Self-Publishing - Publish a Book Today

Shortly after the release of your book to the planet market you sit by your laptop or computer, late at evening with all the lights out in your property, your family in bed sleeping and only the flickering mild of the display screen playing over your sad face as you verify the sales stats showing no sales of your book.

A good deal of men and women leap into self-publishing with the hopes and dreams of becoming the new Stephen King, only to locate that the real globe is considerably harder than they thought. Just because you can publish a book, supply it to almost every single living soul on the web, doesn't mean you will promote any copies of it. Having this in brain can make your publishing significantly less painful.

What can Self-Publishing Do for You?

The moment you know How to make a book and have printed your book you can of training course call by yourself printed author. Technically this is correct but the phrase printed author used by self-publishers is a thing frowned on by "real printed authors" having their printed books published by way of a publisher. This doesn't mean you can't say it!

Book quality is some thing some may care about and other individuals not. If you might be going for a printed book and practically nothing more, take some created material you may already have and string your texts together employing a program like OpenOffice. The moment you have adequate pages just slap an image of a cat on the front, give it a name, save it as a PDF and your ready to publish. No one particular will like the book and it will look like some thing the cat dragged in. This sort of self published books only final results in your name and reputation being linked with very low quality work, and that is not a very good point.

My advice is with no any doubt that you should put in some excellent hours of function, at least making an attempt to create some thing beneficial. You may well not have the best book out there nor the most innovative but if you at least format it nicely, create a table of contents, fabricate a great front page and do it all with some perception of criticism of what you're undertaking, you will at least stop up with a book readers can see you cared enough about to place in some perform. Then they will know that you in fact know How to make a book.

The ideal is of program if you can go all the way. Come up with a good idea, do research, plan the book, gather material, write and format and keep the quality up all the way via.

How to do Self-Publishing?

There are a range of internet sites on the web specializing in self-publishing. These web sites will help you How to make a book. They offer you you all the services you may need and can take care of your every need.

E-Publishing Bridges Gap between Writers and Readers

E- Publishing has emerged as a new genre of publication providing great platform to emerging writers and wide choices to readers. It refers to publication of all types of content such as books, articles.etc in a digital format. The main difference between, traditional publishing and e-publishing is in their pattern of format and distribution. Unlike traditional publication, e- books are available in download, disk, CD and print-on-demand formats. With the increasing popularity of internet usage by people of all ages for business, education, shopping and social interaction, internet has emerged as great promotional medium for all kind and sizes of businesses. It is the reason for fast paced growth of e pub services India. In the following article, advantages of e-publication over traditional means of publication have been analyzed.
Advantages of E-publishing
€ E- Publishing provide great platform to upcoming writers. If you have zeal to write and feel that your words create great impact, then e- publishing can help you to translate your hobby into your career. It takes very less time, money and efforts to publish books and other content through the medium of e pub services India. Unlike conventional print publishing which usually takes up two to three years for publishing , it takes only few weeks or few months to get your work E-published with the few exceptions in cases of established e- publishers.
€ It is also good platform for those writers who are irritated of traditional taboos associated with writing. Of course, the publisher will review your work and will not at all publish anything for money, still the writers get greater flexibility within writer/ publisher relationship in e-publication, which is least found in traditional publishing. Publishers and writers can negotiate on different aspects such as royalties, contact, advertisement and print rights for mutual benefits.
€ Not just for upcoming writers, e pub services India have also proved to be great for established writers. Internet is one of easiest and cheapest mediums of increasing revenues for any business. With the use of internet, you are able to share your books with a wide arena of national and international readers. E- Books are available 24* 7 around the world without demanding great efforts from the readers. In fact, with e- publishing, your book is possibly available forever, so you can earn from them for longer period. Just like printed books, these books have an ISBN number to make it easy for everyone to order books online.
€ E publishing promises great revenues to writers in terms of royalties. Many times, writers get 70% of profits in royalties because the only cost associated with such books are associated with publishing and cover design. You can earn substantial royalties as long as your books are sold on various web portals.
€ Reputed e publishers will publish your work in conformity with IDPF EPUB standard. EPUB is a free and open e-book standard by the international digital publishing forum designed for re-flowable content. It helps to enhance quality and increase credibility of your work among readers.
€ With introduction of multimedia elements such as graphics, animation, audio, short video clips, music or expandable photos, e-books can be enriched to provide enhanced reading experience.
In brief, e-pub services India is a great way to take up your writing career to the higher level. It provides right platform to budding writers and help existing writers to reach millions of readers. It truly bridges the gap between writers and readers.

