Tell Me a Story: Question - How do I get published?

Thursday, 17 July 2008

Question - How do I get published?

Anthony, I'm not a writer, but have found myself writing a book. How do I get published?
I have looked on the interent, but there are so many publishing sites, I dont know what's good and what's not. Can you help ?

Clare, I'm afraid that as a new author you will need to live by the maxim to be not "As Good As" your favourite published authors. You have to be BETTER! The problem is, publishing houses will always go for the safe bet. They're in it to make money, not make you famous. They have a limited number of books they will publish each year. If yours isn't outstanding, I'm afraid you'll not get in, they'll reach for one of their stable of established authors.

To achieve this, you must first of all make sure your manuscript is as good as it can possibly be. Be absolutely certain you've tied all loose ends and make sure you've followed industry standards for presentation.

Edit out ALL unnecessary pronouns and adverbs - nothing screams amateur more than overblown descriptions. Most new writers feel they need to give full descriptions of everything in the book. DON'T. Sometimes what's left out says more than what's in....

When you've cut, cut, and cut; when you've polished it until it glistens, write a short query letter to your chosen publisher. Explain any experience you may have, the genre of the work, the word-count, and present a VERY short synopsis of about 100 words (see book blurbs for examples). Only present a full synopsis IF the publishing house asks you to submit the first three chapters.

In terms of an agent - it's almost as difficult to gain acceptance with a reputable agent as a publishing house. You must go through the same process.

You'll find lists of reputable agents and publishers in several trade oriented books such as Writers and Artist's Yearbook http://www.writersandartists.co.uk/ .