Anyone know anything about publishing?

[Crusader]

Well to start off, i had been rather unhappy recently, which is when i was challenged by my best friend as to why. After thinking i had given up on what i had wanted to do and ended up in a dead end and rather mundane job. So with two weeks off work, i sort of went crazy, and have finished a manuscript i had been playing around with for like six years.

My question is does anyone know the process of getting published, and finding Literary Agents etc.

Thanks in advance =]

[Lexington]

Offhand, I don't. I know some people in other media, but no one in the book publishing game.

Whatever happens, I'd urge you to keep writing. Don't let your success (or lack thereof) alter that. I've been writing for going on twenty years, and other than a few pieces for a newspaper, I haven't sold anything. But then again, that hasn't been my aim. I like writing. Some of it is just for me, and some of it I post online for others to enjoy. If you can make your living at it, by all means, but if that doesn't seem in the cards, that's no reason to stop.

Lex

[Enzian]

I know a little. If it's fiction, and if you're aiming for a major publisher (which, commercially, is the best choice), you should DEFINITELY get a literary agent. The Writers' Handbook, issued annually, has a comprehensive list of reputable agents in many different fields of literature and geographical areas.

However: not all agents are reputable. Be wary about those who advertise (most proper ones don't need to, rather strangely). Rule number one: ON NO ACCOUNT should a literary agent gain any money from you, other than a share (generally around 15%) of what you make on the book. No reading fees, no signing up fee or anything like that.

Hope this is useful.

[Chip]

Fiction is tough for new writers to break into. A wonderful small-press owner/publisher I worked with a few years back said that the average decent selling fiction title sells about 4,000 copies (which is really not a lot when you consider costs of printing, etc)

Writer's Handbook is a great place to start, and i'll further amplify Enzian's thoughts: There are a lot of scam agents and scam publishers out there, and some of the scams are fairly sophisticated. They will say they like your book, but you need to have it edited and that will cost X dollars (which you have to pay.) Or they'll say it needs something else (illustrations, cover art, interior design/typography,etc) for which you get the bill.

Now... it's true that many books, particularly by first-time authors, do require some editing. There are 'developmental editors' who help bring out plot elements and encourage you to make a better book, and there are 'copy editors' who do light editing for grammar and syntax, and on nonfiction books, there are 'technical editors' who review for technical accuracy, and probably other types as well. But if you're with the right publisher (and here's why the bigger publishers are better), they have the people on staff who can do this without cost to you, it's part of the deal they make you.

A legitimate agent will never charge you any fees, nor insist that you use his or her recommended person for editing or cover design, or book design, or whatever.

A legitimate publisher will not charge you for any fees or costs associated with producing the book.

What some people do as a start is publish on Lulu.com (which is a print-on-demand publisher) but unless you are a marketing genius, you probably won't sell more than a few dozen copies. However, it can be a way to get your book into print and get feedback from people to help you improve your writing and strengthen the book.

There's also, somewhere, an amazing email discussion group for people that are self-publishing their books and/or looking for literary agents. If you're interested, I'll see if I can find it.

[Crusader]

Thanks all, i spoke to Jonny Geller at Curtis Brown. And they said to send in three chapters to them. I'm sending it off tomorow (damn bank holiday lol) so fingers crossed.

[Chip]

That's amazing news! Keep us informed!!