3 Questions to Ask Before You Publish a book

You may wonder whether you should publish a book using a traditional publisher or by self publishing. Before you decide, answer the 3 questions in this article.

You're writing a book (or thinking of writing one), and the biggest question on your mind is whether to self publish a book or look for a traditional publisher. But how do you choose?

Thanks to modern technology, it is easier than ever to publish a book. This is both a blessing and a curse for the author who is considering which publishing method to choose.

The good news is that there are more publishing options now than ever. The bad news is that there are more choices than ever.

So how do you choose whether to self publish or seek traditional publishing? The three questions in this article will help you decide. Be sure to get crystal clear on your answers before proceeding.

1. What is the purpose for the book?

Knowing your purpose for writing the book won't in and of itself determine your publishing option, but without knowing your purpose, all other questions are moot.

Why you are writing the book is absolutely the first thing to consider. Everything else flows from the "why." Because for one thing, without a strong purpose, you'll probably never even finish writing a book let alone publish it.

If your purpose has to do with a dream of being blockbuster author, prepare yourself for plenty of work no matter how you publish a book.

2. What is the outcome you want to attain with your book?

Before looking at publishing options, it is a good idea to be clear about your goals for the book. Knowing the goal determines the steps you take.

There are numerous possible goals an author could have for creating the book. Writing a book simply to tell a story is very different from writing it to generate leads for a business. And writing the book to prosper a charity is another goal entirely.

Say your goal is extremely personal. An example would be telling the story of your family heritage to preserve it for future generations. Unless your family is noteworthy, the book is not likely to be something a traditional publisher would support.

So write down your goal for the book before deciding publishing options.

3. What is your level of commitment to the book?

No matter which way you go with publishing a book, it's important to know how much time and energy you are planning to commit to the book once it's published.

If your notion is to get the book published and see what happens, you are treating your book's success like a lottery ticket. Maybe you'll hit it big. Maybe not. If you look at the results this way, don't plan on gaining the support of a major publisher.

If you are willing to throw yourself heart and soul into growing a following (which publishers call a platform) and promoting the book, you are likely to grow your reputation as an expert no matter which publishing option you choose.

Get clear on your intentions before the book. Write down your desire, goals and expectations. Include your commitment, including time, energy and resources you will put into your book. Once you do this, you are ready to consider whether you will go through the arduous task of seeking a traditional publisher or whether you will self publish.

How Publishers Choose Manuscripts

How Publishers Choose Fiction Manuscripts For Print And Profit

Everyone has a story to tell, and common dream is to publish a book. This dream comes from many desires whether financially or popularity driven. The advent of the personal computer provides just enough motivation to get amateurs started on their ways to writing. The ease of computer word processing revolutionized the ease of writing, allowing for more would be writers.

With the avalanche of manuscript submissions the rules for acquiring books had to change. The publishing companies had to develop guidelines and redefine. To answer the problem, we have to find out how publishers choose fiction manuscripts for print and profit.
Background

With motivation to write being the driving force, it wasn’t uncommon fifteen years ago for potential authors to bang out manuscripts on word processors or electric typewriters. The Authors would go through a rewrite replacing as many pages as necessary. This rewrite might require running through whole chapters since a change to one paragraph would disrupt the numbering of sequential pages. Once finished, the author then had reedit several times before he had the perfect draft of the “world’s greatest novel”. A potential novelist might be thwarted by such as a daunting task, his story never put to paper.

