Truth about Publishing
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The Truth About Publishing – 7
Lesson 6: Get advice – from professionalsIs my writing any good? My friends and family loved it, yet publishers keep rejecting my manuscripts and won’t say why. Or worse, they don’t respond at all. What’s the matter? Why won’t they tell me anything? What am I supposed to do now?There are a number of reasons why publishers won’t tell you…
The Truth About Publishing – 6
Lesson 5: Why most writers never get publishedIf you’re continually being rejected, it’s time for ruthless self-analysis. These are the most common reasons that fiction manuscripts are rejected:The writer simply can’t write – or, just as commonly, hasn't taken the trouble to learn how to write;The writer has written a first draft and submitted it without bothering to edit it.…
The Truth About Publishing – 5
Lesson 4: What to do when you’re rejectedOnce you’ve done all that, and been rejected, send your work to another publisher right away. After all, it’s just one editor’s opinion and what one editor hates, another may love. If you’ve sent it to ten publishers and they’ve all rejected it, it’s time to rewrite it. If you’ve sent it to…
The Truth About Publishing – 4
Lesson 3: Skiing across the slush pileIn this country, the big publishers each receive 3-5,000 unsolicited fiction manuscripts a year. That’s around a hundred a week. The situation is much the same in the UK, Canada and the US – publishers receive an absolute deluge of manuscripts week in and out, even when they state that they’re not accepting unsolicited…
The Truth About Publishing – 3
Lesson 2: Anyone can do it, hah!There’s a widely held assumption that writing a book can’t be all that hard. After all, everyone can write, can’t they? We write stuff every day of our lives.At conventions and writing festivals I often meet people who assume writing is easy. They say, “I’m going to write a book one day when I…