In the church there are fewer full symphony orchestras than there are brass quartets. A work for tuba, french horn, and accordion is more difficult to place than one for piano, oboe, and flute. There is less of a market for double-SATB choir than for SATB. What do publishers sell? They sell lots of works for choirs (unison, SA, SAB, and SATB), various handbell combinations, hymns and solo songs, children's and youth choir, praise team and praise band music, descants and alternate harmonizations for hymns, and prelude/postlude music for piano and organ. Does this mean you shouldn't submit something outside these media? No, but you must understand the issues of art, expression, gift-of-God and marketability.

Texts. Always seek texts of high quality. Examine them for historical accuracy, theological integrity, accuracy of quotation, appropriateness of language, artistic use of metaphor and imagery, and understandability. Publishers often welcome biblical texts, and congregations and choirs often enjoy singing familiar and favorite biblical passages. Strive for consistency of meter between stanzas; if a hymn is in 8.7.8.7. meter, avoid using words that may alter this. If the text is intended to rhyme, then seek exact rather than approximate or false rhymes.

Language. A text in Russian is harder to sell in North America than one in English. Spanish and Korean texts will be areas of growth for many US church music publishers in the coming years. Be aware of issues of inclusivity of language (pronoun genders), use of gender pronouns in referring to God or humankind, militaristic and war language, and racial and ethnic language. Some publishers are more sensitive to some or all of these issues than others.

Before Submitting, Check These Items

Copyright. There are a number of copyright considerations:

• Ownership. Is your work legal? Are you the original creator? Have you used the work of others; and, if so, have you obtained prior permission in writing to do so? Expect to enter into some kind of sharing of royalties if your work is a co-creation. Most publishers require the composer to clear all copyrights and permissions prior to submission, and to certify as part of your agreement that you have done so.
• Public domain. If you make use of previously published music that is now in the public domain, be certain of that fact and be prepared to demonstrate it to the publisher. In general (but not always), music published in the USA in 1922 and earlier is now public domain. Music published in 1923 and after is now protected under the Sonny Bono Copyright Term Extension Act of 1998, which extended the period of copyright protection from seventy-five to ninety-five years. The effect of this law is that no new works will enter the public domain until January 1, 2019.
• Many translations and versions of The Bible are protected by copyright and you must obtain permission to use them in your music. Use of a public domain version or your own legal paraphrase of biblical texts may avoid having to do this.
• A useful chart with copyright and public domain information is available here. Other resources are available on the Discipleship Ministries worship website.
• If you have registered your work with the U.S. Copyright Office, be sure your publisher knows this.
• It is acceptable though unnecessary for you to place a copyright clause on your work submitted to a publisher. If you do, keep it simple: Copyright -- 2004 Dean B. McIntyre.

Proper attribution. Be sure to include the name of any co-creators: composer, author, arranger, translator.

Musical errors. Common errors in scores submitted include the following:

• incorrectly spelled accidentals or chords
• improper rhythmic alignment
• missing sections, staves, lines, phrases
• misnumbered pages or bars
• mislabeled staves (which instrument or voice?)
• check phrasing, slurring, articulation, dynamics, text spelling

Is your work finished? Have you completed your composition? Are you ready for it to be sold in its present form? Don't expect the publisher to complete or edit it, although the publisher may, indeed, make suggestions for changes. Don't expect the publisher to be your proofreader. Some publishers will accept a work in progress as an opportunity to consider whether it will fit into their publishing plan. Some will welcome the opportunity to have a role in the creative process, especially if it is a major work or collection.

The condition of your manuscript. Submit a clean, clear copy, free of stains, smudges, and incomplete erasures.

What to Submit

Original or copy? Submit a paper copy. Do not send your original. Do not send your only copy -- be sure to keep the original or a copy in your file.

Handwritten or engraved? Either is acceptable, but a handwritten score should be well done. If your hand manuscript skills are lacking, consider paying someone to set your score using one of the available software programs.

Which program to use? The most popular among composers are Sibelius, Finale, Score, and Encore. Publishers use a variety of programs. Do not submit a disk containing your score unless you have cleared it with or have been requested to do so by the publisher.

Recordings? Do not submit a CD or tape unless requested to do so. If you have an .mp3 or MIDI file available on a website, provide that information and the URL to the publisher. Some publishers welcome a CD because it saves time, and including one may place your work in a "first look" stack rather than a "later look" stack. Check with the publisher.

Brief letter of introduction and submission. Write a brief paragraph saying you are including your work for publication consideration. Do not provide a description of the work or what you see as its strong points and selling features -- the publisher will determine those and will not overlook any. Include your full name and contact information, date, and original signature. Your message doesn't need to be more than two or three sentences.

Information sheet. Include a separate sheet immediately preceding the first page of your work. On it include the following:

• title
• instrumentation (voicing, instruments, accompaniment)
• composer, lyricist, arranger, translator
• existing copyrights and evidence that you have obtained permission to use and publish
• performance suggestions, if any
• your name, address, telephone number, e-mail address, fax number, website URL
• your performance rights organization, if any (ASCAP, BMI)
• if you have an .mp3 or MIDI file available on a website, include URL
• any brief biographical information you'd like to submit

Sending Your Work to the Publisher

• Send your work unfolded in a strong, properly sealed envelope.
• Apply sufficient postage.
• Include your full return address.
• Use the correct publisher address. This can often be found on the published music of the publisher, or on a website. Many church music publisher websites are linked from the Discipleship Ministries website. Others may be found at www.mpa.org. You can also do an individual search for a particular publisher on Google.
• Do not submit via the internet unless requested or previously approved.
• Keep a record of your works submitted to publishers: date submitted, publisher name and address, date mailed, title, date receipt acknowledged, date accepted or rejected. Not only does this provide you with an accurate record, but it also keeps you from wondering if you have previously submitted a work to a publisher.
• Send one work (or a very few works) to only one publisher at a time. Do not send your work simultaneously to more than one publisher. If a publisher takes the time to consider your submission and decides to accept it, only to be told that you have already placed it with another publisher, then that publisher may be reluctant to consider future submissions from you. If you submit a work to a publisher, be prepared to follow through with an agreement.

Wait Patiently

• Most publishers will acknowledge receipt of your work in writing and will then take the time they need to consider it, often a period of months.
• If you have not heard from them in three months, send a postal letter of inquiry.
• Publishers have different methods of considering submissions, and these may involve making copies and mailing to an editorial committee. It may involve waiting on a periodic meeting of a committee that considers submissions. Again, be patient.
• Most publishers will either send you a letter of acceptance, an offer to consider changes to your work, or a rejection letter. If rejected, you will usually receive your work back.
• If your work is rejected, select another publisher and repeat the process. It is not unusual to go through many publisher submissions before your work is accepted. Do not take a rejection as a statement on the quality of your music. It may simply mean that they have no place in their catalog for that particular work.
• If your work is rejected, do not expect the publisher to give you a reason why, although it might. Do not expect the publisher to give you a critique of your work, or to make suggested changes that might make your work more desirable to the publisher.
• If your work is accepted for publication, you will receive an agreement to sign. Be sure to examine it carefully (or have it examined by a lawyer or expert) before signing and returning it.