To answer the current demand, around 5,000 publishing companies start up each year, and with that hopes of tremendous financial and literary success as they compete to fill shelf and cyberspace. According to R.R. Bowker Company (Cox 2000), 53,000 new book titles roll of the presses. The cold hard reality is that only three out of ten books actually make money for the publisher. The study of all publishers and how they need to do business to succeed would be exhausting and not condensed enough to fit into this presentation.

Publishing houses print basically two types of books: fiction, non-fiction. Non-fiction books cover biographies, self-help, how to, travel, and myriad genres too many to list. Likewise, fiction books cover mystery, religion, historical, horror, crime, and/or a combination of the above. I will report how fiction publishers compete for success in a fiction producing industry.
Method

Publishers seek a certain type of reader based on the genre they specialize in. For example, William D. Watkins, acquisitions editor of Broadman & Holman Publishing, reported in a 1998 writer’s conference that publishers of religious fiction seek their reading audience; 35-year-old women readers. However, not only does a publisher such as Bethany Books compete with publishers of the same genre, they have to entice this same audience out of the ever-popular self-help section of the bookstore.

However, before the printing, fiction writers send their earth shattering manuscripts to publishers. They want to be printed to satisfy their egos, earn money, gain notoriety, be a role model, or contribute to the literary treasury (McHugh, 1999). These authors compete against astronomical numbers of other manuscripts sent to the very same acquisitions editor.
Selection Criteria

The Acquisitions Editor has the huge job of being proactive in the writing market place. Authors seek many publishers because they are experts in the field which they publish. These experts/publishers break down the company into departments of fiction and non-fiction, and then by genre. An acquisitions editor may find himself working in a department or genre and will be proactive in finding new authors, researching the marketplace, negotiating contracts and developing books.

Cox also relates that the acquisitions editor is busy dealing with unsolicited manuscripts. This is a touchy area since not too many publishers want to risk the $10,000 to $18,000 it takes to publish book on an unknown or unpublished author. However, the very manuscripts they reject another company may accept and publish a best seller.

Celebrity used to sell books (Marks, 1998) now the trend has changed. Marks explained that between 1995 and 1998 the sales of hardback books have decreased 7.5 percent. The large book publishing companies who used to award million dollar contracts can no longer afford to do so. Smarter acquisitions are necessary.

The acquisitions editor must have a standard for selecting manuscripts and adhere to that strict set of rules. The manuscript must have believable characters and the writing must not be grammatically or technically flawed. The story needs to be perfect as the editor has little time to spend on sloppy writing. Finally, the manuscript must meet the standards of the publishing company. For example, Broadman and Holman Publishing Company does not want erotica or profanity and the Wilshire Publishing Company only wants stories that have characters overcoming insurmountable odds (Young 2000). Additionally, many Christian Publishers do not want angels to miraculously descend and rescue a heroine.
Salesmanship

Once he selects a manuscript, the acquisitions editor must be able to both sell his company to a likely author and sell an author to his company. According to McHugh, he might pitch author credentials, subject of book, the description of the work, marketing to targeted audience, finances and editorial development. This is the person most likely to make or break the success of his company.

If the acquisitions editor manages to sell the manuscript, the company must immediately begin a marketing plan. This shouldn’t be too difficult at this stage since the acquisitions editor probably included a marketing strategy shared by the proposing author or devised by himself. Early on, the publisher should satisfy questions of; who is the intended audience, where can we reach them, is the author willing to travel to sign the book, should the author travel, how much should the book cost, how many copies should we make? Cox also indicated that the lack of a good publicity will cause a literary masterpiece to fail.
Discussion

While these questions are probed, a selection committee is reviewing the manuscript to verify the acquisitions editor’s hunch. They also look for validity of the story and can the story sell to the intended audience. This committee of reviewers will have as much pull as the acquisitions editor as they share responsibility on book acceptance. This author managed to have a manuscript accepted by an acquisitions editor pending on the outcome of the review committee. The committee voted not to accept the manuscript. During the acquisitions process, the editor will rarely contact the author and may reject the manuscript without giving reason. This is due to the high volume of submissions.
Editorial Concerns

An examination of the writing process might find an inexperienced author with an idea just typing away. Later, as he continually researches his trade, he learns information about writing technicalities that force him to reconstruct his story. One frustrating mistakes new authors make is Point of View (POV). This term describes who is speaking and what they are feeling. Abusing POV in a story causes confusion for the reader.

