Getting a book published??

[tinkerbell41]

Anyone out there know how to get a book published??? Where to start? I figured I'd ask here first.
I have thought about it for 30+ yrs. My mom always pushed me to do it, she is gone now.
I have always told my co-workers I would be writing one, I just never could come up with the subject, or how to start. I had a lightbulb moment today, never happened before and I'm ready.
I've been typing like mad the words are just flowing, took a little break to reorganize my thoughts.

[Posteritatis]

1. The answer depends wildly on the nature of the book (nt)

[tabbycat31]

2. www.lulu.com

[Tangerine LaBamba]

9. That's self-publishing -

I thought the OP was about the real publishing industry - the kind who pay you to put out your book, not the other way around.

Self-publishing is printing, not publishing.

Money makes all the difference....................

[Posteritatis]

13. Lulu's not a vanity press; they obey Yog's Law. (nt)

[Tangerine LaBamba]

15. That's a good law -

I'd never heard of it before. I totally approve of it.

But, it's not publishing, not as I'm used to it. In the real publishing world, you get paid for your ms, and the publisher undertakes all the expenses of publication, including advertising and distribution.

When you pay someone to print your work, without any chance of rejection (and we all know what a character-builder rejection can be :sarcasm:), it's printing, not publishing....................

[Posteritatis]

18. You don't pay them to print your work. (nt)

[Tangerine LaBamba]

21. That's not what I got from the site n/t

[Posteritatis]

22. What you think you got from the site is wrong, then. (nt)

[Tangerine LaBamba]

24. No, I'm right -

This is what I read:

"...you set your own price, we print and ship each item as it's ordered, and you collect 80% of the creator revenue on every sale."

http://www.lulu.com/en/about/firsttime.php

They're charging you 20% of whatever sale you might make.

That is one really nifty vanity press. Very slick. But, that's why they call it "self-publishing," and not "publishing."

You pay to get your "book published," when, in reality, you're paying to have it printed. That's all..................

[Posteritatis]

25. And real publishers don't get any money from the books they sell?

Tell me another one.

[Tangerine LaBamba]

26. I get paid for my work -

that's the basic difference.

You're so terse..............

[Lisa0825]

3. Here are some tips from an author...

http://www.dailycoyote.net/?p=1088

[Norrin Radd]

4. Get an agent.

[Missy Vixen]

5. tinkerbell, I have some questions for you

Fiction, or non-fiction?

Fiction: You will have to finish the book before you can do anything else.

Non-fiction: It's possible to query editors/agents with three chapters and a synopsis. (Think "what's the book about?")

There are a lot of do's and don'ts, and a definite system to follow. If you'd like more information, PM me. I am an author. I hang around with other authors. ;-)

Mostly, it's one page at a time. Just write the book, and worry about the other stuff when you're done.

You can do this!
-MV

[tinkerbell41]

7. Thanks

Non-Fiction. I have been planning it for a long time like I said, I just finally figured out how to put it together where it is a story, inspirational, type thing. I could never quite figure out how to do the story. Someone posed a question today about how does one become fulfilled and it sparked something and I can't let it go.

[Mrs. Overall]

14. If your book is going to be a series of essays or if you have chapters that stand alone,

you may want to consider sending out the individual pieces first. If you build up a publication history, then you can actually approach presses without an agent, and in some cases, presses may actually approach you.

Some places to start sending individual non-fiction pieces:

Utne Reader
Georgia Review
Indiana Review
Calyx
Crab Creek Review
Crab Orchard Review
Fourth Genre: Explorations in Nonfiction
The Gettysburg Review
Gulf Coast
Harper's
Hayden's Ferry Review
The Iowa Review
The Kenyon Review
Michigan Quarterly Review
Mid-American Review
The Missouri Review
New Letters
The North American Review
Northern Lights
The Paris Review
Ploughshares
Prairie Schooner
The Seattle Review
The Seneca Review
Shenandoah
The Sewanee Review
The Sun
Atlantic Monthly
Bellingham Review
Boulevard

Go to the individual websites of each journal and click on "submissions" and you can read their guidelines about exactly how to submit your essays/excerpts.

Also, be sure you write a good cover letter (there are many websites that give examples of a standard cover letter).

Be cautious of publishing in online e-zines when you are first starting out. Print publications are an excellent way to build up a reputation.

Best of luck!

[Tangerine LaBamba]

11. You are such a

sweetheart, for someone with such a trampy name.............

:hi:

[Missy Vixen]

17. LOL, Tangerine!

I have had so much help, I have a karmic obligation to help others. ;-)

One of the better things the OP could do is look into joining Romance Writers of America. We have many members that do not write romance, for instance. (Try James Patterson.) We get a ton of mentorship, advice, workshops, etcetera, for $95 a year. There are many local chapters; it's possible to join one of them and get answers to all her questions in short order.

Mostly, it's writing every day, it's finishing your book, it's having the spine to endure rejection, and the persistence to get up again after you fall down. A million times.

