How to Get Published

A Rerun

by Al Kalar

“The bad guy is never a villain in his own eyes.”

There were some other things I wanted to address before we got here, but I noticed that we haven’t gotten into any of the “fun” stuff. So, I’ll skip a few things (we’ll get back to them) and get into the actual writing.

Every story needs to start somewhere. So does a report or a textbook.

Reports and textbooks should probably start out with the “tell ‘em what you’re gonna tell ‘em” (especially the report). However, if you can start out with a story, even if it’s just an anecdote, you’ll get more interest; especially from a bored student.

Unless you have a loyal following of fans, your start is going to help to sell your book or kill a sale. Remember, we’re learning how to write a “salable” book. If it won’t sell, you may as well go to a vanity press, have a few copies printed and give them to your friends and relatives. If you want to be a real-live “author” your stuff needs to sell. Read the rest of this entry »

A Rerun

By Al Kalar

“No battle plan survives contact with the enemy”. - Generalfeldmarschall Helmuth von Moltke the Elder

We’ll get back to this quote.

Fine. You know who your audience is, you can write well in your chosen language, and you know why you are writing your book (or pamphlet). Now we can start in on the elements of your story.

Developing Plot and characters

Mapping

Some authors know where they are going and how they plan to get there. These “super writers” can carry around a complicated plot in their heads along with all the twists and turns they intend to include.

But most of us in the mundane world of scrivening are better off if we make a “map” of our plot. Read the rest of this entry »

A Rerun

by Al Kalar

“Writing is not necessarily something to be ashamed of - but do it in private and wash your hands afterward.” -Robert Heinlein

Point of View (POV)

How are you going to tell your tale? Through who’s eyes will the reader see and experience what is happening? This is an important decision, because you must be consistent throughout your book.

There are three main methods of telling a story: Read the rest of this entry »

by Al Kalar

Writing is easy, “All you do is sit down at a typewriter and open a vein.” - Red Smith

Language

Know your language and its requirements. Grammar and spelling. If you flunked your language classes in school, it’s time to go back to school or hire a ghostwriter.

If you don’t know your language requirements, this blog isn’t going to help you learn. That’s another huge body of knowledge that is best addressed by educators and schools.

Purpose

Why are you writing this? If you don’t know where you’re going, Read the rest of this entry »

A Rerun

By Al Kalar

Introduction to the Series

Working for an eBook publisher as an acquisitions editor, I see a lot of manuscripts cross my “IN” basket. Many of them have a good story yarn or an interesting subject matter, but most of them are not written with sales in mind.

Some of the problems are because the writer is using a technique s/he saw in the writings of a popular author. What a new writer has to remember is that s/he is not a popular writer — yet. Popular writers can get away with a few bad techniques because their fans will buy their books anyway. Professors can write poor text books because they can require them for their course.

Most of the problems I see are a combination of poor English skills and problems in the construction of the manuscript (the order and manner in which the piece is written). Read the rest of this entry »

by John Bowers

It seems that more and more people are taking up writing every day. Many of these new would-be authors are people with careers who haven’t attended an English class in decades. What they learned about grammar in high school, if anything, has long since faded from their memory.  Yet some of them are pretty good story tellers, and as such deserve a decent chance at publication.

Unfortunately, for most of them it will never happen, simply because they don’t possess the mechanical skills to get their work reviewed. Visit the workshops or read the slush piles and you’ll be amazed at some of the mistakes new authors (and even some published authors) make. While the stories are sometimes pretty good, the nuts and bolts of grammar and punctuation are missing. There seems to be a lot of confusion about exactly how to format a story. Read the rest of this entry »

by Jeff Rivera

Many writers have been struggling for years to find an agent and they’ve tried everything. They’re starting to think that they’ll never get one, or that there’s some kind of universal conspiracy against them and they’re wondering why.

If you still haven’t landed an agent or know someone who hasn’t, listen up. I’m about to tell you exactly why and what you can do about it, to change things today.

As someone who deals with hundreds of agents every year, who’s constantly on the phone with top editors and publishers and authors from James Patterson to Nicholas Sparks to Janet Evanovich to David Baldacci, I hear first-hand what successful people in the industry have done to separate them from the pack and why they’re successful and others are not. Read the rest of this entry »

by Jeff Rivera

Everyday I’m on the phone with top agencies and literary agents that would have most writers salivating. They tell me on the down-low exactly what they’re looking for in a writer and some of the inside secrets in getting them, to sign you. I thought I might share with you a few of the genres that they are dying for right now:

1) Middle Grade - If you write middle grade fiction and have a unique funny voice, agents will be ringing down your phone. Especially, if you write books for boys 9 -11 that are funny, funny, funny. “Stay away from bathroom humor,” one agent who just sold a 3-book deal for her client said,” but let’s face it, some of the biggest selling boy books are full of farts, snot, and talking butts” (literally). Read the rest of this entry »

by Al Kalar

Last week I was talking with Christine Golden, Editor in Chief of Golden Visions Magazine (science fiction short stories). During the discussion, we found we regularly encounter some of the same problems in manuscripts.

1. Redundant speech tags.

John shook his finger in my face. “You need to straighten up and fly right, flunky, or you’ll find yourself without a job,” John said.

There’s absolutely no reason for “John said”. We already know who’s speaking because of the first sentence. Read the rest of this entry »

by Jerry Simmons

The Future of Print Books

Forget the doomsday scenario; printed books are not going away. Their relevance in the market is going to diminish over time, but there will always be printed books.

The biggest publishers are struggling with the notion that within the next few years, the major chains may well disappear. As sales continue to decline, the two largest bookstore chains in America are barely hanging on and all indications seem to be that both are on the verge of insolvency. Read the rest of this entry »