Consider this example:

John and his party approached the top of the crest, as they wove through the underbrush. While still twenty yards from the clearing, John could make out Marta and another man carrying a pot. He heard threatening voices, but couldn’t discern what was said.

He and his warriors approached the clearing slowly, methodically. He knew he had the advantage of cover and concealment, but Angus had the high ground, and Marta. Short of a better plan, John dispersed his remaining three men to advantageous positions and had them ready their fire.
“You there, in the clearing. You are completely surrounded. Release the woman, and you won’t get hurt” he yelled, sounding like a scene from bad movie.

Marta’s eyes perked up and her heart beat with new life. “John!” she called out excitedly before being pulled down. “You guys are going to get it now.”

“Will you please just shut up!” Angus put his hand over her mouth while holding his pistol to her head. “Listen out there, maybe we can make a deal,” he said slowly rising, using Marta for cover.
John was fuming, barely in control. His fists clenched and unclenched with unbridled fury. It had been too much seeing them push Marta around, but now they hid behind her. He motioned for two warriors to remain, as he took one with him. His mind was working furiously, trying to keep ahead of Angus’s possible moves. He and his warrior would circle, flanking Angus. If his warriors were good enough, they may have a clean shot. “What kind of deal did you have in mind?” John shouted before changing positions.

How to Self-Publish a Book On a Shoestring Budget

Let's say you want to know how to self-publish a book, and you want to do it in the least expensive and best way possible. Is this contradictory?

In fact, on my web site at Write and Publish Your Book, the two questions I'm asked the most are how to self-publish a book and how to do it on a shoestring budget. They also, coincidentally, want to know the BEST way to do this.

But for now, let's focus on this question of the best and cheapest way to publish a book. In fact, these are two entirely separate questions. The first question is, "What is the best way to publish my book?" Then, the second question should be, "What is the cheapest way to publish my book?"

See, most people who ask me this question are really just new to the business. It's a perfectly legitimate question, especially if you've slaved over writing your book for two or three months (again, the timeline for writing a quality book is the subject of another essay). So let's take these two questions apart.

What is the best way to publish a book?

Write an outstanding, must-read book that is unique, provocative, controversial, a literary masterpiece, or is endorsed by someone like Oprah. No, really. That's the best way to publish a book.

Take for example Joseph Finder, author of the best selling corporate espionage book, Paranoia. He'd had moderate success with his previous well-written CIA suspense novels, but didn't hit it big until he inadvertently created an entirely new genre with Paranoia. In his words, "All I was doing was trying something new - a thriller with a fresh setting, a fresh cast of characters."

Or, how about Nora Raleigh Baskin, popular author of middle-grade novels such as In the Company of Crazies (HarperCollins). She'd had a knee-high stack of rejection letters until she wrote the book she'd always wanted to write - not because she wanted to be published, but because she wanted to write this particular book. That one book, which she wrote from her heart, got her on the road to a successful writing career.

Many people have a great idea for a book, and many of these books are from their life experiences. They have no experience as a writer, but the strange thing is that they almost always ask first about publishing the book before it's even written.

Even if they do ask how to self-publish a book, they're still thinking in terms of publishing their best seller before they've even determined if there is a market for the book!

For example, remember the story about the guy who had to saw his own arm off with a dull knife in order to save his life? Aron Ralston didn't just come up with the idea to write his book Between a Rock and a Hard Place. His story was popularized well before the book was ever written.

Contrast that with the woman who wants to write about her experiences with domestic violence. Unfortunately, this is not an unusual story. As much as I'd like to see an end to this horrible sickness, the story won't necessarily sell books.

And selling books is what it comes down to. Will your book sell? That's the ultimate question you need to answer if you want your book published. The question of the salability of your book applies whether you're self-publishing or attempting to sell your book to a publisher. Either way, it's got to sell or it just won't go anywhere.