:hi:
:hug:

[Tangerine LaBamba]

20. Truly, kiddo, truly -

one of the things my agent told me when my first book was rejected by everyone was "I have never seen such amazing rejection letters." They kept saying how great my work was, but they just couldn't figure out what they might do with it. I told her it was like being a defense lawyer whose client was just sentenced to death, but the jury says to you, "You were great, though!"

And here's why you need a good agent, one located in Manhattan, who does business at lunch with editors: she knew that an editor at one publishing house was about to move to a high-up vice-president job at HarperCollins, so she pulled back with my ms and waited until the move was made. Then she submitted it to the new vice-president, who loved it and bought it immediately - no going through editorial review boards - she had that kind of budget and discretion.

How's THAT for smart?

I belong to the Authors Guild, and I'm not sure that they offer anything for beginning writers. I'm one of their volunteer legal advisers, and it's a very good outfit, but only for published authors. I'll PM the OP and offer whatever help I can. That's sort of our duty, isn't it?

You are so right, though - as I tried to tell the OP - it's that you have to do the writing or explode. That you can't live unless you write that story that's in your head. I don't write every day, but if I couldn't put those stories, those characters, to paper, I'd be only half a human being.

And rejection - well, it builds character, doesn't it?

You're still a doll, in spite of that .......... well, you know............

[pnwmom]

6. You start with writing the whole book. And then rewriting it.

(Assuming you're writing fiction.) Find a local group of writers to work with-- there are all kinds of writers organizations. When it's ready, they'll help you figure out what to do with it.

[Tangerine LaBamba]

8. You'll need an agent, because

you can't get a publisher to look at anything unless you're represented by an agent.

And it's harder to get an agent, I am told, than it is to get published.

Perhaps it would be best to focus on writing a good ms, producing a work of which you can be proud, before you start thinking about publication, because if you're going to write just because you want to get it published, you're pushing water uphill.

Write it because you won't be able to breathe unless you do it..................

[taterguy]

10. First stop should be a library

Research what publishers put out books similar to the one you're planning.

Find their manuscript guidelines and follow them.

Send your proposal in packaging that's easy to open. You don't want your first impression to be that you're a pain in the ass to deal with.

It also might be helpful to see what Writers Groups and other networking opportunities there are in your area. Being known to decision makers isn't a requirement for being published but it can be very helpful.

[tomreedtoon]

12. Do NOT do self-publishing.

If your book idea and your writing is sound, someone will pay you to publish your book. Self-publishing, or "vanity" publishing, is a trap to drain you of your money.

Also, watch out for the kind of scams that operate in publishing. Although you're writing nonfiction, a story from the writers of science fiction is illustrative of the kind of crap new writers go through. It's called "Excuse me, how much did it cost you?" and explains how writers are easily cheated.

http://www.sfwa.org/writing/anti-scam.htm

[Dora]

16. I work for a book publisher and I am happy to answer any specific questions.

There are some well-intentioned but outdated or misinformed opinions in this thread.

My first advice to you is to focus on your writing right now. Researching your publishing options should be a low priority while you're writing. Don't be distracted from your vision by filling your head with concerns about contracts, or the different publishing choices that are available to you.

The entire book publishing industry is in a recession-related slump right now, and technological advances are making it necessary for book publishers to adjust their publishing models. Not enough time has passed to weed out what works from what doesn't, so some publishers are being cautious while others are being experimental.

About me: I work for a university press that publishes 100-ish books per year, along with 10-ish journals. We sell primarily to libraries and students for textbook use, but we also have a fantastic regional publishing program, along with some significant trade successes over the 50 years of our existence.

You can ask me questions here, or via PM if you'd like. I will respect any and all information you share with me as your idea and your intellectual property.

Added on edit: As a university press, most of our books come to us directly from the author who wrote it, or sometimes mss come from an outside book series editor that is acquainted with the author and his/her research. We do have some projects that come to us through an agent, but those are very few. We prefer not to deal with agents as they complicate negotiations and ultimately increase the cost of publication, but we will if necessary. Most trade publishers will only consider mss that come to them through agents.

[graywarrior]

19. Get a literary agent.

If it's fiction, submit first three chapters to agent.
If it's non-fiction, you need to do a query letter and follow directions of agent.

You can find multiple literary agents online. After you know your genre, you can read the guidelines of each agent and follow them to the tee. Some will allow you to mail your proposals/chapters to others agents, others will want to hold your transcripts until they are done with them and prevent you from contacting other agents at the same time. There are strict guidelines. No publisher will read your book without an introduction from another writer or a literary agent.

You will need to send your transcripts to hundreds of agents before you get a positive response, IF you get a positive one.

Be prepared to turn your creation over to someone else who will request rewrite after rewrite.

I helped a friend get her book published a few years ago. It was a lot of work.

[mitchum]

23. Get involved in a scandal