Getting published means years of mental and physical anguish accompanied by subsequent points of elation as you succeed in passing each publishing barrier. One needs to be, number one, gifted in the art of writing, as well as stubborn and tenacious about his/her work, because the duration of the publishing effort typically lasts between six months to three years - and that's if you're lucky. I am not here to harp on this often exasperating and frustrating process, but perhaps I can help guide you through the land mines and trenches set up by your greatest friend or your worst enemy - the publisher. Let me provide you with a few steps that may assist you.
First, complete your story or novel before sending out any queries to publishers or literary agents and research the publishing market for your genre. Canvassing all publishers utilizing the “blunderbuss” approach is rarely effective. Publications such as the Writer's Market are invaluable, listing publishers' names, addresses, contact information, query requirements and applicable genres. Do your research. Don't target a publisher of western novels for your fantasy; that's a rejection waiting to happen and don't ignore smaller publishers, as well. Have a strategy before you send out any queries at all.
Second, compose a good query letter. Provide the publisher with a short description of your novel, along with a single paragraph about yourself as a writer. The query should be brief, no longer than a page in length and elicit the publisher's interest in your completed story from the very beginning. The publisher is sent hundreds, sometimes thousands, of queries in a month and is frequently too busy to read a lengthy presentation. Rather than wade through your prose, the publisher will probably send you a rejection, instead. Make sure you conform to the publisher's query requirements and be mentally prepared to get quite a few rejections; you will receive them.
Third, you play the “wait and see” game. Once a publisher has accepted your query, they typically request to see more of your work. Scrambling to put your manuscript together, you stuff it into a neat little package with a brief cover letter, paste about a hundred stamps on the envelope and with a kiss and a prayer, you send it off to the publisher, certain you have just presented him with a new best seller! Unfortunately, your manuscript is probably just one of hundreds that each publisher receives and it may be months, perhaps even a year or longer, before the publisher finally reads your work and sends you some sort of response. Although you can almost see that publishing contract and huge advance check in your hand, be prepared to gather quite a few cobwebs and grow a very long white beard before you receive any response from the publisher at all. This is frustratingly normal.
By now, you may be sitting there thinking, “If publishing is this hard, then why do it?” The answer is simple: “Because I love it!” That's right. I love writing, the whole writing-to-publishing process. It's the love of writing that keeps a good writer going and propels him/her to the best sellers list. To morph a phrase from the movie, Sister Act,
“If you wake up in the morning and all you can think of is [writing], then that's what you're supposed to be!”
Getting your story or novel published can be one of the most frustrating, agonizing, nail biting, suspenseful, marvelous and triumphant experiences a writer ever encounters. The writing-to-publishing process shows your depth of character, your willingness to persevere against almost incredible odds. For those writers who succeed, this will be the ride of a lifetime. So, finish your writing masterpiece, send out those queries - then hang on tight!