That said, let's get back to the original question: What's the best way to publish my book?

Self-Publish or Traditional Publisher?

There's no easy answer to this question, and the answer you get will depend on who you ask. I think a lot of it depends on you, the genre of your book, your experience as a writer and in sales, and your intentions for the book.

Self-publishing is ideal for a business person who wants to use the book as part of his or her overall business strategy. It's a great way to establish yourself as an expert in your field (assuming the book is well-written and informative). The book can be "repurposed" into E-books, teleclasses (telephone conference-call classes), Webinars (seminars held on the phone and Internet), and eventually advanced courses sold for thousands of dollars. Thus, the book itself is printed at a loss and is generally given away to seminar attendees.

Self-publishing is also an option for novelists who really believe in their books, but because they're new can't find a publisher for the book. The key here is that you've at least tried to sell your book to a traditional publisher.

Self-publishing with an aim toward eventual publishing with a major publishing house will require a tremendous amount of energy and perseverance to market and sell your book. If you can show that the book sells, you'll find a publisher. Just putting it on Amazon won't do a thing. You absolutely must work at marketing your book.

There are many self-publishing options, ranging from "free" (Lulu) to several thousand dollars. Perhaps the worst option is to go with what's called "Vanity" press. These are companies who will publish your book for two to ten thousand dollars, print 2500 or more copies, and do a minimal amount of marketing. You're stuck with a garage full of books and an empty wallet. Beware those companies who want to print your book in bulk.

Lulu is the most popular, but has its own costs. Most of the books published on Lulu sell no more than 10 copies - total. The books are amateurish, with home-made covers that look like something the dog chewed. The book print quality is good, but the printing prices are steep. For a fee you can have an ISBN number assigned and the book listed on Amazon.

On the other hand, for just a little more money you can buy your own ISBN number and have your book printed at Lightning Source for far less money per book. You'll make your investment back with less than 100 books printed.

Then, there's everything in-between, including "Print on Demand" book publishers who will create the cover, edit your book, and format the interior of the book so that it looks professional. Some POD publishers simply publish your book as-is. You provide the cover and the interior formatting.

Just consider that you generally get what you pay for, although some POD publishers will charge you high fees for what loosely resembles a marketing plan. Make sure you compare the options closely.

Traditional Publishing

Expect rejection. Seriously, the vast majority of books submitted to both big and small traditional publishers (publishers who either pay you up front or don't ask for any up-front money from you) are rejected. It's a fact of life simply because they're in it to make money. If they don't think the book will sell, they'll reject it.

The best way to ensure success is to write a beautiful, clever, provocative, inspiring, brilliant book. No, let me take that back. The best way to ensure success is to already be someone popular, well-known, famous, or influential. Think Donald Trump, Bill Clinton, or Paris Hilton (dread the thought).

If you're writing a nonfiction book, it's best to be someone important, have a track record in sales, or have excellent credentials. If you're not any of these, then consider co-authoring your book with someone who fits the above criteria.

Also, for nonfiction or a memoir, do your marketing research beforehand. If you can go into your book proposal or query letter armed with documented proof that people are buying your type of book AND that yours has a interesting and unique twist on a highly relevant topic, then you'll get their attention.

You'll need to write an excellent proposal. I've charged thousands to write nonfiction book proposals (and I have a good track record of success). It takes time to write a compelling lead that draws them into the benefits of publishing your book, and following that with a comprehensive plan for marketing your book. For nonfiction, you should have two solid sample chapters written.

But what about writing fiction?

The first thing you'll need is a good, well-written, and interesting book. We recently had a novel writing contest at the site, and you'd be amazed at how many books had basic grammatical errors and were poorly written.

What are people thinking? Obviously, this isn't you. So, take your great book and write an even better query letter. You'll need to have your book written. Don't say that "it's almost done," or that "I'm thinking about writing..." Ideally you will have gone through about a dozen drafts of your book before you send it to anyone.

It's far easier to get your book published if you've already been published. But if you're new, don't worry. There are ways... and there are certainly ways to do it on a shoestring budget. You can have cheapest, and you can have best, but you're going to have to work at it to have both!

