Have you ever thought about publishing a book? If so, know that it is a challenging feat, yet following some easy tips will make it all fall into place. Turning over a new leaf or doing something totally off your radar involves time, learning, and motivation.
- Tip #1 Understand Traditional Publishing (Getting a Literary Agent and a Publisher) versus Self Publishing (publishing on your own.)
- Tip #2 Understand traditional publishers don't care if you have written a book; they only care about the ideas you have for your book. Traditional publishers want to be involved with helping you write and edit your book, help you choose the title, and they will provide some of the marketing.
- Tip #3 Once you choose the traditional route, the first step is to think about your story and what you want to write about. Next, write a Query Letter to find an interested literary agent. Jane Friedman is the Publishing Guru online, and her article on writing Query Letters seeking a literary agent is a good read. https://www.janefriedman.com/query-letters/
- Tip #4 When you choose self-publishing, you will want to take a look at this article https://www.janefriedman.com/should-you-self-publish-traditional/
- Tip #5 Make an outline for the book you want to write
- Tip #6 Read the outline outloud
- Tip #7 Get a program such as Grammarly to help you edit your work. It is much cheaper than an editor, and you will improve your writing skills. If you cannot afford a program or an editor, find a friend who is a natural at punctuation, grammar, and editing, and see if they will be a resource to help you. https://www.grammarly.com/
- Tip #8 Once you get words down, ask yourself why you think your story is so unique that you would have an audience for your book
- Tip #9 Build up your social media followers. Most unpublished authors want to realize that with a social media platform and followers, it will be easier to get the word out about your book. So feel free to sign up for Facebook, twitter, Instagram, youtube, and even TikTok. Without a following, you have no readers that will know about you and your book.
- Tip #10 Get a journal and start writing, take a beginner's class in creative writing, open up your heart and let your story out.