02/19/99

Ready to Write that Best Seller?

Itching to write that best seller? Before you put pen to paper read the following advice from book publishing consultant, Trish Reynolds, herself a published writer and member of the CONNECTICUT AUTHORS ASSOCIATION (CAA.) Trish works with writers on their book projects and provides guidance on publication and publishers. She also conducts seminars on various aspects of book publishing.

Trish's Advice

"Recently I received a call from a woman who had just completed a manuscript for a book. "So what do I do now?" she asked. "How do you get published anyway?"

Unfortunately, many writers do not think about how to get published until after they have completed their manuscripts. Actually the two go hand in hand. After all, the last thing a writer wants to discover after working for months or years on a book is that a similar one has already been published, or that a market does not exist for a particular book.

But by knowing your market, ideally before you write, you can significantly increase your chance of getting published. However, if you are reading this and have a completed manuscript on your desk, don't despair. Start researching. The more you know about the market the better your book proposal will be. Editors and agents will expect that you have done this work before you approach them. Because few books are rarely the first-ever published on a topic, editors and agents will want to know why your book needs to be published, and how it is unique. In addition, they will want to know who will buy it.

There are numerous ways to find market information about your book idea. Visit bookstores regularly and study the shelves where you would envision your book being placed. Write down the titles that are similar to your book idea. Also, talk with booksellers about your idea and ask them for input.

To do a more comprehensive search, visit an on-line bookstore like AMAZON.COM. With a database comprising over 2.5 million titles, Amazon.com can provide a long list of books on any particular subject. Additionally, in order to stay in touch with future trends, read "Forecasts" in Publishers Weekly. This section reviews forthcoming books in various genres, like fiction, poetry and nonfiction. You can find Publishers Weekly in the local library or on the newsstand.

After completing the research, you will have collected a list of titles. Your next step will be to locate these books and review them. Ask yourself, "What are the strengths and weaknesses of each one?" If you find too many similarities to your book idea, then you will need to reevaluate it and make adjustments. It's easier to make the adjustments before you begin writing than after you have completed a 350 page manuscript.

The processes of writing and GETTING PUBLISHED are intertwined. It is important to understand that publishing is a business. Therefore, publishers must make money on your book in order to publish more books and stay in business. It is your mission to convince an editor that your book is a good investment for the publishing house. A literary agent is looking for a good investment, too. Agents earn their living by selling manuscripts to editors, not by reading manuscripts sent to them by writers.

You can increase your chance of getting published by convincing an agent or a publisher that your book idea is unique and that there is a market for it. All it takes is thorough research first; writing that unique manuscript; and selling your story."

Still itching to write that best seller? Great! Now you're ready to get on with it!

Trish Reynolds

email: treynolds02@snet.net

LINKS:

CONNECTICUT AUTHORS ASSOCIATION
AMAZON.COM
GETTING PUBLISHED: Independent Publishers Guide

Please send questions or comments to bbruno@snet.net.