Book Publishing for Entrepreneurs

With this rapid pace of technology and increasing access to information, the world is a land of opportunities for those who have the knowledge. An individual in the 21st century has the opportunities to influence millions of people across the globe. Unfortunately, many do not know how to do it. Publishing a book is a great start.

When I wrote my first book, it took me two months to write and less than a year to get published (it normally takes 18 months to three years to get published). People were amazed at my publishing accomplishments. It changed my life. I was asked to speak at events. Co-workers wanted my advice. Audience wanted to listen to my messages. Since that time, I have given insights to thousands of people.

One of the fastest ways to influence others is by sharing your expertise in the form of writing. Can you afford not to use this method to beat your competition? Publishing a book provides one of the quickest ways to be recognized as a published author. Sadly, I know that most individuals will not see their material published. Most people do not possess that special internal motivation.

Gaining influence is therefore critical in achieving any substantial level of success in life. When an individual has a platform as a writer, people tend to listen. This article provides individuals with a proven method of getting published. You also gain more influence at work and in your community. This discussion is geared toward nonfiction in such areas as self-help, "how-to," biography, business subjects, management areas, and a host of information rich subjects. If you are an entrepreneur, business owner, consultant, a minister, lecturer, educator, professional speaker, politician, trainer, author, entrepreneur, or anyone else with a desire to share information, this article will help transform your dreams.

With the emergence of new publishing technology and easy access to the world via the Internet, the publishing world is in a state of constant change and uncertainty. Publishing is a business that most serious writers ignore. There are over 60,000 books being published annually. The mergers of the major publishers, the advent of the large booksellers such as Barnes & Nobles and Amazon.com, and niche marketing of small, independent publishers continue to reshape the industry standards. Contrary to popular beliefs, the majority of the books (over 53 percent) are purchased outside of the traditional bookstores. The major purpose for traditional publishers is to turn a profit. Therefore, they look for broad subject books with mass appeal.

In the past, the traditional path to publishing was (a) write a manuscript (book),
(b) locate a literary agent (your salesperson), (c) find the right publisher, (d) submit the manuscript for review, (e) receive publishing deal from publisher, and (f) get published and get paid. Times have changed. The major publishers continue to lose money. They can't afford to risk publishing an unknown writer. Therefore, large publishers prefer to: (a) publish proven, established writers, (b) celebrities, (c) mark key names, and (b) authors with a large, establish following. However, you can increase your publishing successfully with my simple nine steps, which are:

1. Determine Publishing Goals

A professional must first establish his or her publishing objectives. What do you hope to accomplish in publishing your book? Influence? Expertise? Wealth? It's important to answer this question upfront.

2. Establish Desired Outcomes

Determine what you expect as a result of publishing a book is critical. Many writers enter the publishing world with zero expectations.

3. Review other similar books

Evaluate similar books in your subject area. Determine to make your book better.

4. Set a deadline for book completion

Some "would be" authors have good intentions but never fulfill their dreams of being published. One of the key problems is failure to set a publishing deadline and completing it.

5. Write book manuscript aimed at a problem

Most novice authors write a book for themselves. Consider writing a book to solve a problem for others or a market problem. Everyday people are looking for solutions to their problems.

6. Develop a book marketing strategy

Many writers fail without a good plan. However, effective business people use a plan for implementing their business. Consider how you can best launch your book to your target readers.

7. Select the preferred publishing method

Authors should consider their preferred publishing method. The 21st century has provided an array of different methods for publishing. We prefer the outright control of the self-publishing approach or using a publishing portal. We call our approach Entrepreneur Publishing. Want to publish fast and effective? Please consider the following publishing portals: Xlibris (www.xlibris.com),Lulu (www.lulu.com), or Outskirtspress (www.outskirtspress.com).

8. Track book results and compare with desired outcome

Once the book is published continue to track your results against your desired outcome. Did you accomplish your goal? Continue to measure results.

9. Get feedback from target audience

Seek to improve your writing style and marketing. Get feedback from your readers when possible. It will help improve the quality of your books.

