Have you written a book had it published?

Sparkles,

Here's what I give everyone who wants to write or asks about writing for publication. It's a long list, but it's not hard once you put you mind to it.

Poetry and children's books are very hard to break into right now, unless you've been on the published list before. Don't let this scare you away from writing. This will just help a want to be writer to follow the guidelines set down from publisher, editors and literary agents.

Read on:

Writing a book takes more than just sitting down and putting your idea into words. There are a lot of things that you have to consider.

Keep an eye out for spelling and grammar errors. When typing fast with fresh ideas in our heads, we tend to forget ourselves. Check and recheck your work. Editors are very expensive these days.

You’ll need to know how to write an effective ‘query letter’ to a literary agent. The letter will also include a synopsis that will hold the interest of the agent, and want to make him or her ask for the first three chapters of your work. Never send a manuscript to a publisher or literary agent without querying first.

You’ll need to know how to format your manuscript. This includes the fonts (size and type) that most agents, editors, and publishers want. These are usually Courier New and Times New Roman (12 pt). Short stories and novels are formatted differently. You will need to follow submission guidelines just as they are laid down for your submissions. Anything less will result in your manuscript sent back or destroyed unread.

You will need to know what Point of View (POV) is. Know how to write in First Person Point of View. You’ll need to know the can and can not of each.

Do you know how to write dialogue? How to format dialogue? This is very important and allows the author and his/her characters to communicate with the reader. Remember dialect as well. Dialect is how a person speaks. Your characters may be highly educated or dumber than dishwater. ‘Ain’t got none’ is highly acceptable when used properly by a character who is even less than street smart.

It’s a good idea to know some of the publishing laws. The use of names and places.

These include

o Delivery Of Satisfactory Copy

o Permission for Copyrighted Material

o Grant Of Rights

o Proofreading and Author's Corrections

o Advances and Royalties

o Author's Warranties and Indemnities

o Copies to Author

o Option Clause

Learn how to get a ‘word count of your work. Some novels have a prologue and an epilogue. You’ll need to know how to write them and why they’re used.

Know what the word ‘genre’ means. Horror, Mystery, Science Fiction; These are all genres.

One of the most important issues in manuscript submitting is the proper ‘page set up’ for your work. This includes margins, indents, and paragraphs. Most editors will want to see your manuscript double spaced. This allows the editor to use his/her proofreaders marks between the lines. Most margins will be one inch all around with a ragged right margin and an even left.

Are you prepared to do a lot of ‘research’ involving your work? Remember that many professionals such as, doctors, lawyers, nurses, public accountants, judges, architects, bricklayers, engineers, and police officers read, too.

Do you know what a sub-plot is? This is a plot that comes ‘under’ the main plot. The hero may be after the vampire, but the mob may be after the hero as well. This is a sub-plot.

Can you take rejection and constructive criticism? If you’re easily hurt in the feelings department, then writing may not be your forte. Critics will tear you apart or build you up. The best writers in the world “King, Patterson, Koontz, J.K. Rowling, and many others” have been torn up one side and down the other. You can’t please everyone.

If you decide to hire an editor, remember: Your manuscript will be double spaced, which means there will be twice as many pages. A 600 page novel could cost you around $1800.00, some even more depending on what the editor charges per page.

These are the things you must know to work at your craft. But don’t let these things deter you from writing. There are books in libraries and bookstores that can teach you all of these things. Buying these books (if you want to be a serious writer) is the best thing to do. Why? Well, because you can use a yellow marker to highlight all the points of interest. Then you can use the front of the book to make page references to those markings in order to check back on them at a later date, when you need to.

You’ll need to get a copy of Writer’s Market for the current year. This has literary agents whom you can send out query letters to. Some of them allow email queries. They also have a website. Google: Writer’s Market.

I wish you the best of luck!

Your best bet, given what you stated, would be to concentrate on your poetry. Memoirs aren't going to sell unless you're someone who already has name recognition.

Your first step, I strongly believe, is to join a critique group with other poetry writers. Look for a group that will help you improve your writing... not one where the typical response to your work is "This is so cool!" (That feels good for a moment but won't help you improve.)

Research the market for poetry. Pick up other books of poetry and see who published the book, and read the poetry inside to see what kind of work that publisher accepts. Then write to the publisher (or visit their website) to obtain a copy of their guidelines.

I do NOT recommend self-publishing. You'll end up with a pretty bound volume of your work, but no marketing, no promotion, no sales. Self-publishing success stories are extremely rare. The only time self-publishing is a good idea is if the author is a speaker addressing large groups of people where he/she can sell their books at those venues.

I am working on a series of novels for Christian teens. I'm looking for an agent, but have been able to get the first novel "in committee" at a publishing house. Getting a book published the right way takes a lot of work and dedication, but in the end you'll be a lot happier with the whole experience.

I wrote a novel about 10 years ago, though I never tried to have it published.

If you have ambitions in that area, I would recommend you buy a copy of The Writers And Artists Yearbook. It is published annually and you can ghet it at WH Smiths.

Apart from listing all book and magazine publishers, there are lots of little tips and ideas. It will give you a good grounding in the realities of the publishing world!

Good luck.

hello sparkles,good question,not had one published but I'm writing one now or should i say Ive been on it on and off over several years,its good that you write your thoughts and memories down,poetry also,never trust the brain to remember things the way it happens cos it wont,human nature takes over and messes with the plot,i find that if i write a timeline down and insert the memory in the right timeframe it helps put every thing else in place,thoughts and your poetry can be added as and when,the important thingsin your life need to be as accurate as poss hence a timeline,good luck and keep on top of it,

I have wrote a book on music from the 1500s to the 1600s

iv got two books i wrote published. they are books full of short horror stories. titles are Short but scary stories to read at bedtime, and, The Bait scary stories that will make you want to read more. they are both on www.publishamerica.com under my pen name Michelle Patricia Noble. now how i did it was titled each one of the stories and put all of them on one thing and sent them all together to my publisher. now poetry is hard to get published. the two books i have published have poems in the back of them. i tried but couldn't get my poems published in a book by themselves. they said i had to have at least 100 pages worth of poems. i hope that helps you a little bit.

Thats a good question sparky. I would move to write a book and tell all my stories and what i have done so far in life.

no i haven't been published but i'm writting a book. you just have to decide how it fits and put it together or keep at as a bunch of seperate little articles.

I've never had a book published, but I've had several songs published.

No, but I've thought about it, all those true life stories are raking it in just now Sparks!