How do i go about getting a book published?

Answer 1

Get an agent or self publish. A publisher will rarely take a book "over the transom" for fear of being accused of stealing the book.

Answer 2

Hi there!

I'm a published author (30 books) and teach writing courses (including Write & be Published) at our college - and the answer to your question is, with great difficulty! But not impossible (someone writes the books on our shelves!), so read on.

First, finish your book. Then check for errors - things which might seem unimportant to you, such as mis-spellings and wrongly-placed apostrophes, will look unprofessional and give an agent or publisher the impression that here's a person who doesn't pay attention to detail. Getting someone else to read it (not a close friend/family, who will be biased) will give you some useful feedback.

Then write a list of publishers who publish similar books - your local bookshop is a good starting point. Then visit your library and ask to see a copy of Writers' and Artists' Yearbook - they list all agents plus UK and overseas publishers. Look up the publishers on your list - their entry will say whether they accept unsolicited manuscripts. List their phone numbers & addresses.

Others are advising you to buy books; I would strongly advise you NOT to do this. Publishers/agents/editors/
addresses/phone nos change, fold, move on etc all the time; these books are published annually, so the info is quickly out of date. Use the library! It's free!!!

Phone before you send anything off; some want 1 chapter and a synopsis, others 3 chaps. Ask what they want and who to send it to. Make your synopsis concise. You should also send a covering letter, and a stamped, self-addressed return envelope that is large enough to fit the ms in (you'd be surprised at the number of hopeful people who send a tiny envelope!) - and make sure the postage is sufficient.

Send your ms to several publishers at one time. It used not to be the done thing, but it is acceptable now.

Then wait. Waiting is tedious - some publishers keep your stuff for 3 months or more! If they send it back, cross their name off your list and send to the next one/s. If (unlikely perhaps - but possible!) several of them want to publish, sell to the highest bidder!

Above all, keep a positive attitude - and keep on writing. The more you write, the better you will write. Joining a writers' group will give you lots of practice.

Very good luck in your future writing career!

Peggy

Answer 3

Once you have finished your manuscript, beg, borrow or buy a copy of Writer's Digest. This lists something like 20,000 publishers and spells out exactly what the requirements are for each, what type of manuscript they specialize in, what length, and what they want from you.
Usually, you send in an outline. If they are interested, you send in the first two or three chapters. If they like that they will ask for the whole book. If they decide to publish it, they will offer you a contract and you're on your way to becoming a published author.
The other route is with the on-line publishers. You can get all the info you need on them through a search engine, or a query about e-books.
Good luck!

Answer 4

The first thing you want to do is contact an agent. You can find a list of agents in the current Writer's Market (which is available in almost every library.) Many publishers do not accept unsolicited manuscripts, which is why you need an agent to work on your behalf. Another thing you might want to consider is publishing short stories, essays, etc., to try and establish a name for yourself as an author. Many agents will want to know who you have already been published with before they take you on, because while they work for you, they don't really get paid until you get paid. They will want to make sure that getting you out there and published isn't going to take ten years to do. Even then, it could take years to get published. One of my colleagues has sent her manuscript out three times now (in the last 2 years,) and she still hasn't gotten published. She has also been published in many literary journals, magazines, anthologies, etc. So, I suggest you get publishing elsewhere first, start looking for an agent in the meantime, and just go with the flow. Maintain a positive attitude, and always remember that rejection isn't a personal stab. It's just part of being a writer. Good luck!

Answer 5

GET AN AGENT!
Since J. K. Rowling everyone wants to be an author and publishers will hardly even glance at an unsolicited mss unless it's been approved of by an agent. So unless you want to be contacted and rejected about ten years after you send the b***** thing off, get an agent and get them to help you out. Also agents know just about everything about the book business so if you have any problems you just need to talk to them about it. And look around, some agents are better than others. Look at their clientele list and see if you can spot any names you know.

Answer 6

Contact some publishers and sak what types they publish and what they need from you. I am a writer in progress, and am looking to have a book published eventually.

Answer 7

Just type in publishers into your search engine and start wading through that lot!
And good luck you will need it!
Been there, done that, contact me if you need help, dont fall for the first load of BS you may hear from any publisher!

Answer 8

Go buy or get "Writer's Market 2006" from the library. (It comes out every year.) It lists all the publishers in America, agents, guidelines, etc... Finish your manuscript and make sure it is edited properly. Copywrite it!!!!! Also you could self publish but that can be very hard, money consuming, and be difficult to promote.

Answer 9

write the book first!!! then get a publishing market book or look online

Answer 10

There are POD (print on demand) Publishers. It's not the old fashioned way of being choosen. POD will probably accept your story but you have to pay a fee. The old fashion way, you might never be choosen. As POD company there's xlibris.com. They have information on the service they offer and their fee. Take a look, but there are others.