As an entrepreneur, gaining influence is important in the market. These nine steps provide you a publishing strategy. Being a published author will change your life. You can use your book to obtain royalties, get new business, and promote other products. You can also use it to indulge your ego, bolster your self-confidence, and gain the admiration of other people even become a celebrity. The sky is the limit. However, remember, the rewards you collect are based on your energy and your desire to do what it takes to make those rewards yours. Everyone has the potential to write a book. Don't let obstacles prevent you from reaching your dreams. Start today!

Getting Published: Publishing Tips and Advice

It appears that today everyone is a writer, and we all have the same dream. We all hope to someday be published. So as writers, where do we get started?

I suggest joining writing groups first and start seeking feedback that can help your career as a writer. It is most likely that your closest friends and family are telling you that your writing is the greatest thing since Steven King’s, and maybe it is, but it doesn't hurt to get some feedback from your fellow writers.

Once you are ready to take that plunge into the deep oceans of writing to see your work published for the first time, the best places to start are magazines and e-zines looking for calls for submission. For example, there are over 150 publishers listed on the Today's Woman Writing Community website, all looking for stories and poetry.

You are going to want to purchase a copy of Writer's Market that is published annually. This is an essential book for writers who are interested in publishing their work. You are also going to want to research your market. You are going to want to see just what kind of stories the magazine publishers are seeking. Each publisher will have specific guidelines to follow.

Offer your short stories for publication in their magazines, and be sure to list your other published work if any, and thank the editor for considering your work. If you are hoping to see your book published, some publishers will want you to send them your entire manuscript, while others may only want a query letter outlining your book proposal. Some may wish to see a few chapters from the book. If you're sending a full manuscript or sample chapters, always include an S.A.S.E. (Self Addressed Stamped Envelope) bearing sufficient postage with your submission. Present a cover letter that is professional. I suggest doing a Google search for query letter to give you some examples. If you are submitting by email, make sure that you follow the guidelines on the publisher’s website.

Stories posted on websites - are they personal or published?

In some cases, magazines will consider a story posted on your website or in an open community to be published. Therefore, they will not be able to claim first rights to it and most magazines, newspapers, etc. will not accept it as a submission. This will differ from publisher to publisher, and it is a very gray area. I suggest if you are submitting work that has already appeared on the web for publication, mention in the cover letter the forums or site where the story has been posted and let the editor make an informed decision.

Simultaneous Submissions?

There is a great debate in the writing community regarding simultaneous submissions. I have had a few interesting discussions myself. Some feel that it is the only way to get published quickly; others feel that it could lead to a bad reputation for you as a writer. This is due to the fact that publisher one will invest time in to reading your manuscript, only to find later it has been accepted by another publisher. I do encourage writers who wish to use simultaneous submission to advise the editors of it in their query letters.

Look over the contract:

Many first-time writers are so excited to just be published that they sign their name on anything without fully reading the contract. I can honestly say this is one mistake that I have made. Without carefully reading over the contract, you could sign yourself into a contract where for the next seven years you are bound to it and your publisher is reaping the rewards. Do not get trapped into this loop hole. Make sure you do an in-depth check into the background of any publisher. Once you send off your manuscript, now the fun comes. You sit and wait.

How long does it take?

It could take from 8 to 10 weeks to 8 to 10 months. Don't be discouraged by rejections; every writer gets rejected. Even Steven King was rejected. One published author says every story, on average, must be submitted to 100 markets before it is accepted.

You are going to want to know about rights, like first serial rights, etc. On Today's Woman under ‘writing lessons,’ there are some great articles that cover rights. Please be sure to check them out.

Getting published isn't easy. The editors get thousands of unsolicited Manuscripts a year. Don't give up. Start at the bottom and work up. I know some very talented writers who still aren't published. They've been trying for years. Writing is all about creating a name for yourself and that takes time.

If you are really eager about having your book published, you may wish to consider self-publishing or POD (print on demand) publishing. If you are considering this, I suggest developing a budget for publishing and advertising costs. You are going to want to shop around and look at the different prices of POD publishers or printing companies.